Global Gallery 2024

Among the three most voted projects, "Shadows of Injustice" received the most number of votes: In Nairobi, 1.7 million people - roughly equivalent to the population of Hamburg - walk to work every day, risking their lives, as the road network is mainly designed for car traffic, although only eight percent of Nairobi's inhabitants own a car. The goal of Dorcas Nthoki Nyamai's project from the Department of Spatial Planning is therefore to expand the infrastructure for pedestrians and improve its safety.

The second place was awarded to the project "Sucking up or soaking in? Climate resilient upgrading of informal settlements in Bangkok": Students from the Department of Spatial Planning are investigating unofficial neighborhoods in Bangkok and how they can be better protected against flooding, as Thailand's capital is at high risk of flooding and natural disasters particularly affect the low-income residents of unofficial communities.

The project "Integreat - the digital integration platform" also received 1,500€: The app enables immigrants to quickly and easily access relevant information that cities or districts provide on the platform in several languages. Nationwide, almost every sixth municipality is already using the app, which Prof. Manuel Wiesche from the Department of Economics and Philip Popien and Mizuki Temma from the Department of Computer Science developed together with partners.

Among the three projects with the most votes was the project "Umweltgerechtigkeit, Environmental Justice, Justiça Ambiental" by students of the Department of Spatial Planning. In Brazil's major cities of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, environmental injustices are particularly evident. Therefore, the student project deals with the connection between environment, health and social situation in Brazil. During a field trip to Brazil, participants collected data on air quality in various neighborhoods of the cities and created maps depicting the pollution in the areas.

The second winning project is based at the Department of Mechanical Engineering. In the "Engineers Without Borders Challenge," student teachers from TU Dortmund University work together with American students from the University of Georgia on real-life problems in development cooperation. The goal is to find sustainable, practical and culturally appropriate solutions. By taking part in the Challenge, the participants learn to think outside the box, train self-organization, teamwork and their communication skills, and get to grips with everyday life and cultural conditions in the countries for which problem solutions are being developed.

In the third project, which was awarded 1,500 euros, Dr. Enrico Michelini from the Institute of Sport and Sport Science is researching the role of sport in refugee camps in cooperation with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. Dr. Michelini spent four weeks in May 2019 in refugee camps in Niamey, the capital of the West African country of Niger. His research found that sports in refugee camps are not only used for physical exercise, but also for mental empowerment. In addition, sport is used as an educational measure. In the next step, Dr. Michelini will work with the United Nations to develop a concept on how refugees can be optimally supported through sports.