The Edinburgh University Debating Society invite debaters to their Edinburgh IV 2010. Chief adjudicator is Leela Koenig, very well-known as chief adjudicator of this year’s Euros in Amsterdam. Joining her is Victoria Smith, winner of various Scottish competitions. Speeches in the pre rounds are just five minutes. The registration is to be announced, included are food and beverages. Contact: davidnorris3[at]btinternet.com apf / glx

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The ICU Debating Society present their Imperial College Open Debating Competition in London. The tournament, staged on 23 October, offers 4 preliminary rounds, semis and a final. Registration will start at 8 a.m. at the Imperial South Kensington campus. Chief adjudicators are Jack Watson (Cambridge) and Ben Woolgar (Oxford). With this year’s competition, the conveners aim at defending their reputation for their strong judging pool and promote this event as a perfect preparation for competitions in Oxford and Cambridge. The registration fee is 35 British Pound per team, societies are requested to send n-1 judges. Crash is available. For more ...

Debating at the Balkans, just by the Croatian Riviera – you’ll find that and more at the Split Open from 29 to 31 October 2010. Together with other conveners, the Split Open hosts aim at establishing the European Continental Debate League (ECDL) which will culminate in a master tournament by the end of the academic year next summer. Therefore, ECDL delegates from participating countries will meet at Split Friday afternoon. The tournament will start Saturday morning with the first of five preliminary rounds. But the socials Friday night are already part of the event since the conveners promise to stage an ...

Eisenach is neither very big nor is it very exciting. Out-of-towners attract attention. A bewildered taxi driver asks a party-hungry debater whether he has arrived today. He has not. He has arrived here the day before. What for? To do the same thing, the Deutsche Debattiergesellschaft  (DDG), the German alumni association of former student debaters, has done every year in this small but lovely Thuringian town: Convene its Masters’ Cup. [caption id="attachment_5488" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Die neu eingeführten Manschettenknöpfe mit DDG-Vereinsabzeichen. Daneben gibt es auch Pins fürs Revers und Magnetpins. (Foto: Oliver Hörtensteiner)"][/caption] All DDG members are allowed to compete, all others are ...

The German Debating Society for Alumni Deutsche Debattiergesellschaft (DDG) has elected a new executive board. Gudrun Lux is now president, Stefan Hübner, Oliver Hörtensteiner and Isabelle Loewe her deputies. [caption id="attachment_5457" align="alignleft" width="288" caption="The new executive board of DDG: Gudrun, Isa, Stefan and Oliver. (Foto: Anna Hörtensteiner)"][/caption] ...

Debaters from England, Germany, Latvia, Greece and Turkey met on the Koc University (KU) campus for the Istanbul 2010 International Debating Championship. The tournament was the first hosted by the university after it ran what was probably the best World Universities Debating Championship ever in Antalya last December and is a revival of the series of open tournaments the KU Debate Club ran since 2004, proving that the locals simply haven’t had enough of running excellent competitions after hosting both Worlds and Euros within three years. Those that visited the campus in 2007 may remember the splendid dormitory accommodation it offers ...

Getting into Israel is not so hard at all. Even if you are alone and come by land through Syria, Lebanon and Jordan you will be very likely to be welcomed warmly by the surprisingly young girls at the border post – the boys all sit around customs for unknown reasons. That is, at least if you wave around your Hebrew invitation the team of the Red Sea Open (RSO) preemptively sent out. Having discussed this tiny strip of land and its politics so many times, I was in additionally mentally thrilled to debate not only about Israel, but also ...

The Literary and Historical Society of the University College of Dublin invites to the UCD Novice IV 2010 which will be staged on 28 October. The conveners do not only promise three preliminary rounds, five-minute speeches and break to final, but also awesome motions. On top of that, they are working on increasing the team cap (of now 28 teams). Since the team cap is filled by now, you may still register using this form – you will be added to a waiting list. Chief adjudicator is Gregg O'Neill, Worlds Masters Winner and Top Irish Speaker at Euros and Worlds ...

Ever wondered about those American debates where the debaters speak so fast that they can hardly be understood? Where a team will come into the debating room with large plastic tubs stuffed full of "evidence"? This is Policy Debate (also known as Cross-Examination Debate or CX for short), a debating style that originated in the USA and is the prevalent style in US universities and high schools. However, it is not used widely in Europe, where parliamentary debating is prevalent. It is primarily research- and evidence-based, thus encouraging debaters to put as much proof for their statements into a speech ...

The next season of the German debating ZEIT DEBATTEN series is set: the general assembly of VDCH, the Association of Debating Societies at Universities, came together in August and decided upon dates and locations of four ZEIT DEBATTEN tournaments, four regional championships and the German debating championship (DDM) 2011. An overview over the coming season 2010/11 is provided here: ...

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On Saturday, August 21, thirteen clubs founded the Free Debating League (FDL). The FDL is a decentralized association of debating tournaments aimed at encouraging tournaments outside the ZEIT DEBATTEN series. At the end of each season the most successful clubs and speakers will be acknowledged. The general assembly of VDCH (Association of Debating Societies at Universities) received the initiative with a broad majority. The FDL charter states: “We believe that our project provides long-term planning options, raises the reputation of decentralized tournaments and increases the incentive to take part in these. All debaters in Germany are offered new opportunities to experience ...

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A debater's lifestyle is usually manifested through traveling long distances to see old and meet new friends, arguing on sometimes high and sometimes low levels, lots of references to sex, alcohol and drugs and plenty of debating. Between August 8 and 14 about sixty debaters from Austria (Melanie Sindelar, Annabell Knoll, Rosie Halmi, Stefan Zweiker and Leonhard Weese from Debattierklub Wien), Germany (Fabian Farkas from Tilbury House Cologne), Greece, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia and the United States all enjoyed the above mentioned genuine debater's lifestyle in the remote alpine area of southern Serbia. Just a few kilometers north of Kosovo, we were ...

Debattierclub Bonn won the Schobbe Cup 2010! In the final round, the team “Die Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo” from Berlin Debating Union in the proposition argued with “Bonn Generations” about net neutrality at Campus Westend of Frankfurt Goethe University. The team of Isabelle Loewe,  Gudrun Lux and Jens Fischer from the former German capital defeated Georg Sommerfeld, Dessislava Kirova and Kai Dietmann from the now capital. Awarded the title as best speaker of the final were two: Jens Fischer from the winning team and Nicolas Eberle from Debattierclub Johannes Gutenberg of Mainz, a so-called Fraktionsfreier Redner, free speaker. There are usually ...

Bristol Debating Union is inviting speakers and judges to the Bristol IV 2010. Their slogan reads „Don't pretend you don't want another chance to practise for Worlds”. The tournament takes place on 10 and 11 December and is hence a perfect opportunity to get some short term exercise for the World University Debating Championships (WUDC, a.k.a. Worlds) in Botswana. The conveners guarantee two days of competition and socials. Crash will be available for all participants. Contact sm9918[at]bristol.ac.uk to register or to get more information. apf / sol

The University of Leeds will be the venue of the Leeds IV 2011. The tournament will be held on 12 and 13 March 2011, debating style is BPS. The debaters will run through five preliminary rounds with seven minute speeches. Sunday will stage semi finals and finals. Chief adjudicator is Doug Cochran from Cambridge University, well known to those who had been at the Euros recently where he functioned as deputy chief adjudicator. Contact: cn09bw[at]leeds.ac.uk. ...

Even old stagers among those debating in the German speaking scene do very often not know what the EUDC Council really is. First things first: EUDC stands for European Universities Debating Championships a.k.a. Euros. But what is it that hides behind the “Council”? The one who knows about it in detail is Jens Fischer from Berlin Debating Union. He has been re-elected president of EUDC Council at this year’s Euros in Amsterdam. When Achte Minute asked him about his being voted, he laughed – his old and new office comes with a great workload rather than fame. [caption id="attachment_4895" align="alignright" width="180" caption="Jens ...

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Defying the Sheriff of Nottingham – at least rhetorically? Then let’s roll with Nottingham Trent IV! The Debating Society of Nottingham Trent University invites speakers and adjudicators to their tournament on 15 January 2011. It starts with registration early in the morning at 9 a.m. Chief adjudicator is going to be Tim Lees. You pay 10 British Pound, but you get much more: socials on Friday and Saturday as well as crash – so don’t leave your sleeping bags at home! Format of debate is British Parliamentary Style. Contact: n0236563[at]ntu.ac.uk. apf / glx

The deadline of registration for Istanbul 2010 International Debate Championship is now extended until 15 August 2010, as Can Talaz from Koç University Debate Club informs. A fee of 65 Euros includes debating, eating and drinking at the Golden Horn from 3 to 7 September 2010. The conveners set it as their goal to see every debater drunk – at least once. Go and register for the tournament and check if that really enhances your luck at breaking into final rounds! apf / glx

On Sunday, July 18, came about something that we haven’t seen since the oil crisis in the 1970ies: the motorway A40 (near Dortmund) was car-free! But that was not due to the high gasoline prices, but due to culture in and around the Ruhrpott. A passage of 60 kilometers length between Duisburg and Dortmund was occupied by the festival "Still-Leben" – a lot of creative people, musicians, artists, as well as picnickers came together to celebrate. And, needless to say, the Debattierclub Münster did not miss the opportunity to debate publicly during that cultural event – with the help of the debate ...

32 teams found themselves in tropical heat - far above 32 Celsius - when they gathered in Cologne, Germany for the Tilbury House Summer Open on the first weekend in July. Tilbury House, the organizers, had forecast that weather and thankfully supplied the thirsty debaters with ample cool Kölsch (the local type of beer), of which there was no shortage even during the debates. Teams hailing from nine different countries fought in five preliminary rounds, a semifinal and a final over topics such as the legalization of drugs, the right to strike and - in the final - the European ...

This year’s World Universities Debating Championships (WUDC) take place in Botswana’s capital Gaborone. The conveners announced the second stage of registration to start on Monday, 12 July. This requires the confirmation of spots for all participants. A deposit of 150 US-Dollar per participant, be it speakers or adjudicators, has to posted to the WUDC bank account which has been updated just recently. Chief Adjudicator Logandran Balavijendran emphasizes that all rules on registration will be carried out strictly and consequently, i.e. if deposits are not paid by 21 July 2010 you will lose your granted ...

Cork lies in South Ireland, where the country is green, the people are drunk and the beer does not foam. At least that is the chliché. The truth, of course, is different: There is foaming beer - and even drunk you may experience great debates in Cork! Twenty teams, most of them from Ireland and Great Britain, prepared for Euros on June 25 and 26 in Cork. Ross McGuire was Chief Adjudicator, just as he will be in Amsterdam for Euros. Team "Magic Dripping Walls" (Eoghan Casey and Paddy Rooney from Dublin) persuaded adjudicators and audience the most and won the ...

"Das Wort Debattierklub bleibt eine Schmähung, solange die Öffentlichkeit solche Debakel erlebt." – Zu einem in diesem Schlussakkord gipfelnden Verriss sah sich das Feuilleton der Berliner Zeitung am 10. Juli 2001 veranlasst, als es über das Finale der ersten Deutschen Debattiermeisterschaften berichtete. Die publizistische Abreibung hielt den Zug der Debattiergeschichte gleichwohl nicht auf. Als Debakel wurden die folgenden neun Finals jedenfalls nicht mehr gebrandmarkt. Mittlerweile locken die Deutschen Meisterschaften Medien aller Couleur, um fröhlich und freundlich der staunenden Öffentlichkeit der Redekunst frönende junge Menschen zu präsentierten und Universitäten und die Lokalpresse feiern "ihre" Deutschen Meister wie eine erfolgreiche Sportmannschaft – ...

Wer schon immer einmal auf dem Balkan debattieren wollte, der ist bei der Serbia Summer Debate Academy vom 8. bis 14. August an der richtigen Adresse. Die Anmeldung ist jetzt eröffnet. ...