Ayla Neusel The idea of holding an International Women‎'‎s University ifu as part of the EXPO 2000‎'‎W orld Exposition was born in Lower Saxony in the mid‎-1990s‎.‎ In 1992‎,‎ Lower Saxony‎'‎s then Minister of Science Helga Schuchardt had set up a Women‎'‎s Research Commission that in 1994 presented its report with the programmatic title ‎"‎Promoting Women‎'‎s Interests Means Academic Reform ‎- Women‎'‎s Research Means a Critique of Science‎"‎‎.‎ A spin‎-off‎,‎ so to speak‎,‎ of this commission‎'‎s was nd the idea of a women‎'‎s university as an EXPO project‎.‎ The 2 Lower Saxony Women‎'‎s Research Commission ‎(‎1995‎-1997‎)‎ stated‎:‎ ‎"‎From 15 July until 15 Oc‎- tober‎,‎ an International Women‎'‎s University is to be Q~ganised offering an interdis‎- ciplinary‎,‎ international‎,‎ multimedia‎,‎ postgraduate study programme‎"‎‎.‎ Initially conceived as a purely research‎-oriented university‎,‎ ijiJ evolved into an academic project for women scientists on an international scale‎.‎ The ifu concept was based on the ‎(‎self‎-‎)‎ image of science as an ongoing‎,‎ evolving‎,‎ forward‎- looking research project‎.‎ The unique concept of the International Women‎'‎s University as an academic reform project was founded on three key principles‎:‎ 1‎.‎Problem Orientation of Teaching and Research The choice of the globally relevant controversial issues Work ‎- Information ‎- Body ‎- Migration ‎- City ‎- Water and the idea of addressing these issues from the perspective of the natural and engineering sciences‎,‎ the humanities and so‎- cial sciences as well as art‎,‎ consciously focusing on questions of practical rele‎- vance‎,‎ gave rise to a problem‎-oriented‎,‎ interdisciplinary approach‎.‎