The next season of the German debating ZEIT DEBATTEN series is set: the general assembly of VDCH, the Association of Debating Societies at Universities, came together in August and decided upon dates and locations of four ZEIT DEBATTEN tournaments, four regional championships and the German debating championship (DDM) 2011. An overview over the coming season 2010/11 is provided here:

ZEIT DEBATTE GREIFSWALD, 29 to 31 October 2010

The ZEIT DEBATTEN series returns to the Baltic coast. Back in 2002, many of the now existing societies were not even founded, a ZEIT DEBATTEN tournament took place in Greifswald. S.A.E.C.L.O., Greifswald’s debating society, had not been lazy since then: They hosted the Northeastern Regional Championships in 2005 and initiated the Boddencup tournament in 2009. Chief adjudicators for this year’s ZEIT DEBATTE (style: BPS) are Isabelle Loewe (Debattierclub Bonn), Michael Saliba (Debattierclub Stuttgart), David Lamouroux (Debattierclub Georgia Augusta Göttingen) and Sarah Jaglitz from Greifswald.

ZEIT DEBATTE Mainz, January 14 to 16, 2011

From 14 to 16 January 2011, the German speaking debating scene is going to meet by the river Rhine where the debating society Johannes Gutenberg (DCJG) of Mainz is a renowned and experienced convener of ZEIT DEBATTEN – this time for the sixth time, among others the German debating championship 2009. Innovation is always an aim of DCJG, initiator of the only joke championship: this time, it is going to be the innovation of five preliminary rounds – something which was regarded impossible in the German debating style of OPD (open parliamentary debate) where the rules made it necessary to have either three or six pre-rounds. The new arrangement aims at giving as many speakers as possible the chance to speak as much as possible. Chief adjudicators are going to be Marcel Giersdorf (DCJG Mainz), Lukas Haffert (DebatingClub St. Gallen) and the now German debating champion Peter Croonenbroeck (Streitkultur Tübingen).

ZEIT DEBATTE Stuttgart, 11 to 13 March 2011

Debattierclub Stuttgart (DCS) hosted a much applauded ZEIT DEBATTE in the past season and will from March 11 to 13, 2011 try to revive that verve they put into it as conveners. Format will be British Parliamentary Style which seems to be in the nature of DCS: The society has been very successful at this year’s Worlds in Antalya and was runner-up to the world champion in EFL (English as a Foreign Language). DCS signed Igor Gilitschenski (DCS), Andreau Gau (DCJG Mainz), Dessislava Kirova (Berlin Debating Union) and Rafael Heinisch (S.A.E.C.L.O. Greifswald) as chief adjudicators.

Regional championships, 16 to 17 April 2011

The regional championships will take place from 16 to 17 April 2011. Since next year’s German debating championships will be held in OPD, the same is true for the regionals. The Northern regionals will be hosted by Debattierclub Osnabrück, a society still not much older than a year.  Convener of the Southern regionals is going to be DebatingClub St. Gallen which is locaterd in Switzerland. Host of the Eastern regionals will be Klartext Halle, acting Eastern regional champion and German debating champion of 2008. Stage to the Western regionals will be Frankfurt by the river Main, hosted by Debattierclub Goethes Faust, twioce convener of Schobbe Cup.

ZEIT DEBATTE Jena, 20 to 22 May 2011

A wind of change blows from Debattiergesellschaft Jena where the Wartburg style is cultivated since 2002, named after a famous castle in Thuringia. Those who love to debate on principles will be warmly welcome in Jena from 20 to 22 May 2011. Characteristic to this style: Three versus three debate without any proposition. Jena’s debating society is an experienced convener of tournaments with ZEIT DEBATTEN in 2004, 2006 and 2009 for instance. Chief adjudicators of this year’s competition will be Tom-Michael Hesse (Streitpunkt Leipzig), Tim Richter and Gudrun Lux (both Debattierclub Bonn).

11th German debating championship, 9 to 12 June 2011

The German debating Championship will be staged in Heidelberg from 9 to 12 June 2011. Format will be OPD, the open parliamentary debate widely spread in the German speaking debating circuit. The Debating Club Heidelberg (DCH), then German debating champion in 2004, will now be host to Germany’s largest tournament where at least 45 teams will be granted participation. Great demand will expand the team cap. Chief adjudicators are going to be VDCH president Jan Lüken (WFI Debattierclub Ingolstadt), Marcus Ewald (DCJG Mainz) and Gudrun Lux (Debattierclub Bonn).

The ZEIT DEBATTEN series is convened by VDCH in cooperation with the weekly newspaper DIE ZEIT and Deutsche Telekom, supported through VDCH’s media partner ZDF, a German public broadcaster. It has been a decade now since the first ZEIT DEBATTEN series kicked off with at least five annual tournaments, among them the German debating championship. The series is nested under the honorary patronage of the former German chancellor Helmut Schmidt.

It was first in 2010 that four parallel regional championships were staged, from 2005 to 2009 it had been only three regionals. The format of the regionals is always set by the format of the German debating championships which alternates annually from OPD to BPS. By rotation, the 2010 competitions will be held in OPD. Since the 2009/2010 season, the regionals are no longer part of the ZEIT DEBATTEN series.

Melanie Sindelar / glx / apf