Humboldt University Berlin

This course covers quantitative evaluation of public policies using regression-based evaluation methods to change students' perceptions of the world and causal claims that are made by others. The first part of the course provides students with an introduction to regression analysis, including Stata. The course then discusses various strategies to potentially overcome omitted variable biases and other forms of endogeneity, with a particular focus on panel data econometrics. Throughout, the focus of the course rests on identifying strategies that allow for causal interpretation rather than mathematical derivations of theoretical results. Econometric challenges are discussed in reference to real-world policy questions and the relevant literature. Assessment is based on a final exam, weekly exercises, and presentation and discussion of journal articles. The course has no formal prerequisites, but a familiarity with basic statistical concepts and calculus is useful. It is also recommended, although not required, that other courses covering econometrics are taken in parallel.

This seminar takes a deep dive into histories and theories of rubbish, discards and waste, from the proposition that to be human is to make waste, through to the claim that humans can 'design out waste' in order to survive. Questions include when and where does something become rubbish, and how can its value be transformed? What does it mean to waste something, and when does waste become ’toxic'? This course examines how the politics of waste and its (mis)management lie at the heart of contemporary debates concerning environmental degradation, social and economic injustice, and the planetary crisis humans face. 

This course examines the empirical evaluation of (human resource) management practices in organizations. A brief introduction provides an overview of the fundamentals of experimental economic research. Subsequently, empirical studies on the causal effects of HR practices on employee behavior are discussed. The course trains students how to use experimental economics for the evaluation of causal effects of management practices in organizations. Students read, analyze and discuss various studies from organizational economics and practice their critical reflection. The reading list of the course includes studies on topics such as monetary and non-monetary incentives, leadership instruments, teams, feedback, recruitment, training. Tutorials are integrated into the lectures and the aim of the tutorial is to deepen the contents discussed in the lecture.

This course examines different farm management and agribusiness management practices and approaches in the agricultural and horticultural sectors. Drawing from multidisciplinary perspectives, the course provides students with understanding of the key approaches, issues and themes relating to strategic management in agribusiness (theories, planning), organization theory (explanatory approaches, design principles), interorganizational coordination (cooperation, chain management), fundamentals of innovation and knowledge management, basics of information and knowledge management, and business ethics and corporate social responsibility.

This course examines the comparative analysis of women's roles in politics and the challenges they encounter in attaining positions of power within the political arena. The seminar is split into two parts. The first part explores various aspects of women's involvement in politics, such as the historical struggle for women's suffrage, the gender gap in voting behavior, ideology, and political involvement, and their variation across countries and time. The second part focuses on various aspects of women's representation in political institutions, including the challenges they face when seeking public office, their portrayal in the media, their impact on political decision-making, and the relationship between their presence and corruption. Additional topics include the entry of women into politics and the degree of this transformation varying across different countries and regions. Questions covered include: what factors underlie these variations? Why have some political systems successfully integrated women into politics while others lag behind? Do men and women approach politics differently in terms of understanding and engagement? Is there a disparity in political involvement and aspirations between genders? Additionally, how has media coverage affected female candidates? Furthermore, once in power, do women govern differently from men? 

This course discusses the evidence for the deepening crisis of the gap between Islamic countries and the rest of the world and how it has continuously widened since the 1970’s. Students explore potential causes, the Arab Spring, including Western colonialism, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the relation between state and religion in Muslim countries, political and economic effects, effects on immigration, and the rise of religious fundamentalism.

There are two thoughts at the center of this class, which are to be challenged and clarified in discussion. The first thought is that all desire is somehow or other aimed at the good. The second thought is that all action is somehow or other subject to normative evaluation. The class challenges and clarifies these thoughts by close reading of parts of Plato's Republic and of contemporary texts. From Plato's Republic, the class focuses on the role of technical expertise (techne) in guiding action; on theory of the tripartite soul; and on the theory of desire and its objects. Students read contemporary works, especially by Christine Korsgaard, that deals with related themes and also touches on Plato's Republic. Students also read works by Rachel Barney, which is focused on the Republic and helps to forge a connection between Plato's text and these contemporary debates.

This seminar engages students in a close reading and discussion of a selection of key texts in which Plotinus addresses problems surrounding his understanding of love. The main focus of this seminar is on Plotinus treatise Ennead 3.5, dedicated to the topic of love, which includes his interpretation of central parts of Plato’s Symposium. This seminar begins by looking at some central texts by Plato on love, esp. the speech by Diotima in the Symposium. No knowledge of Greek is required.  Students are reading all texts in English translation, but occasionally the Greek text is discussed.

In September 2023, 74 works from the 16th to 19th centuries from the Odessa Museum of Western and Eastern Art were brought to Berlin from Ukraine. Since then they have been studied, conserved, re-framed, and prepared for an exhibition starting in January 2025. In January, the Gemäldegalerie will exhibit the paintings removed from Odessa and put them in dialogue with the existing collection in Berlin. This seminar is devoted to the study of the paintings from Odessa and to the consideration of comparable paintings in Berlin, taking advantage of the juxtaposition of the two collections. It reflects upon the fate of works of art during times of war, considering the impact upon artistic and cultural heritage in the Ukraine since the Russian war of aggression. The history of the dispersal of works of art in Berlin in the 20th century provides a comparative history. The exhibition brings to the forefront works of art by important artists that were previously little-known and little-studied: Francesco Granacci, Frans Hals, Bernardo Strozzi, and others.