Save the date:
November 13-14, 2025, Bonn
transform.NRW
Symposium
Creating sustainability
through art, culture, and design.
The symposium brings together players from art, culture and design with those from science and society to discuss key issues of sustainability transformation. We are planning an event with workshop and lecture sessions, performative-musical elements, film screenings and thematically complementary exhibition tours in the Kunsthalle.
The symposium is part of the 4-year joint project transform.NRW, a cooperation between the Wuppertal Institute, the Bergische Universität Wuppertal with the Bundeskunsthalle Bonn and a further partners from the fields of art, culture, design and science.
Impulse from:
Gavin EvansJacob Sylvester Bilabel
Green Culture Anlaufstelle, Project Lead
Since 2023, Jacob Sylvester Bilabel has been in charge of setting up the federal government's central Green Culture contact point in Germany. In summer 2020, he launched the Action Network Sustainability in Culture and Media, funded by the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media. The network has since grown to include over 50 of the most important cultural institutions in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. As part of a consortium, he also developed the nationally standardised, culture-specific climate assessment standards KBK & KBK+ as well as the free, usable tool of the German Conference of Ministers of Culture. In 2009, Bilabel founded the pan-European Green Music Initiative as a cross-industry think tank. The non-profit initiative now brings together more than 350 festivals and 500 venues across Europe, reaching more than 3 million young Europeans.
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Photo: Gute UnternehmensfotosDaniela Jacob
Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon, Climate Service Center Germany (GERICS) - Director GERICS
Daniela Jacob is Director of the Climate Service Centre Germany (GERICS), Chair of the Climate Council of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg and of the German Committee for Sustainability Research in Future Earth (DKN) and a member of the Earth League. She is an honorary professor at the Leuphana University of Lüneburg and a Fellow of the International Science Council (ISC). She was coordinating lead author of the IPCC Special Report on the Impacts of Global Warming of 1.5°C and lead author of the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report (Working Group II). Expertise includes regional climate modelling, climate services, adaptation to climate change, sustainability.
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Photo: Jasper EhrichLars Jessen
Co-founder PlanetNarratives; producer, director, screenwriter; expert in narrative climate communication)
Lars Jessen is a producer, director and author. He has made award-winning cinema and television films such as ‘Dorfpunks’, ‘Fraktus’ and ‘Mittagsstunde’ and has directed over 100 episodes of popular series such as ‘Tatort’, “Polizeiruf” and ‘Mord mit Aussicht’. He has been honoured for his work with the Grimme Prize, the Golden Camera and the German Television Prize, among others. As co-founder of PlanetNarratives, he develops transformative narrative formats - most recently realised in the improv comedy ‘Micha denkt groß’ together with Jan Georg Schütte.
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Photo: Jasper EhrichNicole Zabel-Wasmuth
Co-founder of PlanetNarratives; media lawyer, script consultant, climate story consultant, expert in climate communication
Nicole Zabel-Wasmuth holds a doctorate in law and specialises in copyright, film and media law. After working at the FFA, Freshfields and most recently for 6 years at UFA Fiction, she now focusses on narrative climate communication. As a climate story consultant and co-founder of PlanetNarratives, she combines media science, psychology and storytelling-based expertise to support filmmakers in transformative storytelling, among other things.
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Photo: UNU-EHSXiaomeng Shen
Vice-Rector of the United Nations University in Europe (UNU-VIE)
Director of the United Nations University Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS)
Prof. Dr. Shen Xiaomeng has been United Nations University (UNU) Vice-Rector in Europe and Director of UNU Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS) since 2020. She facilitates collaboration with UN stakeholders, shapes policy, and leads academic programs. Prof. Shen is the chief academic and administrative officer of UNU-EHS and oversees its direction, organization and programmes. Her recent research interests include human-nature relationship, indigenous knowledge and a policy shift from GDP growth to wellbeing.
Photo: B. Herlo 2025, HSLU DFKBianca Herlo
Lucerne University, Design Film Art, Head of the ‘Transformation Design’ Competence Centre
Bianca Herlo is Professor of Eco-Social Design and researches issues of social and digital participation, gender equality, digital justice and the potential of design for socio-ecological transformation. She is Chair of the German Society for Design Theory and Research (DGTF) and a founding member of the international Social Design Network. Since 2022, she has co-hosted the podcast "Purple Code. Intersectional feminist perspectives on digital societies".
Salons, panels and labs incl.:
Photo: Sebastian JarychErica von Moeller
Professor of Audiovisual Media Design at the University of Wuppertal, director, author, and project lead at transform.NRW
Director, author, and professor Erica von Moeller studied both fine arts and film. Since 2001, she has been making films in various genres, such as the feature film “Leben mit Hannah” (Living with Hannah, 2006), the feature film “Fräulein Stinnes fährt um die Welt” (Miss Stinnes Travels Around the World, 2009), the historical television film “Sternstunde ihres Lebens” (The Moment of Their Lives, 2014), and the transmedia narrative “2052 – Geschichten von Morgen” (2020–25). As a media artist, she develops exhibition projects at the intersection of moving images, space, and sound. Since the summer of 2011, she has been teaching at the University of Wuppertal as a professor of audiovisual media.
Photo: Wuppertal Institut / W. SondermannChrista Liedtke
Head of the Sustainable Production and Consumption Department at the Wuppertal Institute, adjunct professor of Sustainability in Design at the University of Wuppertal, and project lead at transform.NRW
Prof. Dr. Christa Liedtke is head of the Sustainable Production and Consumption Department at the Wuppertal Institute. Since 2022, she has been an adjunct professor for sustainability in design in the department of Industrial Design at the University of Wuppertal. Her work focuses on research strategies in the field of sustainable production and consumption, evaluation of resource efficiency and sustainability of and in value chains, user-integrated product-service development, and sustainable and circular design.
Photo: Fiona KörnerMalene Saalmann
Research assistant at the Department of Sustainable Product Design and Development at Kassel Art Academy
Malene Saalmann works at the Laboratory for Sustainability Issues at the University of Kassel (SDG+ Lab) on the topic of transformations in work and business. In addition, she has been pursuing a doctorate since April 2025 on the topic of strategic design methods and sustainable consumption practices in the field. As a system designer by training, she uses product development to explore the relationship between people and objects with a focus on consumer behavior and the design process.
Photo: Matthias RitzmannMareike Gast
Professor of Industrial Design with a focus on Materials, Technology, Sustainability at the Burg Giebichenstein University of Art and Design
Mareike Gast has been Professor of Industrial Design with a focus on materials, technology, and sustainability at Burg Giebichenstein University of Art and Design Halle since 2016. Her teaching and research focus on the development of (more sustainable) material interactions and transformation processes, as well as on exploring the potential and risks of biotechnology. She is project manager of BurgLabs, a platform for creative and interdisciplinary research in the fields of sustainability, biotechnology, and robotics.
Photo: ecosign / Charlotte WulffJanine Steeger
Director ecosign Academy for Sustainable Design
Janine Steeger is a journalist with 20 years of television experience in front of and behind the camera. Since 2015, she has specialized as a presenter and speaker on all topics related to sustainability. As the new director of ecosign, she has made it her mission to raise awareness of the academy for sustainable design. Janine is an initiator, co-founder, advisory board member, and author. In all of her work she is driven by the question of how we can enable as many people as possible around the world to live a good life.
Photo: Uwe SchinkelFabian Hemmert
Professor of Interface and User Experience Design, Dean of the School of Art and Design at the University of Wuppertal
Design, art, and culture can be understood as the opposite of anesthesia: while anesthesia numbs the senses, design opens them up. It helps us to feel things that we could not feel before—be it the drama of climate change, the fragility of ecosystems or opportunities for solidarity. Art can irritate, move, and open up new perspectives. Culture creates the space for resonance in which these experiences are shared and interpreted.
Photo: Tilo Schulz / Maximilian GeuterTilo Schulz
Artist, author, curator
Tilo Schulz has been represented in national and international exhibitions since the 1990s. Since 2021, Schulz has been accompanying Pradtke GmbH in Bochum in its transformation process, overseeing the renovation of the workspaces and providing essential impetus for a new corporate culture. Since 2022, Tilo Schulz has been part of Werkstatt Morsbroich in Leverkusen, which aims to rethink the museum and baroque ensemble from an artistic perspective and to establish it sustainably in the urban community.
Cooperation partners:
Photo: ecosign / Charlotte WulffBernd Draser
Program director and Senior Consultant Sustainability at ecosign Institute for Sustainable Future
Cultural scientist Bernd Draser has been teaching at ecosign in Cologne since 2004. As a senior consultant, he supports organizations in implementing their sustainability strategies. As a university lecturer, he heads the “Sustainable Design” and “Sustainable Design Management” degree programs (B.A. and M.A.). He has given numerous lectures and published extensively on the subject. In 2022, his book “Sustainable Design: Origins, Future, Perspectives” (together with Elmar Sander) was published.
Photo: Kulturbüro WuppertalBettina Paust
Head of the Cultural Office of the city of Wuppertal, art historian, and cultural manager
As a former museum director and art historian, Dr. Bettina Paust's work focuses on exhibitions and publications on artistic positions that deal with sustainability issues, especially in the performing arts. Her work currently focuses on working and networking strategies between administration, politics, and artists for the implementation and feasibility of sustainability goals, especially in the independent scene.
Photo: Simon-VeithDunja Karabaic
Member of the executive board of ökoRAUSCH Think Tank e.V.
Since the founding of the ökoRAUSCH Festival for Design & Sustainability in 2008, Dunja has been one of the First Movers in the sustainability scene. As a graduate of the Hamburg University of Fine Arts, she develops projects and formats as a project designer and cultural manager that always focus on the creative side of sustainability. Dunja is also active as a curator, speaker, and presenter, true to the motto “Doing is like wanting, only more extreme.”
Photo: BoziicaBabicInes Rainer
Project manager at creative.nrw
Ines Rainer worked for several years as an editor at a television production company and has produced various formats for WDR. In 2012, she co-founded the non-profit Foodsharing, where she was active on the board until she co-initiated the start-up The Good Food in 2014. She has been supporting the creative.nrw team since 2017 and has been project manager since August 2022. Her work focuses on strengthening and networking players in the creative industries in NRW, thereby unlocking cross-sector potential for sustainable transformation.
Photo: HWK DüsseldorfGeske Houtrouw
Consultant for Transformation and Sustainability at the Düsseldorf Chamber of Crafts
Building on her expertise in architecture, communication, and sustainability management, she raises awareness of sustainability in the skilled trades and establishes networks to put transformation into practice. With their creative and technical expertise, skilled trades make an important contribution to living and experiencing sustainability in everyday life—both in the circular economy and in the practical and creative development of new solutions.
Preliminary Program
Thursday, November 13, 2025
| When? | What? | Who, how & with whom? |
|---|---|---|
| 13:00 – 13:15 | WELCOME | Welcome address by Eva Kraus, Director of Bundeskunsthalle, and the transform.NRW team |
| 13:15 – 13:35 | LECTURE: Prosperity in Times of Transition | Introduction by Christa Liedtke (Wuppertal Institute) |
| 13:35 – 14:00 | INTRODUCTION: transform.NRW – Shaping Sustainability through Art, Culture and Design | Network and platform release with Martina Fineder (BUW), Carolin Baedeker (WI), Andreas Pawlik and Bernhard Poppe (dform, Vienna) |
| 14:00 – 15:00 | AGORA Part I: Daring Transformative Relations | Keynotes by Jacob Bilabel, Bianca Herlo, Daniela Jacob, Xiaomeng Shen, Nicole Zabel-Wasmuth, Lars Jessen |
| 15:00 – 16:00 | AGORA Part II: Salons Salon 1: Societal and Cultural Relations Salon 2: Human–Environment Relations Salon 3: Economic and Institutional Relations | Open discussion forums with keynote speakers, actors from art, culture, design and sustainability sciences, and symposium participants |
| 16:00 – 16:30 | Coffee, Meet & Greet | |
| 16:30 – 17:00 | AGORA Part III: Results and Outlook | Moderated by Bernd Draser (ecosign) |
| 17:00 – 18:00 | ARENA for Good Practices | Short presentations from the transform.NRW network, curated with Ines Rainer (creative.NRW) |
| 18:00 – 19:00 | FILM LECTURE: Performance | To be announced |
| 19:00 – 20:00 | Dinner & Networking | |
| 20:00 – 21:00 | DANCE PERFORMANCE | Curated with Bettina Milz (Pina Bausch Center) |
| ab 21:00 | Interactive NETWORKING EVENT | To be announced |
| ganztägig | transform.NRW PLATFORM | User test station by dform, Vienna |
| ganztägig | INTERVIEW BOX | transform.NRW film team interviews symposium participants |
Friday, November 14, 2025
| When? | What? | Who, how & with whom? |
|---|---|---|
| 10:00 – 10:15 | WELCOME | Welcome by the transform.NRW team |
| 10:15 – 10:30 | IMPULSE: On the Role of Art, Culture and Design for the Sustainability Transformation | Input by Manfred Fischedick, President of the Wuppertal Institute |
| 10:30 – 11:00 | FILM PRESENTATION Good Practices | With director Erica von Moeller (University of Wuppertal) |
| 11:00 – 12:00 | LABS & PANELS 1 | Narratives and Stories of Success – Imaginative and narrative practices for change How to transform – Methods, tools and literacy for socio-ecological transformation |
| 12:00 – 13:00 | Lunch & Networking | |
| 13:00 – 14:00 | ARENA for Good Practices | Short presentations from the transform.NRW network, curated with Ines Rainer (creative.NRW) |
| 14:00 – 15:00 | LABS & PANELS 2 | Networks of Transformation – Allies, collectives, accomplices Labs and Workshops of Transformation – Formats for collaborative research, learning and experimentation |
| 15:00 – 15:15 | Coffee, Meet & Greet | |
| 15:15 – 16:15 | LABS & PANELS 3 | Places of Transformation Museums, theaters, swimming pools and other cultural venues Demanding, Promoting, Changing Funding instruments and policies for art, culture, design and sustainability  |
| 16:15 – 16:45 | DANCE PERFORMANCE | Curated with Bettina Milz (Pina Bausch Center) |
| 16:45 – 17:00 | CLOSING & OUTLOOK | Farewell by the transform.NRW team |
| laufend | EXHIBITION TOURS | Dialogical and guided visits to current exhibitions at Bundeskunsthalle: WEtransFORM and Expedition World Oceans |
Venue:
In 2025, the Bundeskunsthalle is ringing in the year of ecological transformation. In this context, an international exhibition project on sustainable architecture and urban development is also taking place in Europe, in which transform.NRW is involved as a partner:
WEtransFORM. Zur Zukunft des Bauens
June 6, 2025 to January 25, 2026, Bundeskunsthalle, Bonn