Flagship-InitiativeTransforming Cultural Heritage
With the goal of placing cultural heritage at the center of research, teaching, and transfer in an innovative form, the flagship initiative “Transforming Cultural Heritage” aims to bring together Heidelberg University's diverse disciplinary and region-specific competencies in researching and practically dealing with cultural heritage. As a central measure within the framework of the Excellence Strategy, the Flagship Initiative networks research in the humanities and social sciences at Ruperto Carola in the field of Heritage Studies and, in doing so, strengthens the link between the university's Fields of Focus III “Cultural Dynamics in Globalised Worlds” and IV "Self-Regulation and Regulation: Individuals and Societies".
About the Flagship Initiative
The topic of 'cultural heritage', which is at the center of the Flagship's research activities, includes issues of high social relevance, which, in addition to the protection and preservation of cultural heritage, also encompass aspects of cultural and social diversity, political dimensions of (democratic) decision-making mechanisms and characteristics of civil societies.
The aim of the research taking place within the framework of the flagship initiative “Transforming Cultural Heritage” is to consistently combine the approaches and disciplines of the humanities with those of economics, social sciences, empirical behavioral sciences, and law in order to facilitate innovative and transformative research processes in the research field of "Cultural Heritage".
Research Funding
The flagship initiative “Transforming Cultural Heritage” (FI TCH) aims to promote excellent science that combines innovative research and interdisciplinary collaboration. In doing so, FI TCH focuses on combining the methods and theories of the humanities (FoF3) with those of the social, legal, economic and behavioral sciences (FoF4) within the framework of three funding priorities. Furthermore, the initiative supports structure-building measures in the area of "Digital Heritage".
Funded Projects
The calls for proposals and the funding of projects are carried out as part of the implementation of Heidelberg University's excellence strategy. The focus is on innovative projects that sustainably and visibly strengthen the research area and which, in turn, have the task of linking FoF 3 and FoF4. Currently, the FI TCH supports five large collaborative research projects (the so-called Research Tandems) and other small measures, such as research seminars and summer schools.
Board
FI TCH is governed by a Board composed of professors and junior scholars from Field of Focus 3 and 4 (six in total). The Board promotes the implementation of the University's strategic goals associated with the initiative, identifies and promotes emerging fields of research, and acts as a multiplier for the initiative. Speaker of the FI TCH is Prof. Dr. Christiane Brosius (HCTS), Deputy Speaker Prof. Dr. Dirk Werle (Department of German Studies).