Oldenburg

MobileHCI 2020 will take place in Oldenburg, Lower Saxony, a green and modern university city and Germany’s City of Science 2009 in North West Germany. The city is the cultural and administrative hub of North West Germany. In spite of its modern orientation, Oldenburg is still very proud of its historical roots and buildings, delightful traditions and warm, friendly charm. It is also a cycling city and famous for kale tour (‘Kohlfahrt’). The closest major airport is Bremen Airport, reachable within an approximately half an hour drive or train ride (about 50 km or 31 miles).

Downtown

Visitors to Oldenburg’s enchanting historic city centre will enjoy a tour of its sightseeing highlights and historic architectural buildings reaching back over five centuries. Stroll through Germany’s oldest large-area pedestrian zone, enjoy the grandeur of the residential palace or a walk along the arm of the river Hunte – there is a lot to be explored! Pubs, bars, and restaurants can be found at Wallstraße and Kurwickstraße.

University of Oldenburg

The Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg was founded in 1973, making it one of Germany‘s young universities. Its goal is to find answers to the major challenges society faces in the 21st century – through interdisciplinary, cuttingedge research.

The University cooperates closely with more than 200 other universities worldwide and is also affiliated with non-university institutes in the areas of research, education, culture and business.

It offers a broad range of disciplines, from language studies, cultural studies and the humanities to educational sciences, art and musicology, the economic and social sciences, mathematics, computer science, the natural sciences and the new medicine and health science programmes established in 2012.

Main Research Topics

Oldenburg is home to excellent scientific institutions and first-class researchers. The university itself is only almost 40 years old, but it can already look back over a history of outstanding scientific achievements.
The main research topics at universities and non-university research institutions in Oldenburg include:

Computer science
Coastal, marine and climate research
Environmental sciences
Civil engineering and pipeline construction

Photogrammetry and geoinformatics
Teaching and learning studies
Women and gender studies
Humanities and social sciences

Power research
Neurosensorics
Assistive and medical technologies
Audiology and hearing research

City of Science

Every year the Stifterverband für die Deutsche Wissenschaft, the national innovation agency for German science, awards the title “City of Science”. Oldenburg’s successful application for 2009 was entitled “Übermorgenstadt”, which literally means “The city of the day after tomorrow”. This title was chosen to indicate that science is the decisive mainspring of the city’s further development and its viability for the future.

Oldenburg Waters

Oldenburg is also called the “Huntestadt”, the city on the Hunte. With its two arms, the Hunte, a tributary of the Weser, is a main feature of the city. The Hunte connects Oldenburg to Weser and Ems rivers (via Coastal Canal). Thus, you can also reach Oldenburg with your vessel and drop anchor at Oldenburg harbor. The old Hunte and Stau crosses downtown Oldenburg and allows for guided city tours by canoe.

Parks and Gardens

Oldenburg is a green city of parks and gardens. The Schlossgarten was installed from 1804 to 1819 on behalf of Herzog Peter Friedrich Ludwig von Oldenburg next to the Oldenburg castle. Today the park is publicly available and provides a relaxing area in the middle of the town.

Lappan

The Lappan from 1467/68 is regarded as Oldenburg’s main landmark. Formerly the bell tower of the Heilig-Geist Chapel, today it is a popular meeting place in the city centre.

State Theatre

Since 1893 the Oldenburg State Theatre with its dome has been a prominent feature of the cityscape and is an impressive reminder of the age of counts and dukes.

Old Town Hall

The Old Town Hall is regarded as the most original building from the Gründerzeit, also due to its triangular form. It is still home to the offices of the Lord Mayor and to the political parties of the city council today.

Parks & Gardens

Ramparts

The former city walls surround the inner city, and these ramparts with their winding waterways are still reminiscent of ancient times when the city’s inhabitants had to defend the historic city centre.

Botanical Garden

Founded in 1882 as a “seminar garden” for teacher training purposes, today the Botanical Garden is managed by the Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg. Around 7,000 different types of plants and exotic trees and shrubs are planted in various plant territories, medicinal and farmhouse gardens and the Alpinum.

Auditory Garden

Visitors to the auditory garden directly next to the “House of Hearing” (Hörgarten) of the Oldenburg Hearing Research Association discover more about acoustics and hearing in a fun way. The garden features a number of fascinating exhibits such as the whispering gallery, the acoustic cannon and the wind harp. You can get further information at www.hoergarten.de.