Meet a Colleague: Kira Binder Kira Binder serves as a German world language teaching assistant.

W&L News Office
January 15, 2025

Q. How long have you worked at W&L?
I am a somewhat new addition to the faculty after being added to the staff this August.

Q. What courses are you teaching this term?
I assist with almost all the German courses. If you take one between 111 and 312, chances are you’ll run into me!

Q. What do you like most about working at W&L?
Not only is the workspace incredibly well-equipped and modern, W&L’s campus also allows for interdisciplinary collaboration with the other departments. The community is close-knit and supportive, and there is no limit to creativity when it comes to didactic cultural events. All this makes for an incredibly rewarding working environment.

Q. Where is your favorite location on the W&L campus?
This depends heavily on temperature and workload. During a sunny late summer afternoon, you may find me indulging in some catch-up readings on CGL’s second floor balcony. On busier days, I like exploring the library in efforts to thwart off procrastination (and, of course, failing miserably).

Q. What’s your favorite thing to do when you’re not working?
It may come as no surprise that I do in fact practice what I preach. I love exploring narratives in any shape or form (or medium). I will be entirely content reading pulp fiction, watching the latest try-hard indie movie at the cinema, or spending too many hours on online RPGs.

Q. Where did you grow up?
I grew up in Austria’s second-biggest city, Graz. Known to few outside the country’s borders, I now enjoy spreading the word of this beautiful place I call home. Come and visit on your next Euro-trip to explore the historical Old Town, exquisite nature made for leisurely hikes, and delicious traditional foods like Schnitzel and Kaiserschmarrn!

Q. Who inspired you to teach? What about them inspired you?
I come from a family of teachers, and I have seen firsthand how much work a person can put in for their students, often to a degree that some may consider “too much.” At the same time, I have always felt that working with other people, sharing one’s insights, discussing perspectives, and having some kind of impact on another person’s life (however small it may be) is usually a shared experience, and, if done right, a mutually beneficial one. I also gained much motivation in choosing this path from my previous employer at the University of Graz, Nassim Balestrini, who is an incredible scholar and inspiring teacher. Her adoration for certain at times niche topics and fields of study continue to inspire me in my own academic endeavors and explorations.

Q. What is the most adventurous thing that you have ever done?
When I was 23 years old, I travelled the southernmost islands of Japan, including Okinawa. Upon being invited by one of the local hotel owners, I swiftly packed my backpack for a night on Tokashiki Island, camping with a group of strangers I had met hours before. What some might call dangerous naiveté, I experienced as adventure. Sleeping between Golden Orb Weavers and Huntsman Spiders — every arachnophobe’s worst nightmare — soon proved a test of strength and willpower. And yet, the cloudless night sky on the white sand beach made up for it all.

Q. What is the website you visit most often and why?
They say don’t ask the question if you can’t handle the answer; and I wish I had a cooler reply to this, but the website I visit most often is more likely than not Wikipedia. After all, what can be cooler than a free online encyclopedia offering entries in multiple different languages? I also spend a lot of time on Canva, an online design tool that lets me live out all my graphic design dreams.

Q. If you could live anywhere, where would you build your dream home
Somewhere in the Swiss Alps, preferably wherever Heidi’s grandfather lived. Or perhaps in Tuscany, where I can enjoy Italian wine and food without ever holding back.

Q. What is your favorite film (movie) of all time?
Asking for one is akin to psychological torture, so here is a select list of four favorites (the Letterboxd way):

1. Le Fabuleux Destin d’Amélie Poulain (2001)
2. Manchester by the Sea (2016)
3. Howl’s Moving Castle (2004)
4. Fallen Angels (1995)

Q. What is your desert island food?
The exact Spaghetti Carbonara I ate in Istria when I was 12 years old.

Q. Tell us something most people don’t know about you.
When I was a child, I almost died from being stung all over by a swarm of giant hornets. Luckily, I survived! It’s definitely been added to my list of conversation starters.

Q. What is your secret talent?
Although largely unskilled when it comes to most musical talents, and much to my housemates’ dismay, my whistling ability is somewhat above average.

Q. Anything else you’d like to share?
I was an extra in the movie “Spiderman: Far From Home” and can be seen for a split second during one of the scenes shot in Venice. Some people actually know this because I frequently use it as one of my “Three Fun Facts” at introduction games.