re:publica x New Fall Festival

In the organizer's words:

re:publica as a guest at the New Fall Festival in Düsseldorf

Pop culture and the digital society. Live music, exchange and participation. A music festival in NRW with a re:publica program: a perfect match! That's why Europe's largest digital and social conference is a guest at the New Fall Festival in Düsseldorf for the first time this year. Together, we are creating a new platform to give the most important debates of the present a stage and anchor them in the heart of society.

On October 31 and November 1, 2025 , re:publica will transform the NRW-Forum into a place for debates, readings, live podcasts and interactive formats. The two-day program will focus on the big questions of our digital present: How is artificial intelligence changing our everyday lives, our relationships and research? What spaces does democracy need online? And which stories give us courage for the future in times of crisis?

With exciting speakers from politics, science, culture and media, re:publica opens up spaces for exchange, discussion and critical reflection as part of the New Fall Festival and shows how closely social issues and digital developments are interwoven today. The audience can look forward to a diverse program that not only informs and inspires, but also invites participation in the spirit of re:publica: open, critical, participatory and full of optimistic ideas for the future.

They are:

• Fabian Grischkat and Baro Vicenta Ra Gabbert present their new book Keine Zukunft ist auch keine Lösung, which is about climate, crises and hope.
• Markus Beckedahl (re:publica) and Thomas Jarzombek (State Secretary in the Ministry of Digital Affairs) will be talking about digital sovereignty.
• Frauke Fischer (biodiversity expert), who asks in her lecture on the new book: Can AI save nature?
• Dirk von Gehlen (head of the Süddeutsche Zeitung think tank SZ-Institut), who advocates an optimistic understanding of AI as a tool and sheds light on the impact it has on our attention
• The discussion between Mona Neubaur, NRW Minister for Economic Affairs, Industry, Climate Protection and Energy, and Andreas Gebhard, Managing Director of re:publica, will focus on North Rhine-Westphalia's role between economic transformation, climate protection and the digital future.
• Charlotte Lohmann (Amadeu Antonio Foundation) sheds light on right-wing extremist music strategies on social platforms
• Markus Beckedahl (co-founder & curatorial director of re:publica, Center for Digital Rights & Democracy), Nathanael Liminski (NRW Minister for Federal and European Affairs, International Affairs and Media), Martin Andree (University of Cologne), Josephine B. Schmidt (CAIS Bochum) and Eda Öztürk (New German Media Makers) will discuss the problems surrounding Big Tech and how we can strengthen democratic spaces online. Nora Hespers (author, journalist & podcaster) will moderate the panel discussion.
• Leonie Plaar talks about her book Meine Familie, die AfD und ich and her personal experiences with it
• 1LIVE journalists discuss how young people can be won over to political issues despite news fatigue
• The podcast Browser History (Magdalena Pulz and Dennis Kogel) takes the audience on a journey through Reddit and puts the moral-philosophical subreddit Am I the Asshole? at the center of a live podcast recording
• ... and a few more.