Imagining the Ends of the World: Conversation & Workshop with Author Andrea Paluch

In an age of ecological and social upheaval, what role can educators play in helping students imagine life beyond crisis? How can language classrooms become spaces where difficult emotions find form in words, stories, and dialogue?

Author Andrea Paluch’s “Die besten Weltuntergänge” (The Best Ends of the World) confronts these realities directly in twelve vividly imagined scenarios. Ranging from dystopian collapse to hopeful visions of renewal, Paluch's work creates a space where young people can articulate their anxieties, test their imaginations, and debate what kind of world they want to live in. The scenarios do not provide answers, but instead function as provocations: what happens after endings, what forms of resilience might be possible, and what responsibilities do we carry for shaping alternative futures?

This event brings Andrea Paluch into conversation with language educators and opens a space to think together about the role of teaching in times of uncertainty.