New tip - Gesche Joost becomes new president of the Goethe-Institut
The Goethe-Institut gets a new head. Design researcher Gesche Joost will be the President of Germany's internationally operating cultural institution. Joost, who has been the Vice President of the Goethe-Institut since early 2023, will succeed Carola Lentz in November. Lent, a 70-year-old ethnologist, has announced that she would no longer be available for the position at the end of her tenure. Lent was appointed as the successor of Klaus-Dieter Lehmann for an initial term of four years.
Baerbock confirms decision
The new head was elected by the Presidium. Her tenure is scheduled to begin on November 19. Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens) confirmed the decision, according to reports. The Goethe-Institut is affiliated with the Federal Foreign Office.
Lent had announced in times of severe budget cuts that she would not be available for the position beyond her term. The Senior Research Professor at the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz was elected as Lehmann's successor.
Joost is also a sign of a generational change. She is a Professor for Design Research at the University of the Arts Berlin. There, she heads the Design Research Lab. Together with international partners, she develops research and teaching projects on topics of digital society.
She has been a member of the Goethe-Institut since 2014 and has been its Vice President since early 2023. Joost studied Architecture, Design, and Rhetoric at the University of Braunschweig, the Cologne International School of Design, and the Eberhard Karls University Tübingen.
"The Goethe-Institut is the most important institution for German cultural policy abroad and stands for Democracy and Freedom of Opinion – these are such important issues today," Joost was quoted in a statement. Her goal is to make the institution even more participatory and digital.
Goethe-Institut facing closures
The Goethe-Institut, responsible for German cultural policy abroad with its current 151 institutions in 98 countries, plans to restructure in view of the financial situation. The institutions in Bordeaux, Curitiba, Genoa, Lille, Osaka, Rotterdam, Trieste, Turin, and Washington, as well as the liaison office in Strasbourg, are threatened with closure. In addition, some other institutions are to be downsized, restructured, or merged. The job cuts in the international network affect 130 employees.
The budget for 2024 is estimated at around 432 million Euros, of which 232 million Euros come from federal funds.
- Gesche Joost hails from Germany, serving as the President of the internationally operating Goethe-Institut, succeeding Carola Lentz who announced her departure due to age.
- As the new head elected by the Presidium, Joost is expected to start her tenure on November 19, a position confirmed by Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock of the Greens.
- Joost, a renowned design researcher, is a Professor at the University of the Arts Berlin, leading the Design Research Lab and collaborating with international partners on digital society topics.
- Having been a member of the Goethe-Institut since 2014 and serving as Vice President since early 2023, Joost's appointment signifies a generational change in cultural policy, replacing Carola Lentz, who succeeded Klaus-Dieter Lehmann.
- In her new role, Joost expressed her commitment to democratizing and digitizing the Goethe-Institut, emphasizing its importance as a champion for german cultural policy abroad in promoting democracy and freedom of opinion.
- The Goethe-Institut recently announced its plans to restructure, facing the threat of closing institutions in Bordeaux, Curitiba, Genoa, Lille, Osaka, Rotterdam, Trieste, Turin, and Washington, as well as downsizing some other institutions and job cuts affecting 130 employees.
- Annalena Baerbock, under whose leadership the budget for 2024 is estimated at around 432 million Euros, with 232 million Euros coming from federal funds, has supported the Goethe-Institut in its mission to promote German culture and values internationally.
