Who are we?
We are a group of students concerned about issues of diversity and discrimination at the Bauhaus Universität Weimar. We are part of the diversity office and are working inside the university's structures to support and promote diversity, equity, and inclusion in the university. When students experience discrimination on or off campus, we, the Diversity Guides can be their first point of contact when it comes to dealing with these situations.
What is diversity?
For us, diversity is an action, a practice of including, involving and acknowledging differences in people. The world and living conditions are not the same for all people. Depending on certain attributes, our living conditions are very diverse. Also, society and the structures in which we move don't treat all people in the same way or with the same amount of respect. Recognizing these differences and the diversity between people is the beginning of the path to a discrimination-free society and respectful coexistence. But this recognition alone is not enough. We must actively oppose discrimination of all kinds, such as on the basis of religion, class, different social, educational, cultural and ethnic backgrounds, sexual orientation, and gender identity, disability, mental illness or age.The university as any institution is not free from discriminatory practices and behaviours. We as the Diversity Guides focus on the wishes and needs of those affected. Be it discriminatory university staff, teachers or colleagues, a specific situation or structural discrimination in institutions, feel free to approach us! Together we can find individual solutions and suitable offers of help to deal with discrimination, whether on an institutional level or personal.
Everyone should have a place in our university.
Team Members
Hannah Friedrich
For a few years now I have been a student of Visual Communication at Bauhaus, focussing on intersectional feminism in graphic design and typography. During this time I also got involved in student activism and the queer community on campus. Bauhaus University and the city of Weimar repeatedly promise to support diversity projects and make our campus a friendlier place for marginalized students. To ensure that these statements do not just remain lip service, we must actively hold the university accountable. For diversity to thrive, the people in positions of power must begin to take student voices seriously and confront, rather than avoid, the discrimination within the institution's structure and in everyday life.
Zeinab Rahimi
I am an Iranian architect, currently pursuing an interdisciplinary approach between art, technology, and design by studying master's degree in MediaArchitecture at Bauhaus University. Due to my personal experience of living and studying in three different parts of the world; East Asia, the Middle East, and Europe, I have experienced radical cultural differences. In coping with the culture shock, I realized how important it is to have a critical understanding of the diverse world we are living in. Being a Diversity Guide is where I can place my hopes and effort to support diversity, a place where I can believe that no one is out to fit into the so-called predefined social norms. This place gives me the courage to accept who I am as well as to accept and support other people just the way they are. We are enough to be loved and supported just the way we are.
Isabella Lee Arturo
I am a Colombian interdisciplinary artist, living and studying in Germany. My creative and academic projects focus on topics that connect the individual experience with the collective and social contexts. Art for me brings tools for understanding and empathy building among the individuals of a community. I also believe that diversity is key to a learning environment, showing signs of a healthy society that has room for everyone.
Jay Steinert
Hi, I'm Jay. I'm white, queer & nonbinary, using "they/them" pronouns in english and "hen" / none in german. I started studying "Visual Communication" in 2019 and have since then focused on intersectional queer-feminist activism at the university. With the Diversity Guides I hope to create safer spaces for students from marginalized communities here in Weimar. As I am living with a chronic illness I understand that every person has different needs in general but also regarding our studying journey. I hope that the Diversity Guides will be a good first step for looking after those needs individually and finding structures that work for us. Navigating through the university structures - be it because you're queer and want to change your name or because of other issues regarding your identity - can be hard and scary and I hope as a Diversity Guide I can be a helping hand for everyone who needs it.
Margarita Osipova
I am a Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) Master's Student at the Bauhaus University. I believe that it is very important to make all voices be heard and to create a safe, comfortable and welcoming environment for people in Academia because as an institution we are responsible for creating a better future for everyone. Also, Diversity is something that allows people to be more creative and to be able to always look at any question from different angles, which is vital for science.
Despite my background not being much about Diversity, I do know what it is like to move to another country and how challenging it can be a woman in this world. One of my main research interests is Feminism in research - in HCI in particular. But Feminism is not only about women. It is about the mindset of taking care of others and paying attention to seeing if some group of people is being mistreated on a personal or an institutional level. Being a Diversity Guide for me is all about that - helping people who need our support to feel comfortable in the university - be that helping with documents, work, stress or dealing with discrimination - and changing the academic environment to be more welcoming for Diversity.