Review of the Festival of Diversity at the HSMW
On 9 April 2024, the first "Festival of Diversity" organized by the Diversity Management of Mittweida University of Applied Sciences took place at the Center for Media and Social Work.
The festival showcased diversity in all its facets through various offers and hands-on activities and gave employees, students, teachers and researchers at Mittweida University of Applied Sciences the opportunity to put themselves in the shoes of people in different life situations. The offers included, for example, self-awareness courses on the topics of age, addiction and disability.
These offers were carried out in cooperation with the Landesarbeitsgemeinschaft Selbsthilfe Sachsen e.V. (LAG SH SACHSEN), the WohnXperium e.V. of the TU Chemnitz, the Landesinitiative Demenz Sachsen e.V. and the Addiction Center Saxony. These offers were accompanied by people with disabilities who passed on their own experiences and were available to answer questions.
The event also included the official opening of the touring exhibition #Weil Vielfalt fetzt" ["Because diversity rocks"]. The exhibition shows people with and without disabilities who are committed to inclusive coexistence in Saxony in their very own way. It will be on display in House 39 (2nd floor) at Mittweida University of Applied Sciences until April 30, 2024.
In addition, the Equality pillar screened three short films from the FILMFEST DRESDEN, that portrayed the diversity of genders and lifestyles. The film program questioned stereotypical notions of gender roles, provided insights into the reality of life for queer people and people of colour and challenged traditional expectations.
The Equality pillar also presented an input followed by an exciting discussion on the topic of "Diverse perspectives on equality". Two external experts discussed important events in the history of equality and the issue of equality from the perspective of female and male socialization.
The discussion was led by Steph Krah, Dresden cultural worker and artistic director of Familia*Futura, Festival for Family Diversity and Care Utopias, and Sascha Möckel, profeminist men's counselor at Männernetzwerk Dresden e.V.
This year's Ingrid-von-Reyher Award and the Master's scholarships from the Equal Opportunities Department were also awarded as part of the Festival of Diversity.
Snacks and drinks were also provided. Delicious and healthy sandwiches from the Illgen bakery were available free of charge, as were homemade soft drinks. The student council was in charge of the food stand and also offered other inexpensive beverage alternatives.
With the first Festival of Diversity, we were able to show how diverse people can be and how important the topics of diversity, acceptance and equal opportunities are at our university.