Publixphere is the space for a fair public exchange about political ideas and opinions. Our users set the agenda. The editorial team supports the free exchange of ideas by providing background information and by reaching out to stakeholders and experts and inviting them to participate. We also organize and accompany events that deal with political questions.
The platform Publixphere is operated and administered by Publixphere e.V., an independent, non-partisan and non-profit association established under German law. It is our goal to foster the free exchange of political opinions in a protected space – online and offline. We want to provide our users, specifically young adults, with a platform in which they can develop and express political thoughts and bring these into political processes. You may access the charter of our association Publixphere e.V. (in German) here.
Our main site is Publixphere.net. Noc.publixphere.net is our first English-speaking platform and a collaboration with the global Network of Internet & Society Research Centers (NoC). Its focus lies on Internet & Society issues.
Projektmanagement
Foto: ©Asmus Henkel
Dr. Mayte Peters Schomburg is the initiator of Publixphere and chair of the board of Publixphere e.V. After studying international relations (Staatswissenschaften) at the University of St. Gallen, Switzerland she wrote her PhD thesis on the significance of culture in EU integration from a German constitutional law perspective. In 2011 she initiated Publixphere and a related research project on “democratic legitimacy and the political public sphere / Publixphere” at the Free University of Berlin. From 2012-2014, she was the coordinator of the global Network of Internet & Society Research Centers (NoC), based at the Humboldt Institute for Internet and Society in Berlin, Germany. Mayte is now a fellow at the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University, USA.
Contact: mayte.schomburg [a] publixphere.de
Linnea Riensberg has been project manager of Publixphere since November 2013. She recently became general manager of Publixphere. It is her wish and goal to create spaces in which particularly young people feel so comfortable that they will use this space to develop and share their political opinions with others. In Linnea’s opinion, Publixphere provides the best preconditions for realizing this both online and offline. Already during her studies of journalism, communication studies and philosophy Linnea developed and moderated political participation and media projects. After finishing university she worked for an Italian member of the European Parliament, before committing herself to human rights on the Internet at the non-profit association Digitale Gesellschaft e.V., where she was also general manager. Regarding Publixphere, Linnea is particularly enthusiastic about the combination of participation, European affairs and “the Internet”, and about the potential that still remains to be uncovered.
Contact: linnea.riensberg [a] publixphere.de
Editor
Alexander Wragge is Publixphere’s editor. He is therefore in charge of our German background texts and for bringing stakeholders and experts into our discussions. The idea behind Publixphere inspired Alex from the beginning, since in his previous life he was often missing an independent and non-partisan platform for discussions across political boundaries – during the Euro crisis, for instance. From 2009 to 2012 Alex was editor for the European news portal EurActiv.de. He later worked as a freelance journalist, working for Ciciero Online, iRights.info and Golem.de amongst others. He was also a lecturer for EU-research at the Berlin University for Professional Studies (DUW). Before his journalism studies at the Evangelische Journalistenschule in Berlin Alex studied Economics, Business and modern German literature (M.A.) at the Free University of Berlin.
Contact: alexander.wragge [a] publixphere.de
Community Management
Eva Breitbach has been looking at how the Internet changes possibilities for political engagement and processes ever since studying German, Media and Sociology. What fascinates her about Publixphere is that this platform enables cross-partisan and independent political discussions, the content of which is significantly set and influenced by the users themselves. Before joining Publixphere, Eva had already looked after various other online discussion forums. She is now in charge of coordinating and moderating community discussions on Publixphere.
Contact: eva.breitbach [a] publixphere.de
Student Trainee
Board
Mayte Schomburg (see above) is chair of the board.
Prof. Dr. Christian Calliess, LL.M. Eur is professor for German Public Law and European Law at the Free University of Berlin. Since 2009, he holds the ad personam Jean-Monnet-Chair for European Integration. He is member in the German Advisory Council on the Environment (SRU). Until 2013 he served as a judge at the Higher Administrative Court of Berlin-Brandenburg.
Kontakt: europarecht [a] fu-berlin.de
Dr. Max Odefey studied Business and Economics in Switzerland Political Philosophy in England before writing his doctoral thesis about the formation of political opinions online. His research around the biggest social online network found evidence for the positive effects of the Internet on political participation in otherwisenon-political parts of the population. Thrilled about this topic and specifically about how Publixphere puts this into practice, Max has been part of the Publixphere-project since its very beginning.
Contact: max.odefey [a] publixphere.de
