History of the Paulo Freire Center - Paulo Freire Zentrum

The roots of the Paulo Freire Center for Transdisciplinary Development Research and Dialogical Education in Vienna reach back to 2004. It was initiated as a joint project by the Austrian Research Foundation for International Development (ÖFSE) and the Mattersburg Circle for Development Policies at Austrian Universities (Mattersburg Circle). Between 2009 and 2014 it was part of KommEnt (Society for Communication, Development and Dialogical Education). In 2015 the Freire Center became, again, part of the Mattersburg Circle, which is now the legal basis (association) of the Freire Center.The history of the Paulo Freire Center can be presented in four phases:

Phase 1 – before the foundation, 2001-2004

The Austrian Development Conferences can actually be considered as the birthplace of the Paulo Freire Center. The very first of these conferences took place in 2001 in Salzburg. It was organized by the Mattersburg Circle in cooperation with the Working Group for Development Cooperation (AGEZ) and a dozen of other organizations related to development politics. Unfortunately the documentation is not available online any more, but it has been published in form of a book.

The Development Conferences have always had the ambition to discuss current issues of the development politics scene in order to provide space for reflection, which has been appreciated very much by the actors. To strengthen this idea, the second stage was introduced.

Phase 2 – the foundation in the frame of the Austrian Research Foundation for International Development (ÖFSE), 2004-2008

The Mattersburg Circle found a strong partner in the ÖFSE, to insure the idea of the Development Conference in the long run. Particularly for this reason in 2004 the Paulo Freire Center was founded. It officially began its work on 1st July 2004. The Freire Center never strived for an own legal entity (in order to avoid installing another tiny organization in the big garden plot of development politics), instead it counted on cooperation, also regarding the legal basis. Until 2008 the Freire Center should be part of the ÖFSE. For decades, the Mattersburg Circle as well as the ÖFSE had been actively involved and were recognized as scientific institutions of development politics. Both organizations have always aspired to strengthen public research and education based on the dialogic principle in the Austrian Development Cooperation (EZA) and development politics.

Initially the Freire Center was planned as “Center for Transdisciplinary Development Research”. But when discussing the concept, the name “Paulo Freire Center” practically suggested itself, as Freire is one of the essential masterminds of the dialogic and transdisciplinary working method, which exceeds social, institutional and of course also academic borders. At that time the Freiro Center’s complete name was “Paulo Freire Center for Transdisciplinary Development Research and Development Education”.

Phase 3 – Cooperation with KommEnt, 2009-2014

On 1st January 2009 the legal basis of the Paulo Freire Center changed to KommEnt, the Society for Communication, Development and Dialogic Education located in Salzburg. In a milieu, in which competition often depicts the deeper logic of happenings, those two organizations made a statement for cooperation. Cooperation was fruitful regarding the content because both pursued similar aims, even though through different ways. Also on a structural level KommEnt and the Paulo Freire Center accorded with one another, as they were both small institutions with only two colleagues each.

The association of those two actors in the field of development education was not thought as a fusion, therefore the two “brands” KommEnt and Paulo Freire Center were still used. However there was an approximation in the appearance: The Freire Center slightly changed its long name, into “Paulo Freire Center for Transdisciplinary Development Research and Dialogic Education”.

Phase 4 – Cooperation with the Mattersburg Circle

With the beginning of the year 2015 the Freire Center detached itself from KommEnt and changed to the legal basis of the Mattersburg Circle. This decision was pragmatically beneficial due to the long lasting cooperation, which was realized through a shared office since 2004 as well as numerous common events. With this change of the legal basis, the Freire Center once again strengthens its profile as actor in critical development research. Vice versa the Mattersburg Circle approaches activities regarding popular education and gets involved into the area of science communication. Still both organizations preserve their independence, which is also expressed through their separate external appearance.

In the spirit of Freire the core interest has always been the demand of education and politics, in order to empower the ability to act after experiences of inequalities and development, conflicts and mechanisms of inclusion and exclusion, to look at the world with a sustainable vision, through education.

The Freire Center understands itself as an intersection of diverse strings of activities; it sees itself as a center in which actors of critical development research, the Forum Theater, popular education, development politics, development politics education, global learning, development cooperation, peace pedagogy etc. come together and cooperate consistently in common projects.

In autumn 2014 the Paulo Freire Center was affiliated with the international union of the Paulo Freire institutes, which recognizes only one single organization per country as Paulo Freire institute. Thereby the Freire Center in Vienna is now also the “Instituto Paulo Freire Austria” – a new complement (and compliment) – to our, admitted, a little long name, but therefore quite heavy with meaning: That’s what we are now:

“Paulo Freire Center for Transdisciplinary Development Research and Dialogic Education – Instituto Paulo Freire Austria”

The short name remains simply: “Paulo Freire Center”. Or even shorter: “Freire Center”.