Georg Arnhold International Summer Conference (GAISC)
June 10 to 13, 2024 in Braunschweig, Germany
This year's summer conference seeks to provide a forum for critical reflection on the relationship between education, conflict, war and peace, and the global actors and practitioners that have devised strategies to engage, support and intervene in education systems in conflict-affected contexts. We will reflect on how international relations and the broader geopolitics of intervention are connected to the education sectors in conflict-affected contexts and on the implications for building sustainable peace, and social and ecological justice. Part of the Summer Conference is a workshop organized by the Airbel Impact Lab, the research and innovation arm of the International Rescue Committee (IRC), which also provides the opportunity to apply for a fellowship with the IRC. (See the full description of this year's Summer Conference here.)
- Program
- Directions within Braunschweig
Directions from Braunschweig main station to the conference hotel (Premier Inn)
The hotel is just 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) from Braunschweig's main station. From there, you can take streetcars (trams) no. 1, 2 or 4 to the Rathaus stop or Hagenmarkt stop. From there it is only a 100-meter walk to the hotel.
Directions from the conference hotel to the Leibniz Institute for Educational Media | Georg Eckert Institute
The Leibniz Institute for Educational Media | Georg Eckert Institute is only a 15-minute walk from the conference hotel. You can find directions in Google Maps here.
- Conference Hotel
Premier Inn Braunschweig City Centre
Jöddenstr. 3, 38100 Braunschweig
+49 531 39397444 | Braunschweig.CityCentre@PremierInn.com | www.premierinn.deHotel rooms have been booked in the conference hotel for all invited conference guests. Reservation details will be communicated by e-mail.
The reception is open around the clock. However, for arrivals later than 3:00 a.m., the hotel requests that you notify them in advance.
- Submitting your draft paper
In order to prepare for prompt publication of the conference proceedings we require a first draft of your paper one week before the conference.
Therefore, we expect the first draft of your paper by June 3, 2024.
Upload your paper here.
You will need a password to access the folder. You have been sent this password by e-mail. - Uploading your presentation
You will have appoximately 20 min. for your presentation followed by approximately 15 min. for a short discussion.
Your PowerPoint or pdf presentation should be submitted in advance of your presentation! We cannot connect a different device for each presentation.
Please upload your presentation to the conference folder at least one day before (!) your presentation.
You will need a password to access the folder. You have been sent this password by e-mail.Allowed formats are: ppt, pptx, or pdf, allowed formats for online-presentations: pdf (!)
Please name your presentation clearly: your name_short version of the title of your presentation
- Deadline for the submission of documents for cash reimbursement
As we are aware that it is difficult to receive foreign cash transfers in certain countries, we can arrange for your travel expenses to be reimbursed in cash during the Summer Conference. This is, however, only applicable in exceptional cases! Please contact the conference organizer immediately if this applies to you. (See also “What if I can’t receive foreign cash transfers in my home country?” in the FAQ-section below.)
In order to receive a cash reimbursement, the completed reimbursement form must be submitted, together with all your original travel receipts, by 1 p.m. on Monday June 10, 2024.
The cash reimbursement will then be arranged for Thursday June 13, 2024.
Please note: No unplanned or impromptu cash payments of travel expenses are possible during the conference!
- Do I need any cash during the Summer Conference?
Your hotel stay has been paid for and includes breakfast at the hotel. During the Summer Conference, we will provide coffee and snacks, other beverages, lunch and dinner. However, you may wish to buy extra food, or souvenirs, or you may require something from the pharmacy. For such cases you should ensure you have enough cash (Euro) with you or check beforehand with your bank whether your credit or debit cards will work and be accepted in Germany! The Georg Eckert Institute keeps no cash on the premises and cannot spontaneously advance money for any eventuality.
- Do I need travel health insurance for my visit to Germany?
Yes, we recommend you arrange travel health insurance for your visit to Germany, it may even be required to enter the country. To be sure, please check the entry regulations for Germany.
The Georg Eckert Institute cannot provide or pay for any insurance. Please check your insurance cover and ask your insurers whether you need any additional travel health insurance to enter Germany. In some cases, travel health insurance is required in order to apply for a visa.
- Who will make the travel arrangements?
- Is a shuttle service provided to or from the airport?
There will be no shuttle service. We no longer organise collective shuttle transportation as experience has proved that participants usually arrive at very different times and may also be delayed. The airports in Hannover, Berlin, and Hamburg are very well connected with Braunschweig via regular regional trains, we therefore strongly advise the use of public transportation for your travel to and from the airports in Germany.
- How do I get to Braunschweig?
Arrival by plane
The nearest airports to Braunschweig are Hannover (HAJ), Berlin (BER) and Hamburg (HAM). Frankfurt (FRA) is another international airport with train connections to Braunschweig.
All airports have good transport links and you can easily travel to Braunschweig main station. You can buy your train ticket in advance, online, or purchase one from a ticket machine in the respective train station or on the platform from which your train is leaving. It is important to note, however, that ticket machines do not always accept credit cards and you cannot buy tickets on the train.
Arrival by train
You can find the best train connection for you on the website of the Deutsche Bahn.
- Which travel expenses are reimbursable?
The GEI is bound by the administrative standards of the State of Lower Saxony for travel compensation. These standards stipulate that we can only reimburse economy/second class train tickets, economy airplane tickets, and public transportation tickets to and from airports.
We are only permitted to reimburse cab/taxi costs in exceptional circumstances; if, for example, no public transportation is running at night. If this is the case, we will need an explanatory note in addition to your reimbursement documents.
We can reimburse you for your flight/train to Germany from the airport/train station closest to your hometown (or the place you are starting your travel from) and for the onward journey to Braunschweig – and for the return journey of course.
Additional costs that might occur on a journey, such as for food and drink, cannot be reimbursed.
Will cab/taxi rides be reimbursed?
In principle, only journeys by public transport can be reimbursed, therefore cab/taxi rides are not eligible for reimbursement.
However, exceptions are made for travel in regions where public transportation does not run at night or is usually replaced by cabs/taxis or shuttle services. In such instances cab/taxi rides are of course necessary. If this is the case for you, make sure you enclose the receipt for the costs in the local currency with your reimbursement form as well as a brief explanatory note to our administration department to explain the circumstances. Cab/taxi receipts submitted without comment will usually not be reimbursed.
- How are visa application fees reimbursed?
- How are travel costs reimbursed?
The reimbursement of your travel expenses will generally take place after the Summer Conference (see however, the section above on ‘Deadline for the submission of documents for cash reimbursement’). The time frame depends on how quickly you submit your completed reimbursement documents.
The complete reimbursement documents comprise:
- Completed and signed reimbursement form. (Download the reimbursement form here as a fillable PDF or as a Word document)
- All original travel documents/receipts (train/bus tickets, boarding passes and tickets for flights)
You will need to provide the original documents in order to be reimbursed. They can be submitted during the conference or sent after you return home.
Please ensure that all receipts show what they are for and for whom they were issued. The date, starting point and destination should be evident. If it is not clear from the receipts what they are for, add a written note to the receipt. Write your name on the receipt if it is not otherwise included. Receipts for costs that are not discernible to our administration department without explanation will not be reimbursed.
- What information is needed for reimbursement?
Please verify that your banking details contain the following information and that it is all compete and correct.
- Full name of the account holder (as known to your bank)
- Full address of the account holder (as known to your bank)
- Full name and complete address incl. country of the bank (no shortened name!)
- Bank routing number (if available)
- Account number (for incoming transfers from abroad!) or IBAN
- SWIFT (for international transfers) or BIC
All information should be as known to your bank (full name, full address, details of the bank). Please ensure you provide an account that can receive international transfers in euro. If a bank transfer is rejected due to incomplete or incorrect information, the fee charged by the bank will be deducted from your reimbursement on the next transfer attempt.
Download the reimbursement form here as a fillable PDF or as a word document.
- What if I cannot receive foreign money transfers in my home country?
As we are aware that it is difficult to receive foreign cash transfers in certain countries, we can arrange for your travel expenses to be reimbursed in cash during the Summer Conference. This is, however, only applicable in exceptional cases! Please contact the conference organizer immediately if this applies to you.
No impromptu cash payments of travel expenses are possible during the conference!
In order to be reimbursed during the Summer Conference you should bring all your original travel documents with you. The reimbursement form should be filled in before the Summer Conference so that the conference organizer can pre-check your request.
In order to receive a cash reimbursement, the completed reimbursement form must be submitted, together with all your original travel receipts, by 1 p.m. on Monday June 10, 2024 (See also “Deadlines” above.).
Download the reimbursement form here as a fillable PDF or as a word document.
The cash reimbursement will then be arranged for Thursday June 13, 2024.
Please note that this process cannot be accelerated. If you need funds before the reimbursement, you should bring them with you or make sure your credit or debit cards will be accepted and will work in Germany. (See also “Do I need any cash during the Summer Conference?”)
Our administration department will be unable to process cash reimbursement requests submitted after Monday June 10, 2024 in time, therefore, if you miss this deadline it is highly unlikely that we will be able to provide you with a cash reimbursment. In this case reimbursement will be made in the usual way after the Summer Conference.
