A New World in the Shell of the Old

Drawing on the concept of prefiguration – the idea that we shape the future through how we act in the present – a panel of international guests will explore what this means in practice. How do we fight for freedom of movement and equal rights while states raise higher fences and turn to authoritarian nationalism? How do we confront impunity and stand with victims of armed conflict and genocide while violence persists? How do communities in the Global South defend their land, water, and livelihoods against exploitation and dispossession by powerful economic and political actors? Together we ask not only which injustices we oppose, but also how we can transform the present. Radical imagination requires the courage to envision alternative futures and the strategies needed to realize them.

The panel brings together Sameer Ashar (UC Irvine School of Law), Duru Yavan (antenna, formerly Hafıza Merkezi Berlin), Ouassima Laabich (Superrr Lab) and Miriam Saage-Maaß (ECCHR), with a closing intervention by Vince Warren, from the Center for Constitutional Rights in New York.

After the panel, the audience is invited to contribute questions, perspectives, and experiences in an open Q&A session. The evening will continues with a reception where you can meet the lawyers, activists and alumn* network of the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR) – in person and continue the conversation. The ECCHR is a Berlin-based organization that uses international law to challenge grave human rights violations worldwide.

This event is open to anyone curious about the relationship between law, movements, and social change – no legal background is required.

ECCHR is supported by the Schöpflin Foundation. A New World in the Shell of the Old is hosted by Spore Initiative.