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Our scholars are available to the press for interviews or background information. We can assist you in finding the right expert at the WZB.
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Our scholars are available to the press for interviews or background information. We can assist you in finding the right expert at the WZB.
Climate change refugees are seen as genuine refugees and accepted by the public in Germany at a far higher rate than economic refugees. A study by Marc Helbling and Daniel Meierrieks at the WZB Berlin Social Center investigates if and to what extent Western societies feel morally obliged to help climate change refugees. The survey of 1,000 German citizens revealed that climate change refugees were seen as “genuine refugees” that had been forced to leave their home country for reasons beyond their control. The study has now been published as part of a research project at the WZB and the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, funded by the Leibniz Association.
On April 9, 2019, the Berlin Landgericht dismissed a claim filed by the AfD fraction in the Thuringian state parliament against the WZB. The AfD fraction had attempted to force the WZB to abstain from making statements that the party viewed as contravening personality rights. The court reasoned that the study in question was a piece of academic research and thus could not infringe upon the fraction’s personality rights in any way.
Populism is booming, left, right, and at the center of national parliaments, in coalitions with mainstream parties or as wildly successful challenges to the political status quo. Populist parties’ success stems in part from their anti-elitist rhetoric. But what happens when populists are elected into the establishment they claim to oppose? New research by Werner Krause and Aiko Wagner reveals how the reasons voters elect populists shift depending on how established the populist parties are.
Positive social contact between members of ethnic or religious groups in conflict can reduce discriminatory behavior – while prejudice remains unchanged, a new study shows. It is based on a field experiment among Christian and Muslim young men, that was undertaken in a riot-prone city in Nigeria by WZB researcher Alexandra Scacco and Shana S. Warren (New York University). The study offers key insights for policy makers who implement peacebuilding and youth programming interventions in conflict and post-conflict regions.
Claudia Roth
T: +49 30 25491 510
claudia.roth [at] wzb.eu
Kerstin Schneider
T: +49 30 25491 506
kerstin.schneider [at] wzb.eu
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Blog of the research unit Democracy and Democratization: WZB Democracy Blog
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