Brummtier

The workshop explored the role of insects within ecological systems, technological applications, and everyday perceptions. As key actors in pollination, soil fertility, and food production, insects are both essential to human life and increasingly subject to technological use in fields such as agriculture, biotechnology, and alternative protein production. At the same time, our relationship to insects is shaped by strong emotional and ethical distinctions—between fascination and disgust, usefulness and nuisance, protection and control. These perceptions become particularly visible in biotechnological contexts, where insects are used in industrial processes such as biological pest control or the production of biological materials.

By bringing together everyday experiences, scientific perspectives, and technological applications, the workshop opened up questions about how we relate to insects today and how these relationships might be renegotiated in the future: What kind of relationship do we want to have with insects in a changing ecological and technological landscape?