The 17th DiGENet Dialogue, held on the occasion of the inaugural lecture of this year’s 2026 Audre Lorde Visiting Professorship, Prof. Eva Cheng (University of Technology Sydney), will focus on the topic of student belonging, a key issue in contemporary higher education development.

How can universities create conditions in which students feel not only formally included, but genuinely addressed, recognized, and connected? This question is particularly relevant because belonging does not emerge solely at the individual level; it is also shaped by institutional structures, teaching and learning cultures, curricula, and existing power relations. The event therefore places at its center a topic of major scholarly and practical importance for equity of opportunity, student success, and the advancement of inclusive universities alike. In the subsequent moderated conversation, Prof. Cheng and Prof. Dr. Juliane Siegeris (Berlin University of Applied Sciences and Technology) will take up and further explore these perspectives.

The Audre Lorde Visiting Professorship of the Berlin University Alliance (BUA) is its international visiting professorship for intersectional diversity research. It brings distinguished scholars to Berlin to raise the visibility of research and teaching on diversity, gender equality, and social participation, to connect these fields with pressing global questions, and to stimulate broader academic and public debate. It is named after Audre Lorde, whose work in Berlin provided important impetus for feminist, anti-racist, and queer discourses.

With Prof. Eva Cheng, the 2026 Audre Lorde Visiting Professorship welcomes an internationally recognized scholar whose work is situated at the intersection of inclusive higher education, gender equity in STEM, and institutional transformation. As Head of School in the Faculty of Engineering and IT at the University of Technology Sydney, she brings together technical expertise, critical diversity research, and many years of experience in developing more equitable teaching and learning environments. Her work focuses on the question of how universities can actively foster belonging and dismantle structural barriers. In doing so, she offers an impulse that reaches well beyond individual disciplinary contexts and addresses core challenges of diversity and gender equality in higher education with precision.

The event will be held in English. Audio and video recordings will be made.

Registration:
Please register via this link: [LINK]

17th DiGENet Dialogue & Inaugural Lecture of the 2026 Audre Lorde Visiting Professorship with Prof. Eva Cheng

H 1035 (Senatssaal), Technische Universität Berlin, Straße des 17. Juni 135, 10623 Berlin

From 4:30 p.m.  Arrival and reception

5:00–5:20 p.m. Welcome and opening remarks
Prof. Dr. Petra Lucht, Steering Committee Diversity & Gender Equality, Technical University of Berlin

Prof. Dr. Timo Hartmann, Vice President for Academic Affairs, Teacher Education, and Continuing Education, Technical University of Berlin

Prof. Dr. Sabine Hark, Head of the ZIFG, Technical University of Berlin

5:20–6:10 p.m.  Inaugural Lecture of the 2026 Audre Lorde Visiting Professorship
Prof. Eva Cheng, University of Technology Sydney (UTS)
“The role of universities in building intersectional student belonging: A case study of STEM education in the Asia-Pacific”

6:10–7:00 p.m.  Moderated conversation
Prof. Eva Cheng, University of Technology Sydney
Prof. Dr. Juliane Siegeris, Berlin University of Applied Sciences and Technology
Moderated by Prof. Dr. Petra Lucht, Technical University of Berlin

7:00–8:00 p.m.
Informal reception and networking with snacks and refreshments