ANIMAL-BASED. Historical perspectives on animals in medicine, science and technology

The seventh annual conference of the Gesellschaft für Geschichte der Wissenschaften, der Medizin
and Technology (GWMT) will take place in Dresden from September 24-26, 2025. The
theme is "ANIMAL-BASED. Historical perspectives on animals in medicine,
science and technology".

The breeding, keeping and use of animals for the production of food, textiles and medical products or to gain scientific knowledge are as widespread as they are controversial today. On the one hand, the frequent mention of "plant-based" on products of all kinds proves and undermines the self-evident nature of "animal-based" in the global North and West. On the other hand, economic growth and prosperity in countries of the Global South and East favor an expansion of livestock farming and consumption.
At the same time, wild animals and their habitats, their role in zoonoses, their penetration into new areas or their "hybridization" through modifications to the gene pool are receiving increased attention. All of this raises the question of the historical development and change of human-animal and animal-animal relationships. The interdisciplinary fields of human-animal studies (HAS) and multispecies studies have also become an important place of exchange for historical research. At the same time, the history of science, medicine and technology has long been making independent contributions to a history moved and animated by animals.

Please note: TU Dresden students do not have to pay a conference fee!

Please register via the GWMT website.