The first symposium of the Albert Hofmann Institute for Physiochemical Sustainability was held at the Gesamteuropäisches Studienwerk in Vlotho, Germany, from 8. to 10.10.2021. The main goal of the symposium was the exchange of scientific ideas and concepts within the AHI as well as the shaping of joint research fields. Since the research of the AHI is linked to existing research fields, an embedding in the existing knowledge landscape is a necessary basis for internal and external communication. For this reason, the symposium started with two scientific guest lectures with close content connections to the AHI. The lecture by Abigail Calder from MIND Foundation was entitled “Psychedelics & Well-Being”, the lecture by Lena Reitschuster from Karlsruhe University of Arts and Design “Holobiont – Prototyp für ein neues Weltverständnis“ (Holobiont – prototype for a new understanding of the world). The guest lectures were deliberately chosen so that, in addition to the content perspective, structural networking could also take place in the sense of the AHI. The second day began with a presentation of the research departments within the institute, followed in the afternoon by a workshop phase to work out perspectives for further content design. The focus of the last day was the general meeting of the Academy. The participants spent the night together on the premises of the Academy in Vlotho.
As the first event with the ostensible goal of exchanging content, not only were the discussions within the symposium of great value for the institute’s work, but the informal conversations were also extremely enriching, especially for the creative processes for finding new ideas and approaches. Not least for the strengthening of the interpersonal dynamics within the institute, the symposium was a full success.