Research Group “Security Capitalism”
The Security Capitalism research group consists of Prof. Dr. Oliver Kessler, Prof. Dr. Andreas Goldthau, Prof. Dr. Sophia Hoffmann and Prof. Dr. Michael Riegner. With the concept of security capitalism, the research group highlights the increasing overlap of security and economy, connecting the fields of security (Prof. Hoffmann), political economy (Prof. Kessler), law (Prof. Riegner) and public policy (Prof. Goldthau). The shared research interest focuses on the question of how security policy relates to capitalist value creation. Among other things, this involves better understanding the close interplay of private-sector and state actors in areas such as security apparatuses, the energy industry, global supply chains and financial markets, and analyzing their political motivations and effects.
Doctoral Program “De-Globalization and Global Decoupling” (DeGlobE)
The doctoral program „De-Globalization and Global Decoupling“ (DeGlobE) investigates how the recalibration of market and state, economic paradigms, and levels and approaches of regulation manifests itself under conditions of de-globalization. DeGlobE is interested, on the one hand, in the specific „post-globalization logics“ emerging in these sectors. On the other hand, it asks what consequences de-globalization, disentanglement and global decoupling have for normative goals such as social justice, the socio-ecological transformation, or the observance of human rights, and which mechanisms might replace formerly multilateral approaches.
DeGlobE offers an interdisciplinary research program combining security policy (Sophia Hoffmann, Junior Professor of International Politics and Conflict Studies), political economy (Oliver Kessler, Professor of International Relations), legal (Michael Riegner, Junior Professor of International Administrative Law and Public International Law) and public policy perspectives (Andreas Goldthau, Professor of Public Policy at the Willy Brandt School of Public Policy). The program is institutionally anchored at the Security Capitalism research group of the University of Erfurt.
The doctoral program is funded by the Hans Boeckler Foundation.
Erfurt Research Center for Geoeconomics (EFGEo)
The research center aims to conduct interdisciplinary basic research at the intersection of international political economy, law, international relations and conflict studies, and public policy, and to relate this to the specific situation of the European, German and Thuringian economies. It emerged from the “Security Capitalism” research group. It is funded until 2027 by the Thuringian Ministry for Economic Affairs, Science and Digital Society (TMWWDG). More information can be found here.
DFG Project: How Are Law and Politics Being Reconfigured by the Constitutional Transformations in Bolivia and Ecuador? A Systems-Theoretical Analysis
This DFG-funded project is being carried out until 2027 by Dr. Franz Xavier Barrios Suvelza, Prof. Andre Brodocz and Dr. Hannah Vermassen, and examines the constitutional transformation in Ecuador and Bolivia and its effects on the relationship between law and politics from a systems-theoretical perspective. More information can be found on the professorship homepage.
Research Group “Ecological Conflicts”
Funded by the Gerda Henkel Foundation, the research group at Humboldt University Berlin and the University of Erfurt (led by Prof. Dr. Andre Brodocz) will research the topic of “ecological conflicts” and conflicts over political representation in the coming years. More information can be found here.
KNOWPRO: Knowledge Production in German Foreign Policy
The project examines processes of knowledge production in German foreign policy, with particular attention to foreign interventions in Afghanistan and Somalia, using qualitative and quantitative methods. It is led by Prof. Dr. Sophia Hoffmann and Dr. Karoline Färber, together with project partners from the University of Bremen and the University of Kiel.
Competence Network “Postcolonial Hierarchies in Peace & Conflict”
The BMBF-funded competence network “Postcolonial Hierarchies in Peace & Conflict”, involving Philipps University of Marburg, the University of Erfurt (represented by Prof. Dr. Michael Riegner, Prof. Dr. Oliver Kessler and Prof. Dr. Andre Brodocz), the University of Bayreuth, and the Arnold Bergstraesser Institute in Freiburg, examines historically entrenched postcolonial hierarchies in contemporary conflict dynamics and their implications for future sustainable conflict transformation.
Amazon of Rights
The “Amazon of Rights” project examines how ecocentric normativity interacts with social realities in a key ecosystem of planetary relevance, namely the Amazon river system. It employs comparative law and visual ethnographic practice, particularly documentary film, as methods of socio-legal research. The project is funded by the Volkswagen Foundation and led by Prof. Dr. Michael Riegner as Principal Investigator, together with Cecilia Oliveira at RIFS Potsdam and Luis Eslava at Kent University and La Trobe University. More information can be found on the project website and on the professorship homepage.
Globalization in Retreat: New Lines of Conflict in the International Division of Labor (Heisenberg Program)
This program addresses new (de)globalization conflicts in which the retreat of transnational entanglements is being negotiated. It examines the anatomy of these conflicts in the central area of the international division of labor in order to explore what de-globalization actually means. The project is led by PD Dr. Stefan Schmalz.
JRT02: Clash or Convergence of Capitalisms. Property Conflicts over Chinese Direct Investment in Germany and the European Union (Subproject of the Collaborative Research Center/Transregio “Structural Change of Property”)
The aim of this subproject is to analyze the property conflicts arising from Chinese direct investment in Germany and the EU. The project follows a mixed-methods design: it examines cases of acquisitions in the German metal and electrical industry as well as paradigmatic examples of direct investment shaping industrial policy in Germany and the EU. The subproject is led by PD Dr. Stefan Schmalz.
A “Democratic State of Exception”: The Coronavirus Controversy in Germany
The project examines how the “state of exception” is enacted and overcome within democratic public debate. It is led by Prof. Dr. Andre Brodocz and Dr. Hagen Schoelzel at the Chair of Political Theory at the University of Erfurt. The project is funded by the Volkswagen Foundation.
ICAS:MP – Metamorphoses of the Political
Members of C2PO are involved in the project „M. S. Merian – R. Tagore International Centre of Advanced Studies“ (ICAS:MP), funded since 2015 by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research. ICAS:MP is a joint German-Indian project dedicated to questions of the political on the basis of shared academic work.
A Conceptual History of International Relations (CHOIR)
The CHOIR project questions established concepts of International Relations and builds on the cooperation between the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs and further external partners, including the University of Erfurt. The project is funded by the Research Council of Norway.