The University of Cologne and the Alfred Landecker Foundation conclude two funding agreements that will support interdisciplinary cooperation at the interface between international history and international law in the long term. Both agreements are linked to the ‘Cologne Center for Advanced Studies in International History and Law’ (CHL), a new central academic institution of the university, which was just founded by Professors Angelika Nußberger, Fabian Klose and Claus Kreß.
To begin with, the ‘Hans Kelsen Visiting Professorship for the History and Theory of International Law’ will be funded. The new visiting professorship will be located at the ‘Institute for International Peace and Security Law’ directed by Professor Kreß and will be funded with a total of 2.5 million euros over a period of more than 9 years.
The visiting professorship is dedicated to research in the history and theory of international law. Issues relating to the protection of minorities, collective rights in international law, the prevention and prosecution of crimes under international law, as well as the protection of cultural assets and restitution will also be addressed.
The visiting professorship is named after Hans Kelsen, in memory of the eminent legal theorist and constitutional and international lawyer, who was forcibly dismissed from the service of the University of Cologne in 1933 due to his Jewish origin and his democratic convictions.
At the same time, the ‘Colleg Konrad Adenauer’ will be funded with a total of 1.6 million euros . It will become the central pillar of the ‘Cologne Center for Advanced Studies in International History and Law’ (CHL). Thanks to the funding by the Alfred Landecker Foundation, renowned international historians and international lawyers can be invited to the Center to conduct research on topics such as human rights, humanitarianism, international humanitarian law, international criminal justice, as well as on foundational questions of war and peace. The ‘Colleg Konrad Adenauer’ will serve as a central location for international academic exchange and knowledge transfer at the interface between international law and international history. It is envisaged to reach out, on the basis of thorough scholarly research, to broader social discourses beyond university and academic boundaries.
“The interdisciplinary cooperation between history and international law combines the lessons of the past with the safeguarding of democracy and collective rights in the here and now,” says Lena Altman, Co-CEO of the Alfred Landecker Foundation. “We are pleased to promote the scholarly dialogue of internationally renowned experts in these fields, especially in the context of current conflicts and wars, such as the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine and Hamas' war against Israel.”
“The support from the Alfred Landecker Foundation will enable us to receive valuable input, through long-term close collaboration with colleagues from abroad, to the close cooperation in Cologne in the fields of international history and international law and to hereby deepen the relevant research reaching from foundational questions to pressing current problems,” says Professor Claus Kreß. “The encounter with our guests is also meant to inspire our younger scholars and our students as well as to give Cologne citizens a further incentive to visit the university at suitable occasions. We are very grateful to the Alfred Landecker Foundation for providing us with this splendid future perspective alongside its many other important commitments.”
Media Contact:
Professor Dr Fabian Klose
Managing Director of CHL
+49 221 470 5248
fabian.klose
uni-koeln.de
Press and Communications Team:
Jan Voelkel
+49 221 470 2356
j.voelkelverw.uni-koeln.de