The Käte Hamburger Centre for Cultural Practices of Reparation (KHK CURE) at Saarland University (UdS) is an institute for advanced study, funded by the German Ministry for Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR) since 2024. Each academic year, a new group of international and interdisciplinary fellows joins the centre to pursue research. For the centre’s fourth year (October 2027 to September 2028), we are pleased to invite applications from the beginning of September—pending approval by the BMFTR—for up to twelve fellowships with a duration of six to a maximum of twelve months (beginning in October 2027).
THE RESEARCH PROGRAMME AT THE KÄTE HAMBURGER CENTRE
Questions about reparation and irreparability are at the heart of KHK CURE’s research programme, taken up by fellows and members of the CURE team from a range of disciplinary perspectives.
Many harms and damages, such as the destruction of cultural heritage in colonised regions, the trauma of war, or the consequences of climate change, cannot be undone. Such irreversible harms often trigger complex processes of negotiation that can reshape reflexive forms of cultural identity and newly imagined or created lifeworlds. They raise the question of how to build a shared future in which we and others can live despite a past scarred by violence, injustice, and the destruction of natural environments. Economic and legal compensation is often a prerequisite for dismantling asymmetrical situations and structures. But it is most often the case that enduring wounds suffered by individuals, and the harm done to their lifeworlds, can be addressed only through cultural and social practices.
The Käte Hamburger Centre CURE is dedicated to studying such cultural practices of reparation. We define reparation as a process of shaping the future through an awareness that past damage can never be fully undone. Repairing something always means that the traces of destruction remain – whether visible, felt, or understood – and thus gesture toward a fragility of the self. We view cultural practices of reparation as encompassing a broad range of responses to the awareness of damage: oral and written forms of narration, poetry, linguistic and non-linguistic rituals, music, visual art, films, theatre, exhibition practices, historiography, and other forms of scholarship or knowledge production. These practices aim to develop possibilities and scenarios for the future that reach beyond interests grounded in identitarian claims and the restitution of a supposedly original identity, even in the face of enduring harms. Our goal at the centre is to collaboratively develop theoretical approaches to such practices.
APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS AND SELECTION CRITERIA
APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS FOR ALL FELLOWSHIP:
Applications may be submitted by scholars in cultural studies, the humanities and social sciences who have completed a PhD (submitted and defended) by the application deadline.
Artists who hold a doctorate and have experience in academic collaboration are also encouraged to apply for an academic fellowship.
Applications are open exclusively to individuals who are currently active professionally in academia or research, including those who are not formally employed, such as freelancers.
The following groups of persons are not eligible to apply for a fellowship:
- retired individuals, including professors emeriti
- scholars and artists who have not completed a doctorate
- members of Saarland University
CURE is expressly committed to diversity and welcomes applications regardless of gender, nationality, ethnic and social origin, religion/worldview, disability, age, or sexual orientation and identity.
Applications should present an independent research project that is relevant to the research topic of the centre and will be realised during the fellowship. The project should align with at least one of the centres’ three thematic fields – ‘history’, ‘experience’, and ‘nature’ – and relate to the fourth of the four designated themes for the following academic years:
- 2024/2025: Theory
- 2025/2026: Society
- 2026/2027: Bodies
- 2027/2028: Things
The designated theme of 2027/28 – “things” – foregrounds the material dimension of reparation: the focus should be on objects, artefacts, and material environments in which practices such as repair, mending, and reuse become culturally and politically significant, and through which processes of reparation are enacted both practically and symbolically.
Applications are invited only for the fellowship year running from October 2027 to September 2028. Further information on the centre’s thematic fields and annual themes can be found here.
The selection of fellows – carried out by our Academic Advisory Board – emphasises the proposed project’s academic quality, originality, and conceptual alignment as outlined in the project description with the centre’s shared research agenda. We also consider applicants’ qualifications, motivation, and career stage. The final selection aims to ensure a well-balanced cohort, ensuring a diversity of academic cultures.
ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR THE UNIGR FELLOWSHIP:
One of the fellowships will be awarded as the University of the Greater Region (UniGR) fellowship to a scholar with a completed doctorate (submitted and successfully defended by the application deadline) who is currently employed at one of the following member institutions: University of Trier, University of Liège, University of Luxembourg, University of Lorraine, and RPTU Kaiserslautern-Landau. In addition to the general requirements noted above, applicants for the UniGR fellowship must also be currently employed in an academic position at one of these universities at the time of application: the University of Trier, the University of Liège, the University of Luxembourg, the University of Lorraine, and RPTU Kaiserslautern-Landau. Proof of employment must be provided with the application for a UniGR fellowship.
Staff members of Saarland University are not eligible to apply.
The selection process for the UniGR fellowship runs in parallel with the other fellowships and is carried out by the Academic Advisory Board.
INVOLVEMENT AND PARTICIPATION
The centre will welcome up to twelve fellows a year. Fellows are expected to live in Saarbrücken and to devote their fellowship both to collaborative work within the centre and to their independent research project. They take part in centre’s events – colloquia, working groups, conferences, workshops, and the like – and contribute actively to the centre’s own publications. With approval from the Executive Committee, fellows will also have the opportunity to organise workshops or to collaborate in teaching or other academic events with our research and cultural cooperation partners. Longer absences from the centre for extended research trips or stays are not possible.
Saarland University is distinguished by its close ties to France and its strong European focus, with programmes and partnerships such as the Cluster for European Studies (CEUS) devoted to the topic of ‘European World(s): Projections, Reflections, Transformations’, the European university alliance Transform4Europe (T4EU), and the international university network University of the Greater Region (UniGR).
DURATION AND CONDITIONS
Fellowships are usually awarded for six to twelve months, always starting on 1 October.
The fellowship guidelines of Saarland University provide two funding options.
- Fellows who take unpaid leave from their home institution during the fellowship (or are independent scholars or artists) will receive financial compensation in the form of a stipend (at least 6,100 to 7,200 euros per month before taxes, depending on their qualifications).
- If a fellow chooses to keep their current salary and benefits, KHK CURE will pay their home institution the equivalent salary for a teaching replacement during the fellow’s time at the centre.
Expenses for travelling to and from Saarbrücken will be reimbursed once pursuant to the Saarland Travel Expense Act (SRKG). Fellows will be provided with a fully equipped workspace at the centre.
Modern apartment accommodation at Saarland University can be arranged on request for a monthly rent of approximately 1,250 euros.
Insurance and all other (living) costs that may be incurred must be covered by the fellows themselves.
APPLICATION DEADLINE AND MATERIALS
Following the publication of the call for applications in early September, applications must be submitted by 30 November 2026 using the form available on the centre’s website. Please include
- the CURE application form with abstract (to be entered online on CURE’s website)
- a PDF containing
- a letter outlining your motivation for applying (max. 1 A4 page)
- a CV (max. 3 A4 pages)
- a publication list
- a second PDF containing a project description with bibliography (max. 5 A4 pages), showing its connection to CURE’s research programme and how your research relates to at least one programme area and the annual theme
Writing academic texts independently is a key part of the intellectual work undertaken at the Käte Hamburger Centre CURE. We therefore welcome applications that reflect your individual voice and approach to your work, and expressly discourage the use of AI-generated text.
Please use minimum font size 11 and line spacing 1.15. Applications may be submitted in German, English, or French.
Please do not include photographs.
You should receive a confirmation email after submitting your application. If you do not, please contact cure@khk.uni-saarland.de.
CONTACT
We will notify applicants by the end of April 2027. Until then, please avoid inquiries about the status of your application.
Further information about the application process, the project description, and KHK fellowships in general is available in the FAQ section. If you have any other questions, please feel free to contact the centre by writing to cure@khk.uni-saarland.de.
As part of your application for a fellowship at the Käte Hamburger Centre for Cultural Practices of Reparation (CURE) at Saarland University (UdS), you will be submitting personal data. Regarding our use of personal data, please see the university’s privacy policy in accordance with Art. 13 of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) regarding the collection and processing of personal data. By submitting your application, you confirm that you have read the UdS policies on data privacy and protection.
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