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Annual Meeting of the German-Jamaican Society from Sep. 11th - 13th, 2026 at the AZK in Königswinter
Cooperation partner: Arbeitnehmerzentrum Königswinter
"50 Years of the German-Jamaican Society (GJS) – 50 Years of Development-Related Educational and Project Work Concerning Jamaica”
To mark the 50th anniversary of the German-Jamaican Society’s (GJS) work in development-related education, we turn our attention to Jamaica and ask: How has this island nation evolved amidst the complex challenges posed by post-colonial structures? On one hand, Jamaica has achieved global standing in culture, music, and sports. On the other, the island nation faces structural poverty, high crime rates, and increasingly frequent climate-related disasters. For 50 years, the GJS has helped raise awareness in Germany regarding Jamaica’s complex challenges and fostered engagement with them; the GJS builds mutual understanding and interest between the two countries. At this year’s conference, the GJS reflects on the work of the past five decades while also focusing on Jamaica’s current socio-political and climate-related challenges.
Program
Friday, September 11, 2026
8:00 PM – 8:45 p.m. “Welcome and Introduction to the Conference” – Laura Held (AZK, Königswinter) and Ian Ward (President, GJS, Frankfurt); followed by “Tribute to Jörg Wenzel and Rainer Epp”
9:00 PM – 10:00 p.m. Film Screening: “Paradise in Transition – Jamaica’s Balance Between Progress and the Joy of Living” – Prof. Dr. Uwe C. Swoboda (Baden-Württemberg Cooperative State University, Stuttgart)
Followed by a German-Jamaican “Get-Together”
Saturday, September 12, 2026
9:00 – 10:30 a.m. "Founding the GJS and the Early Years: New Paths in Development Education" – Dr. Gerd Schetting (Founder, long-standing President, and Honorary President of the GJS, Bonn)
10:45 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. "50 Years of GJS Development Education – A Look Back at Key Milestones" – Dietmar Krehl (Co-founder and former President of the GJS, Dortmund)
Lunch
1:30 – 2:45 p.m. "Rastafari Art as a Re-creation of Jamaican Reality – 50 Years of the Rastafari Art Collection" – Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Bender (Ethnologist and Honorary Professor at the University of Bayreuth) and Alja Naliwaiko-Epp (Fulda)
3:00 – 3:45 p.m. "Socare and the DJG – A Long-standing Connection" – Sinah Kloß (Chair of the Society for Caribbean Research, University of Bonn)
4:00 – 5:30 p.m. "50 Years of German-Jamaican Cultural Work: DJG Projects and Books on Jamaica with Significant Contributions from DJG Members" – Marlies Glaser (long-standing DJG board member, Frankfurt am Main) and "Jamaican Film Festivals in Frankfurt am Main" – Ian Ward (DJG President, Frankfurt) and Karl-Olaf Kaiser (DJG board member, Frankfurt am Main & Kingston)
Dinner
From 7:30 p.m. GJS 50th Anniversary Ceremony
Welcome address
Address by Ms. Laura McNeil, Chargée d'Affaires a.i., Embassy of Jamaica (Berlin)
Address and outlook by GJS President Ian Ward
Sunday, 13 September 2026
08:30 – 09:45 a.m. "More Than Just a Storm: Hurricane Melissa, Climate Change, and Its Consequences for Jamaica" – Dr. Johannes Bohle (Justus Liebig University Giessen, Institute of Geography)
10:00 – 11:15 a.m. "Hurricane Melissa – The Situation Before, During, and After the Hurricane" – Karl-Olaf Kaiser (GJS board member, Frankfurt am Main & Kingston)
11:15 – 11:30 a.m. "Seminar Review and Feedback Session" – Laura Held (AZK, Königswinter), Ian Ward (GJS President, Frankfurt)
Lunch / Departure for non-GJS members
11:45 – 13:00 "GJS General Meeting" (not part of the AZK program)
13:00 Lunch for GJS members
Registration and program-download:
You may carry out your registration for the annual meeting of the GJS on the AZK-website.
You may download the program here.
Please contact the GJS if you have any questions.