A continuation of the former Brady Lecture series, the Goethe Annual Lecture (GAL) invites renowned speakers to reflect on cultural themes central to the Goethe-Institut’s work and pressing issues facing the UK, Germany, and beyond.

As part of the Goethe-Institut London’s 60th anniversary celebrations in 2022, three GAL events were hosted featuring author Mithu Sanyal, academic Mercedes Bunz, and musician Matthew Herbert.

For the November lecture, the Goethe-Institut welcomed Mithu Sanyal, author, cultural scientist, and journalist. Sanyal is the author of Vulva (Wagenbach), Rape – From Lucrezia to #MeToo (Verso Books), and the award-winning novel Identitti (KiWi), which was shortlisted for the German Book Award and has been published in English by Astra House and V&Q Books. Her work has appeared in leading international publications, including The Guardian, Die Zeit, and Süddeutsche Zeitung.

In her lecture, titled ‘Politics – What’s Love Got To Do With It’, Sanyal explored the promises and pitfalls of a politics of love in times of increasing division. Drawing on figures such as Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr. and James Baldwin, she examined how love has historically shaped movements for social justice, and questioned how it might re-enter today’s political discourse.

The talk concluded with a Q&A session moderated by journalist and broadcaster Nastaran Tavakoli-Far.

From June 2021 to December 2024, I worked within the Goethe-Institut London’s Communications team. As Online Editor, I managed the UK’s website, social media, editorial budgets, and digital strategies. For the flagship annual event, I oversaw the entire digital production cycle, from strategy and budget planning to post-event content publication.

In addition, I hosted and produced a special Talking Culture podcast episode dedicated to promoting the GAL, extending the event’s reach to new audiences through an engaging audio format.

In the early planning phases, I used data tools such as Webtrekk, Meta Business Suite, and Eventbrite Analytics to compile reports evaluating the performance of previous GAL marketing campaigns and digital content. These findings shaped budget allocation and digital strategy for the upcoming event. I also coordinated with partner organisations on cross-promotional initiatives and compiled audience demographic reports that informed communications and content planning.

Once event details were confirmed, I built the event webpage in our custom CMS and devised cross-platform content to promote the lecture. I led all marketing campaigns across newsletters and social media, preparing tailored content to maximise engagement and ticket sales.

My production tasks included collating event texts, speaker biographies, and visual materials; adapting them to our editorial brand guidelines; translating English-language copy into German; publishing content across digital platforms; and distributing media packs to stakeholders.

During the event, I managed community engagement on livestream chats and social media and coordinated the videographer. Post-event, I worked with the videographer to prepare transcripts, ensured content aligned with editorial standards, published the recording on YouTube, promoted it via social media, and processed invoices for advertisements, social media boosts, and commissioned content.

Through this end-to-end process, I ensured the GAL consistently reached wide and diverse audiences while maintaining the Institute’s brand and editorial standards.