Politics Today – Dare to Think Big
Emeritus Founding Director of the Center for Civil Society Research
The conference marks the successful founding phase of the Center for Civil Society Research, honoring the contributions of its founding director Edgar Grande to political science. On Thursday afternoon, the conference kicks off with a public roundtable on the state of political science today. With Adrienne Héritier, Hanspeter Kriesi, and Michael Zürn, we will discuss how the discipline has changed in recent years, what are the most urgent and exciting research questions to be addressed, and how can and should political science contribute to a better understanding and response to the challenges which contemporary democracies are facing. In the spirit of Edgar Grande’s work, we dare to think big, inviting the public to join us in a lively debate.
The event features music and short addresses by Jutta Allmendinger, Renate Mayntz, Karsten Fischer, and Christoph Knill. It will be moderated by Swen Hutter.
Adrienne Héritier is Emerita Professor of Political Science at the European University Institute in Florence and former Director of the Max Planck Project Group for ‘Common Goods: Law, Politics, and Economics’ in Bonn.
Hanspeter Kriesi is Professor of Political Science at the European University Institute in Florence and Principal Investigator of the ERC Synergy Grant ‘SOLID: Policy Crisis and Crisis Politics. Sovereignty, Solidarity and Identity in the EU Post 2008.’
Michael Zürn is Director of the Research Unit Global Governance at the WZB Berlin Social Science Center and Co-spokesperson of the Cluster of Excellence ‘Contestations of the Liberal Script (SCRIPTS).’
Jutta Allmendinger is President of the WZB Berlin Social Science Center and Professor of Educational Sociology and Labor Market Research at the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin.
Renate Mayntz is Emerita Director at the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies (MPIfG).
Karsten Fischer is Professor of Political Theory at the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München.
Christoph Knill is Director of the Geschwister-Scholl Institute of Political Science and Professor of Empirical Theory of Politics at the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München.
Swen Hutter is Director of the Center for Civil Society Research and Lichtenberg Professor of Political Sociology at the Freie Universität Berlin.
Music by Denise Felsecker (Mezzosoprano) and Ulrich Pakusch (Piano)