My first 15 Warhol-Minutes (or why Tobias Schlegl is now in the German Council for Sustainability)
“In the future everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes.” says Andy Warhol. My fifteen minutes came in 2004 when I participated in the “Blick auf morgen“-competition of the German Council for Sustainability.
The task was to design a post card. My design was “F t re – Without u no sustainability”. (In fact, I also submitted a second design – “Z k nft – Ohne Dich keine Nachhaltigkeit”). At the annual assembly of the Sustainability Council, a prize was given to the best design.
This was a great opportunity to pressure for a youth representative in the Sustainability Council. Me and some other activists from the Sustainability Organisation YOIS had already through informal and formal contacts lobbied for the interest of young people in this important advisory body. However all efforts were fruitless.
So my first step was to enter secretly the press conference given by the head of the Council, Schröder-friend Volker Hauff. Since there were only a few journalists present which did not seem to be very interested in what Hauff had to say, I could ask my question pretending that I am a journalist: “Why is there no young person in the Sustainability Council?”.
He answered it is up to the German Chancellor to decide about the members of the Council, but he had nothing against a youth representative. Satisfied I left the press conference. Meanwhile the participants of the annual assembly had to vote upon our designs – and I received by far the most votes (expressed through little dots glued upon large posters).
Then Chancellor Schröder came. Originally it was planned that he talks to us “designers” for about fifteen minutes – but since his speech was too long, there was only time for a small photo session. Womanizer Schröder of course chose the most beautiful girls to stand next to him – I ended up somewhere near the top. But when he was just about to leave, I called him and yelled “Chancellor Schröder – just one minute please.”
Then I asked him the same question as Volker Hauff – why is there no young person in the Sustainability Council? And he replied that it’s up to Volker Hauff to decide this. Now I answered before Hauff could reply that he already agreed to have a young person in the Council. And Schröder said, well, in that case, why not? And since all cameras were zoomed at us and everybody heard about it, five months later Tobias Schlegl was appointed to the Council. (The story is confirmed by various persons and by Tobias Schleg himself.)
Now what happened to me after this episode? Of course I did not get the first price. The jury, in which Tobias Schlegl and Margot Käßmann sat, decided to give the first price to another design. Later on I heard from members of the jury that the reason was pressure for a young representative in the Council.
Well, at least something was achieved although meanwhile I am not so sure whether this had an impact after all. People working within the Council say that Tobias Schlegl is more responsive to ideas than other members and really wants to change something, but the Council itself has no real power, is underfunded and has almost no capacities to make a lasting impression on German politics. But in any case, these are my first 15-Warhol-Minutes.
