Numerous students from 36 partner universities from 20 different countries came together at Paderborn Town Hall on Tuesday at the invitation of Mayor Michael Dreier. In keeping with tradition, Mr Dreier welcomed the international students in the large conference room: "Welcome to Paderborn! It is a great pleasure for us to welcome you to our city. You have chosen to study at an outstanding university and will not only acquire valuable knowledge here, but also discover a new temporary home." In his welcome address, he expressed his gratitude for the close friendship with the university.

Paderborn is a cosmopolitan and innovative city. The mayor therefore attached great importance to honouring the city partnerships with Przemysl, Belleville, Bolton, Debrecen, Le Mans, Pamplona and Beylikdüzü. In view of the arrest of the mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem ?mamo?lu, and the mayor of Beylikdüzü, Mehmet Murat ?alik, Dreier particularly emphasised their commitment to democracy and equal rights in Turkey. With a joint resolution calling for the release of both mayors, the city of Paderborn showed its support and solidarity: "And so we all very much hope that we will be able to welcome Mayor ?alik back to Paderborn for the Libori Festival."

Dreier then used a presentation to take the students on a short journey through the city of Paderborn with its new railway station, the city library and the Heinz Nixdorf MuseumsForum and introduced them to a number of projects such as the Stadthaus, the Open Library and the Zukunftsquartier (Future Quarter) as a conversion of the conversion areas for flats and creative start-ups. Paderborn's cityscape is not forgetting the Pader, which is now even at the centre of the "City, People, River - The Pader for Europe" project in the application for the European Heritage Label. Mr Dreier ended his speech with the words "It's great that you are all here - I wish you all the best here in Paderborn and with God's blessing".

The Vice President for International Relations at Paderborn University, Prof Dr Heike Trautmann, was also proud of the large number of international students and encouraged them to make Paderborn their second home. "Paderborn not only offers an excellent academic education, but also an inclusive and supportive environment," added Prof Dr Beate Flath, Vice President for Teaching, Studies and Quality Management. In her closing remarks, she wished the students great success, meaningful friendships and wonderful experiences.

Following the welcome, the international students had the opportunity to network with each other and get to know representatives of the city and the university.

This text was translated automatically.