Free University of Berlin

This course introduces students to the grand challenges of today’s world (for example planetary boundaries) and the necessity for a “Great Transformation” toward a sustainable development of our societies. Students examine the systemic characters and the complex dynamics in today’s societies, including the individual, organizational, community, regional, national and international levels and their relations and interactions.

One of the major questions explored in the course is which social actors contribute to a transformation towards sustainable development and how - and in what way this happens, which inertias and obstacles stand in the way and could be overcome? What has the German government done, what is the German parliament doing, what is the function of business, sciences or civil society organizations – what happens in Berlin? The course considers the broadest possible spectrum of approaches, strategies and actors for a reflected change towards a Great Transformation in an exemplary manner, as well as thinking theory and practice together (in the sense of transformative science and shaping the future). Students examine the different national, regional and cultural systems and backgrounds for all this. Specific examples which are part of the pathway to sustainability are green taxes, renewable energy projects, cooperative housing, car-free streets and places, urban farming, or even eco-villages.

Additional topics include concepts like path dependency (path management), Multi-Level Perspective – MLP, social innovation, models of change, change agents, MAP – movement action plan. The course includes relevant sociological theories, i.e. social systems theory, practice theory and real utopias. These will give insights into societal factors for stability as well as for change.

By critically examining the influence of science and technology on the governance of human and non-human communities, this course equips students with theoretical tools to analyze nature politics and reflective skills about the role of science and technology in the world they live in. Topics include public and political problems such as examining the concerns about environmental degradation, extractivism, climate change, development infrastructure, and land distribution. Students examine the framework of (Western) scientific knowledge as objective and truth-revealing, and technological innovations as horizons for progress. “Rendering Nature Technical” explores: (i) how scientific and technological practices shape nature (its elements, dynamics, relationalities), (ii) how nature governance takes place in the interplay of science, technology, and society, (iii) the co-constitution of socio-cultural, political and economic contexts, and, science and technology, (iv) the effects of these dynamics on power, contestation and resistance in distributional conflicts. 

Political economy describes the multifold interactions between the political and economic subsystem in a society and is studied by many different disciplines. This lecture series invites scholars and practitioners from economic history, economics, history, literature and sociology to present on different sectors and aspects of the American political economy. Topics range from labor to housing markets, from migration to the international dollar system and from social movements to racialized capitalism. The lecture provides students with a unique interdisciplinary introduction into current research into American political economy, from many JFKI scholars and beyond.

The course introduces students to the interplay between trade, migration, and issues such as inequality, environmental degradation, and global politics. It equips students with the analytical tools and essential knowledge necessary to engage in contemporary debates on these issues, helping them to gain a deeper understanding of the interconnected dynamics in the globalized economy. The course covers both theoretical concepts and empirical studies. Students will understand the key theories and concepts underlying international trade and migration and have developed an awareness of how trade and migration trends are influenced by and contribute to challenges in areas like the labor market, environmental sustainability, or social cohesion. For the final examination, students are expected to demonstrate their ability to critically evaluate and discuss the relationship between trade or migration and at least one of the challenges discussed throughout the course.

This course focuses on sustainability and its impact as the most important global transformation project of the current time. It primarily discusses theories of change and human planning and design, but also topics such as justice, freedom, progress, growth, capitalism, and inequality.