The Network for an Alternative Quest will hold its fourth "Challenging Capitalist Modernity" conference in Hamburg over the Easter weekend, between 10-12 April 2020. Under the title "Challenging Capitalist Modernity IV: We want our world back! – Build Autonomous Education and Organization", the participants of the three-day meeting will again move thematically from the analysis of fundamental problems of the capitalist system via revolutionary theoretical approaches to practical examples. This year, special attention will be paid to the main topics "Autonomous Education and Organization". The titles of the three thematic blocks are:

Capitalist Modernity – The Multicide Regime

Ecocide

Societycide

Feminicide

Epistomicide

Resist, Reclaim and Rebuild

Resistance and Change begins in Art

Autonomous Education

Building freedom as a way of living

We want our world back – and here is how!

Organize to resist, reclaim and rebuild Session

Call to Bottom up Democratic Confederalism

This conference is organized by the University of Hamburg AStA and the Network for an Alternative Quest: International Initiative “Freedom for Abdullah Öcalan–Peace in Kurdistan”, KURD-AKAD Network of Kurdish Academics, YXK - Association of Students from Kurdistan, Kurdistan Report, ISKU - Informationsstelle Kurdistan e.V., Cenî -  Kurdish Women's Office for Peace, Civaka Azad — Kurdish Center for Public Relations.

This year's conference will again feature many impressive speakers from all over the world, including John Holloway, Raúl Zibechi, David Graeber, Ayreen Anastas, Sina Reisch, CIG, Rojava Film Commune, Radha D’Souza, Barry K. Gills, Andrej Grubacic, MST, Nazan Üstündag, Renee Gabri, Nika Dubrovsky and Harriet Friedman.

The goal of the conference is to create a platform where collective movements, communities, trade unions, activists and individuals with intellectual, academic and professional backgrounds etc could come together to discuss ideological, philosophical, aesthetic and political issues, and what they are doing. Furthermore, their successes and failures so that there could be a shared learning process as well as mutual understanding to undertake future challenges.

“With this fourth conference, we want to demand an end to the destruction of our world and environment, a call to put a stop to femicide, societycide, genocide and epistemicide and we want to discuss how we can make it happen. Our world has not seen such a scale and pace of destruction before. In the last four hundred years not only are different languages and cultures becoming extinct but everyday numerous plants and animals too are becoming extinct. Capitalist modernity and its source patriarchy has brought us not only to the brink of the destruction of the human society as we know it but also our world.

However it is not all hopeless, women and peoples in Kurdistan and all around the world are resisting and discussing and actively building free life. From our experiences, we have learned that if we take a firm collective stance against this chaos, we can begin the task to rebuild our civilization, the democratic civilization— but this is only possible, if we do something about it now. We do not need to search another world elsewhere; we want our world back!”, say the organizers.

Technical Information

Date: 10–12 April 2020, registration 8:00 a.m.

Place: University of Hamburg, Audimax.

Translation: Simultaneous in Kurdish, English, German, Turkish; possibly Italian, Spanish and/or French.

Food: Lunch is 3 € for registered participants; tea, coffee, and water will also be available.

Livestream: The entire conference will be streamed in several languages.

Cultural activities: There will be cultural activities on Saturday evening.

Donations of a minimum 15 € requested to defray the expenses of the conference.

Accommodation: Sleeping accommodations in private homes at no cost, April 9–13, 2020.

Registration is now open; register early to secure a place.

Those interested can register at [email protected] and tell if they need accommodation. This is required for smoother registration on the day and to secure an accommodation.