Some people debate to improve their skills, some for the competition and some for an ideal of discourse or knowledge. For the latter, we'd like to present an opportunity to engage in conversations with people from all around the world to exchange and discuss differing views: Bridger. The newly developed app just got publicly available, so we thought it a good time to have in interview with the people behind it. ...

The cancellation of a public debate in Oxford on the topic "This House believes Britain's abortion culture hurts us all" caused a controversial and emotional debate in the United Kingdom. After Tim Squirrell, current president of the Cambridge Union Society, published an article in the students' newspaper "The Tab," saying, "it’s about time we recognised that and started thinking responsibly and considerately about freedom of speech," he was exposed to hostilities. Tim allowed us to republish his latest article from his blog "Squirrelling the Motion" that reflects on the ongoing discussion. Besides offering an overview on the events of the ...

The elections for the European Parliament are right around the corner. This year’s elections promise to be different. For the first time, the citizens of the European Union can directly vote for the President of the EU parliament, while the rise of far right groups could create tensions in the EU. Under these impressions, the coordination meeting for the European Debates took place in Berlin this weekend. Right in the heart of Berlin, at the Allianz Foundation Forum next to the Brandenburg Gate, 23 young Europeans gathered to plan and discuss the series of upcoming debates. The association Bürger Europas e.V. ...

The Vienna debaters from Debattierklub Wien (Stefan Zweiker, Rosie Halmi, Andreas Prischl, Jakob Reiter, Melanie Sindelar, Anna Nessmann and Andreas Villareal) release a case for overthinking the new reg reform which was discussed at this year's WUDC council. You can read their thoughts now exclusively on Achte Minute. Stances on the WUDC Reg Reform from an evolving society: How preferring societies in WUDC registration on basis of a break legacy puts back the debaters that train the hardest Executive summary The Reg Reform drives a painful thorn into the flesh of those debating societies who are working hard to reach their first break ...

At the World Debate Forum in Berlin 2013, debaters from across the world talked about using debating in tournaments, trainings and youth projects. In the opening speech, Doug Cochran presented “Ten suggestions for a better Worlds”. Among these points, he suggested to abloish or reform Points of Information during BP debates. As these thoughts might interest you aswell, Achte Minute asked Doug to write down his thoughts. Doug Cohran: Two Potential Reforms to Points of Information At the World Debating Forum, there was a discussion about potential reforms to WUDC debating. I put forward a number of suggestions, including abolition of points ...

[caption id="attachment_13785" align="alignright" width="300"] Diese Woche in der ZEIT: Eine ganzseitige Anzeige der WUDC. (Foto: Henrik Mädler)[/caption] The countdown is running: There are only seven days left until the opening ceremony of the World Universities Debating Championship in Berlin begins. While more than 800 speakers, 300 judges and 200 volunteers from all parts of the world will find their way to Berlin, Achte Minute will accompany this countdown with preliminary reports around the WUDC Berlin 2013. We start with a text from Matthias Winkelmann which got published this week in a full page add in the mayor German newspaper „DIE ZEIT“. ...

Please see the German version to get a fuller coverage of the media review. It's the first time the German language debating championship (Meisterschaft im deutschsprachigen Debattieren or MDD) is hosted outside Germany. The MDD is part of the ZEIT DEBATTEN series. Behind it are VDCH in cooperation with the weekly newspaper DIE ZEIT, with the support of Deutsche Telekom and the media partner of a major public German broadcaster (ZDF). The series has been staged in alternating cities for more than a decade under the patronage of the former German chancellor Helmut Schmidt.

 

 

Please read Filip Bubenheimer's essay on German court debates in ... uhm ... German.

 

"Ein guter Jurist muss deutsch sprechen, nicht juristendeutsch!" - Roughly speaking, good legal practitioners need to know a language everybody understands. This is a claim by Prof. Dr. Rüdiger Wulf who works at the ministery of law in the German state of Baden Wurttemberg, he also is an honorary professor at the University of Tubingen. Some years ago, he established soft skill courses dealing with law debates, something which is neglected in German jurisprudence curricula. Philipp Stiel, editor of the VDCH newsletter for a culture of debate in Germany, talked to Prof. Wulf. Currently the interview is not available in ...

Manuel Adams took part in the World Debate Forum (WDF), this time staged in Manila. It was in Botswana where the WDF was hosted for the first time, an initiative of Logan Balavijendran. 50 participants, 15 papers, 2 days - these are the numbers of the forum, please read the German version of Manuel's report to learn more about the facts: debating in Burma, teachers' education in Iraq and the distribution of debating on the Balkans and many more circuits. ...

We are sorry, this article is not available in English.

Daniel Sommer, an old-stager on the German debating circuit, on online debates and their merits. Please read the German version to learn about Daniel's  conclusion. This article was originally published in the recent issue of the newsletter of VDCH, or Verband der Debattierclubs an Hochschulen (Association of Debating Societies at Universities). This issue was on "debates on the internet". Read the complete newsletter on the VDCH homepage.

Gregor Landwehr, who hosts an online platform for debates, on online debates and their merits. Please read the German version to learn about Gregor's  conclusion. This article was originally published in the recent issue of the newsletter of VDCH, or Verband der Debattierclubs an Hochschulen (Association of Debating Societies at Universities). This issue was on "debates on the internet". Read the complete newsletter on the VDCH homepage.

Please check the German version of this article to read our review on two German online debating platforms, debatare.de and sagwas.net. xzy / apf

Pirates have boarded the senate of Berlin. With 8.9 percent, the Pirate Party made it to the Berlin City Parliament. Philipp Stiel, vice president of the Association of Debating Sociaties at Universities, or VDCH, talked to Sebastian Jabbusch, member of the Pirate Party. Please read the interview in German, harr, harr.

Philipp Stiel, Vice President of the VDCH, the umbrella Association of Debating Societies at Universities (Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy), reports from Berlin where on Sept. 14, 2011, the first public IQ²-Debate took place. ...

Supporting debate events in any language is the main and common goal of IDEA and OSF. IDEA stands for International Debate Education Association, OSF for Open Society Foundations.Both aim at building democracies that are responsible to their citizens, both do that through supporting debate activities - this time on a very local basis with (limited) financial means. You're planing a debate event? Or have an innovative idea that needs to be subsidized? Apply now for support! More info is available from the website of OSF. General standards for assigning subsidies are the following: Only groups established for a not-for-profit purpose with ...

Deutschlandradio interviewed Marcus Ewald, vice president of the umbrella organization Association of Debating Societies at Universities (VDCH or Verband der Debattierclubs an Hochschulen). To read what Marcus has to say on speaking in public, see the online version of the interview. xzy / apf

Learn about what the media in Germany and beyond have to say about the German Debating Championship, or Deutsche Debattiermeisterschaft (DDM) 2011. Please read the German version of this bit. Find the tabs of DDM online: The one after prelims and the final tab. ...

This article ist only available in german language. Don't hesitate to read the original version. ...

The german weekly, DER SPIEGEL, reports in its online edition on the FLTRP Cup in Beijing, China. Thanks to Michael Shapira the Achte Minute is able to provide the full set of topics debated in Beijing. Michael Shapira wons this year’s World Universities Debating Championships (WUDC or Worlds) at Gaborone, Botswana in the category “English as a Second Language” (ESL) and judged in Beijing. ...

This article is not available in English, please read the German version of this article. ...

The Debattiergesellschaft Jena (DGJ) will have some new participants on 10 May. Four bank employees form the Geraer Bank eG are going to join their weekly debate next week. Within an internal training program, the four employees have gained rhetorical knowledge. Now they are going to practice with the debaters form Jena in the "Wartburg" style where no proposals are allowed. But that's not enough for Jena's debating society: preparations for the ZEIT DEBATTE Jena are already in full swing. xzy / sol

More impressions from the German regionals. Please read the German version of this article to learn more about what debating societies in Heidelberg, Mainz, Bremen and Tübingen have to say about their respective competitions and how the media in the Brandenburgian capital Potsdam cheer for the winners of the Eastern German regional. Der Westen even discusses the problem of minors breaking to the final - they are students from a school in Unna. glx / apf ...