New VHS programme for the winter semester

The new Adult Education Centre programme catalogue for the winter semester will be published on Monday, 31 August. It will then be available to pick up at the adult education centre and, among other places, at the town hall, the citizen service points and cultural institutions as well as at the tourist information office. On Tuesday, 1 September, the staff of the Adult Education Centre will present the programme during the "Market Day" on Neumarkt. They will be handing out the freshly printed programme to interested parties between 10 am and 4 pm. The adult education centre invites you to get to know the courses on offer and express your wishes for the future.

The programme for the months of September 2020 to March 2021 has the motto "unrivalled diversity". The adult education centre offers a broad and diverse range of courses from languages, art, culture, sport and health to professional development and current political and social issues. Well-known highlights include courses in Hatha Yoga, Pilates, watercolour painting and Japanese.

Rediscover Chemnitz: In recent months, a growing awareness of our own city and the Chemnitz region has become clearly noticeable. Lectures on the history of Chemnitz, walks in the Rabenstein Forest and Zeisigwald or cycle tours through gardens offer plenty of new and surprising things to learn and experience in the 2020 winter semester.

These new programmes also include a series of events on the threats to Chemnitz's forests and the local birdlife. While the bark beetle and the consequences of climate change are causing massive damage to the forests, which requires considered action, many breeding birds are disappearing from the meadows and fields. An experienced ornithologist and local forestry experts pass on their knowledge.

In the "Living Consciously" series, experienced gardeners give helpful tips for your own greenery. Lectures on plants that can withstand extreme drought or how to plant a hedge correctly will help you discover the diversity of nature in the city and in your own garden.

Two events in November 2020 with the Oelsnitz/Erzgebirge Mining Museum are dedicated to the history of coal mining and its cultural traditions in the region. Among other things, the focus will be on traditional miners' clothing and its development from work uniform to service and parade uniform. The exhibition also explains how industrialisation has significantly shaped the history of the Ore Mountains and our hometown.

The new event series "Places of Historical Remembrance" focuses on special places in Chemnitz, its neighbourhoods and districts. Lectures on Chemnitz's history during the Weimar Republic and the significance of the Fritz Heckert area will kick off this series in the winter semester. A tour along the stumbling blocks in the Reitbahn neighbourhood is also included. In a joint event with the Kaßberg Prison Memorial Centre, contemporary witness Falk Mrázek will talk about his imprisonment in the GDR and his release to the West.

Focus on elections: On the occasion of the mayoral election, political scientist Dr Ellen Thümmler will provide information online on 14 September 2020 about the basics of the election: What position do mayors have in local politics in Saxony? What tasks do they perform? How are elections held in Chemnitz? An access link for the online format is available from the comfort of your own sofa at www.vhs-chemnitz.de

Elections also determine the digital science programme "vhs.wissen live". These include, in particular, the presidential elections in the USA in the autumn. Immediately after the US election, on the evening of 5 November, "vhs.wissen live" will broadcast a commentary by Regensburg Professor of International Politics, Stephan Bierling. The expert analyses the election campaign and the result. A live chat allows all participants to actively participate in the discussion and ask questions. Anyone interested can register for the digital format by email or online at www.vhs-chemnitz.de by the day before the event.

The adult education centre's winter semester starts on 13 September 2020.

The VHS information desk on the fourth floor of the TIETZ is open on Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10 am to 1 pm and from 2 pm to 6 pm.