Austria-Israel Academic Network Innsbruck

AIANI Board Member Helmut Schwarz Awarded the 2025 Wolf Prize

3/11/2025

AIANI congratulates its Advisory Board member, Professor Helmut Schwarz, on receiving the prestigious 2025 Wolf Prize in Chemistry!
The Wolf Prize, awarded by the Wolf Foundation, is one of the most esteemed honors in the scientific world. Professor Schwarz was recognized "for quantifying reactive species in the gas-phase to solve fundamental problems in catalysis." His pioneering research in C-H bond activation and single-atom catalysis has significantly shaped the field of chemistry and continues to impact industrial processes worldwide.
Professor Schwarz's work has not only advanced scientific understanding but has also contributed to environmentally friendly solutions for hydrocarbon conversion. His studies on selective activation of inert C-H bonds, including methane, have provided crucial insights for sustainable chemistry.
We are honored to have such a distinguished scientist as part of AIANI’s Advisory Board, fostering Austrian-Israeli academic collaboration and scientific exchange.

Shaked Haran in Innsbruck: When the law fails

7/18/2024

On Wednesday, July 10, the Israeli lawyer Shaked Haran visited the University of Innsbruck. As part of a lecture organized by the Austria Israel Academic Network Innsbruck AIANI, she reported on the fate of the Israeli hostages and, in particular, her brother-in-law Tal Shoham, who has been held in the Gaza Strip since 7 October 2023.

The importance of international law

Shaked Haran chose the title "When the law fails: perspectives of an Israeli lawyer and hostage relative" for her presentation. In impressive words, she described the reality of her family after October 7 and described the far-reaching effects of the terrorist act. At the same time, she emphasized the crucial importance of international law and appealed for international solidarity.

Appeal to Austria and the international community

The lecture demonstrated how a region is plunged into a constant state of conflict in the absence of a supranational authority. At the same time, it highlighted the fundamental importance of law and order for the survival and prosperity of a society. This made Shaked Haran's final appeal to Austria and the entire international community to uphold international law and ensure peace and security for all people in the region all the more urgent.

AIANI REPORT: Rachel Kontorovich Rosner (PhD Candidate, Philosophy, Bar-Ilan University, Israel)

7/15/2024

AIANI REPORT

I was pleased and honored to participate in the July-4-6 2024 International Conference, “Adorno’s Sociology,” organized by Innsbruck Professor Frank Welz and hosted by the University of Innsbruck, at the Hotel Grauer Baer in Innsbruck’s historic Old Town. Frank was a gracious and welcoming host, and the participants of the conference were of the highest academic caliber. Bringing together Adorno scholars from around the globe was a rare experience of academic exchange, learning, and community. The presentations and keynote speakers brought many new ideas and added much creative inspiration for my own future research. Given the current Gaza war and global situation, as an Israeli scholar I especially appreciated the academic excellence fostered at the conference.
On the final day of the conference in the morning session I presented the paper, “Adorno and the Question of Theology.” My paper discussed the question of how best to understand Adorno’s abundant yet puzzling use of theological language. Is it mere rhetorical flourish, or does it have a deeper bearing on his philosophy? I first reviewed three influential views on the topic—that Adorno used theological language only rhetorically; that his philosophy evinces an “Inverted” Theology; and that his philosophy is really an example of Negative Theology. My presentation argued that Adorno’s core, non-foundationalist model for philosophy, what he calls the “constellation,” points beyond these three readings. More than this, understanding his theological usages by the logic of the constellation prefigures pressing topics at the forefront of Critical Theory today: as Jurgen Habermas recently put it, “How to save the truth content of religious traditions for the sake of secular modernity while denying at the same time its very foundation in religious belief?”
While my stay in beautiful Innsbruck was too brief, it was enough to know that it is a place I would love to come back to, and not just for the beautiful views. The conference demonstrated that the University of Innsbruck is a vital hub for international and regional excellence and of the highest academic standards.

Rachel Kontorovich Rosner
PhD Candidate, Philosophy, Bar-Ilan University, Israel
Research Fellow, The Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, Israel

Conference "Who knows what actually happened? Healers and shamanistic practicesin historical and archaeological evidence.

7/5/2024

The Institute of Archaeologies, Department of Medieval and Modern Archaeology at the University of Innsbruck and the Association of Urban Archaeology Hall i.T. organized a conference on 21 and 22 June 2024 on the topic "Who knows what actually happened? Healers and shamanistic practices in historical and archaeological evidence".

Ten speakers from six nations (Austria, Italy, Germany, Denmark, Israel and the USA) presented their current results from archaeology, ethnology, theology, medicine and history and answered questions from the audience on June 21, 2024 in the Urban Archaeology Hall i.T. in Hasegg Castle in Hall in Tirol.

On 22 June, the program included an excursion to the Gurgltal miners' world in Tarrenz with the Museum of the Healer and the Winkler Pharmacy Museum in Innsbruck. The international colloquium aimed to provide an overview of archaeological and historical evidence and finds in the context of healers and healing practices from stone age until 20th century, primarily in Europe. Dubious findings were also discussed and debated.
The interesting presentations and informative contributions made the conference an extremely exciting, instructive and insightful event for all participants.

Thanks to the financial support of AIANI - Austria-Israel Academic Network Innsbruck. So it was also possible to invite Leore Grosman (Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel) to Tyrol. In her lecture "A 12,000 year old Shaman burial from the Southern Levant (Israel)", she reported on a burial in the Hilazon Tachtit cave in Western Galilee, Israel from the late Natufian period, which is unique due to the number and type of grave goods and probably refers to a shaman with a special social status.
A total of 54 people from Austria, Italy, Germany, Denmark, Israel and the USA took part. This provided a wonderful opportunity for mutual acquaintance, lively scientific exchange, international networking, new project ideas and future cooperation in research work.

Univ.-Prof. Dr. Harald Stadler

Austrian-Israel Staff Exchange – Josefa Weintraub from the University of Tel Aviv

6/18/2023

In June 2023, as part of the Eramus+ Staff Training mobility program supported by AIANI, Josefa Weintraub, a member of the Academic Secretariat Department at Tel Aviv University, visited the University of Innsbruck. Her visit provided an excellent opportunity to engage with the staff of the Vice Rectorate for Teaching and Students, fostering the exchange of ideas and working methods. Special recognition goes to Bianca Gegenburger, who organized the training program for Ms. Weintraub. The AIANI Team and the Office of Vice Rectorate for Research and Education warmly welcomed Ms. Weintraub to Innsbruck.

Throughout her five-day stay, Ms. Weintraub gained valuable insights into various aspects of the University of Innsbruck's operations. Ms. Gegenburger and her colleague, Theresa Hohenauer-Todd, shared their knowledge regarding the university's structures and responsibilities in different fields of practice.
Additionally, the Office of Bologna Process and Teaching Development, represented by Veronika Schaffer and Christina Raab, provided Ms. Weintraub with an in-depth understanding of the Bologna process.

Marianne Prast, representing the Offices for Quality Assurance in Teaching, provided a comprehensive overview of the University of Innsbruck's quality management practices, which aim to uphold the highest standards.

“I had a wonderful visit to the University of Innsbruck!” Ms. Weintraub wrote about her stay.
“My colleagues went above and beyond to tailor a job shadowing program that was beneficial both professionally and personally.
During my stay, I met with colleagues from the office of the vice-rector for teaching and students and AIANI, quality assurance in teaching, the office for Bologna process and teaching development, and the office of the senate.
Everybody I met was friendly, patient, and very nice.

In spite of a few differences between our academic systems, I learned to what extent we all share the same problems and concerns regarding the implementation of new study programs or changes in existing study programs and also measuring and assuring the quality of teaching. I felt that our exchange of information, practices, and dilemmas was fruitful. There are a few ideas I will suggest to my university to adopt.
I look forward to having my colleagues from Innsbruck as guests of my university.”

If you are interested in the Erasmus+ Staff Training program, get to:
http://www.aiani.at/erasmus-staff-training-program.html

Lecture “Levinas on War and Peace” in the workshop “Peace in Times of a Third World War Fought Piecemeal”

4/24/2023

In April, Prof. Ephraim Meir, a member of the Jewish Philosophy Department at Bar-Ilan University in Israel, visited the University of Innsbruck. Thanks to the assistance of AIANI, Mr. Meir had the opportunity to deliver a lecture during a workshop organized by Prof. Wolfgang Palaver from the Department of Systematic Theology in Innsbruck.

The workshop titled "Peace in Times of a Third World War Fought Piecemeal," held on April 24th at the Catholic Theological Faculty of the University of Innsbruck, centered around Pope Francis's observation that wars are being waged worldwide when considering all forms of violence that violate people's fundamental rights.

The workshop began with Wolfgang Palaver providing an overview of recent developments in Catholic peace ethics. Andreas Müller (Medical Law Research Center) then discussed the opportunities and limitations of international law, with Jodok Troy (Political Sciences) acting as a respondent. Martin Senn's (Political Sciences) contribution focused on the relationship between nuclear weapons and security, with Stefan Hoffmann offering a response.

In the afternoon session, philosopher Ephraim Meir from Bar-Ilan University presented the concept of peace in Levinas's philosophy, which states that the traditional philosophical pursuit of knowledge is secondary to a basic ethical duty to the other.

Mr. Meir highlighted Emmanuel Levinas’s connections to Franz Rosenzweig and Vassili Grossman. Meir's presentation was followed by Andreas Oberprantacher's (Philosophy) response, questioning the absence of a dialectical relationship between politics and morality in Levinas. Louise du Toit (Philosophy, Stellenbosch University) critically examined the distinction between war and peace, referencing authors such as Nelson Maldonado-Torres and Adriana Cavarero. Michaela Quast-Neulinger (Systematic Theology) provided a response to du Toit's contribution. Ed Noort (Ancient Hebrew Literature and Material Culture of the Levant, University of Groningen) concluded the workshop by discussing meta-narratives in apocalyptic times, drawing examples from the Hebrew Bible, with Wilhelm Guggenberger (Systematic Theology) acting as the respondent.

Co-Amenability of Invariant Random Subalgebras: From AIANI-Fellow Dr. Amrutam Tattwamasi

4/18/2023

Dr. Tattwamasi Amrutam's visited the University of Innsbruck as AIANI Fellow from March 31, 2023, to April 18, 2023. He collaborated with Hanna Oppelmayer, PhD, a PostDoc researcher in the Stochastics research group at the Department of Mathematics. The focus of the Stochastics Group in Innsbruck is mainly on random processes on infinite discrete structures such as graphs and groups, or objects with self-similar properties (fractals).

In collaboration with Dr. Yair Hartman from BGU, the researchers applied concepts in Probability Theory (Stochastics) to structures in Operator Algebra Theory in an ongoing project. Operator Algebra is an algebra of continuous linear operators on a topological vector space with the multiplication given by the composition of mappings. In particular, it is a set of operators with both algebraic and topological closure properties.

Dr. Amrutam's expertise in Operator Algebras complemented Oppelmayer's probabilistic perspective, contributing to their research project. The visit resulted in significant progress and partial answers to their research questions, including the proof of a theorem for certain classes of examples.

To conclude the visit, Dr. Amrutam presented their findings in the local seminar of the Stochastics research group at the University of Innsbruck.
You can find more information about the seminar at:

https://www.uibk.ac.at/mathematik/stochastik/seminars.html

Title: Exploring higher order thinking in curriculum, pedagogy and teacher learning in March 2023

3/26/2023

Prof. Linor Hadar, an internationally recognized expert in the fields of curriculum research and teacher professionalization, came as AIANI Fellow at the Faculty of Teacher Education at the University of Innsbruck from March 14 to March 23, 2023. The research and exchange program developed together with Prof. Hadar was entitled "Exploring higher order thinking in curriculum, pedagogy, and teacher learning."

As part of this program Prof. Hadar gave lectures at the Institute of Teacher Education and School Research and the Institute of Subject Didactics and worked in two courses, both in the bachelor's and master's programs, with students on the topics of "Teacher Education in Israel" and "21st Century Skills." Prof. Hadar and staff from both institutes plan to continue working together on research projects and publications on the topics of 21st Century Skills and the Sustainable Development Goals of UNESCO. A joint seminar is also being considered. During Prof. Hadar's visit to the Institute of Islamic Theology and Religious Education, the existing cooperation between the institute and the University of Haifa was deepened. The importance of this cooperation, especially for interreligious dialogue, was emphasized, and various possibilities for further cooperation were explored. In a meeting with Dean of Studies Kraml and staff from the Internship and Teacher Training Office contents and structures of teacher education at both universities were discussed.
The objectives formulated for Prof. Hadar's stay, especially the planning of joint research projects and the exchange of research and implementation approaches related to teaching and innovation in teacher education, were very well implemented. The foundations for sustainable research cooperation structures were successfully laid with the stay.

Speaking in Spite of All: German-Jewish Thought and Its Afterlife / Sprechen trotz allem: Deutsch-jüdisches Denken und sein Fortleben

3/23/2023

Vom 14. bis 15. Dezember 2022 fand im Palais Claudiana (Herzog-Friedrich-Straße 3, 6020 Innsbruck) die internationale zweisprachige Tagung Speaking in Spite of All: German-Jewish Thought and Its Afterlife / Sprechen trotz allem: Deutsch-jüdisches Denken und sein Fortleben statt. Sie brachte renommierte Forscher:innen aus dem In- und Ausland nach Innsbruck, um im Rahmen von einer Buchpräsentation, zwei Keynote-Vorträgen und drei Panels dem Denken von Autor:innen wie Franz Kafka, Walter Benjamin, Gershom Scholem, Theodor W. Adorno, Hannah Arendt, Paul Celan und Ilse Aichinger nachzuspüren, deren Bezug zur jüdischen Tradition zu klären sowie die vielgestaltige Rezeption zu diskutieren, die sie bis heute erfahren. Thematisch stand dabei der Zusammenbruch des Vertrauens in die Sprache angesichts der schockhaften Erfahrungen des 20. Jahrhunderts – allen voran der Shoah – im Zentrum. Dieses gemeinhin unter dem Schlagwort der Sprachkrise verhandelte Phänomen wurde im deutsch-jüdischen Diskurs in der Tat breit und aus verschiedenen Perspektiven reflektiert. Davon ausgehend wurden auf der Tagung Fragen wie die folgenden erörtert: Wie wurde und wird die Sprachkrise in der künstlerischen, literarischen und filmischen Auseinandersetzung diskutiert und wo wird sie sichtbar? Was bedeutet Zeug:innenschaft angesichts der Dringlichkeit, Unsagbares zu sagen? Wie steht es unter der Prämisse des Bilderverbots um die Möglichkeit, Utopisches zu denken? Organisiert wurde die Tagung von Stephanie Graf, Michaela Bstieler und Florian Pistrol (allesamt Universität Innsbruck); unterstützt wurde sie von der Österreichischen Forschungsgemeinschaft, dem FWF-Projekt Membership Metaphors as „Doorkeepers“ (P 33780), dem Vizerektorat für Forschung der Universität Innsbruck, dem International Relations Office der Universität Innsbruck und dem Austria–Israel Academic Network Innsbruck.

Nach Grußworten von Dirk Rupnow (Dekan der Philosophisch-Historischen Fakultät der Universität Innsbruck), Andreas Oberprantacher (Universität Innsbruck, Leiter des FWF-Projekts Membership Metaphors as „Doorkeepers“) und Stephanie Graf machte den Auftakt am Abend des ersten, gut besuchten Tages die Präsentation von Vivian Liskas (Universiteit Antwerpen) jüngstem Buch Prekäres Erbe. Deutsch-jüdisches Denken und sein Fortleben (Wallstein-Verlag 2021). Dabei griffen Chiara Caradonna (The Hebrew University of Jerusalem) und Birgit Erdle (Technische Universität Berlin) unterschiedliche Aspekte des Buches auf und dachten sie weiter, um so in die Diskussion mit der Autorin überzuleiten.

Der zweite Tag wurde durch einen Keynote-Vortrag von Vivian Liska eröffnet (Response: Michaela Bstieler) und einen Online-Keynote-Vortrag von Robert Kaufman (University of California, Berkeley; Response: Stephanie Graf) geschlossen. Dazwischen fanden drei Panels mit Beiträgen von Benjamin Balint (Van Leer Institute Jerusalem), Chiara Caradonna, Eli Schonfeld (Shalem College Jerusalem), Laurin Mackowitz (Universität Graz) und Birgit Erdle statt. Den Abschluss der Tagung bildete ein gemeinsames Abendessen im Restaurant Olive

Die Organisator:innen erwägen, die Beiträge der Tagung nun einem breiteren Publikum über eine Schwerpunkt-Ausgabe eines philosophischen Journals zugänglich zu machen.

Human Rights and Sanctions: Navigating the Path to Coherence

3/16/2023

In a thought-provoking lecture on March 16, 2023, Professor Joel Slawotzky discussed the intricate relationship between human rights and sanctions. The lecture, part of Professor Peter Hilpold's course, sparked animated discussions, aiming to highlight sanctions as a powerful tool for advancing global human rights while acknowledging challenges in their implementation.
Professor Slawotzky emphasized the intrinsic value of sanctions as a non-military approach to address human rights violations, especially in conflict zones. By leveraging economic and political pressures, sanctions offer a viable alternative to armed intervention, safeguarding fundamental rights and liberties.
However, complexities arise when implementing sanctions. Professor Slawotzky raised concerns about inconsistent and abusive use, with some violations receiving sanctions while others of equal or greater magnitude escape consequences. To address this, he advocated for careful case-by-case evaluation and the formulation of unified criteria.
In subsequent discussions, Professor Hilpold supported the value of sanctions in times of crisis, praising the European Union's commitment to upholding human rights through sanctions. He agreed with Professor Slawotzky's call for coherence and consistency, recognizing the importance of a balanced and uniform approach.
Students actively engaged in the conversation, emphasizing the need to protect freedom of speech within the sanction framework. Their input highlighted the necessity of comprehensive guidelines that safeguard not only physical rights but also democratic principles.
The lecture on "Human Rights and Sanctions: Noble Goals and Potential Barriers" offered a nuanced exploration of the complexities in promoting human rights through sanctions. Insights from Professor Slawotzky and subsequent discussions shed light on maintaining coherence, addressing abuses, and considering freedom of speech. Moving forward, a comprehensive and consistent approach guided by unified criteria is vital to uphold human rights principles for all.

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