DDGC History

The DDGC Collective was founded in 2016. As is the case with similar initiatives, the DDGC Collective started small. A number of emerging and established scholars sought a space for critical engagement with every aspect of what it means to work in German Studies. Their conversations in person, over the phone, and on social media soon grew into extensive discussions about the need for infrastructure to hold critical approaches to German Studies.

In 2017, the collective then held its first conference at the University of North Carolina - Asheville. The conversations there led to the first comprehensive publication based on the collective’s work: Diversity and Decolonization in German Studies (2020), edited by Regine Criser and Ervin Malakaj.

Since then, the DDGC has held a biennial conference, introduced various programming intended to support scholars working in various contexts, and seeks to be a venue that fosters various critical approaches to German Studies.