Wissenschaftsfreiheit weltweit und in Deutschland gerät durch autoritäre politische und gesellschaftliche Strategien zunehmend unter Druck. Das Projekt „Resiliente Universitäten“ erarbeitet in vier empirischen Schritten Vorschläge, wie das Hochschulsystem in Deutschland sich diesen Herausforderungen stellen kann. Eine international und historisch vergleichende Analyse autoritärer Playbooks bildet die Grundlage für eine interview-basierte Erhebung struktureller Vulnerabilitäten, aus der dann Vorschläge zur Stärkung der Resilienz erarbeitet werden. Die Ergebnisse werden einer breiten öffentlichen Diskussion zugeführt. Ihre Implementierung wird an ausgewählten Standorten begleitet.

Konakt: resiliente.universitaeten.ast@sot.tum.de

Zeitraum: 01.07.2025 – 30.06.2028

Projekttyp: Drittmittel

Fördergeber: VolkswagenStiftung

Throughout human history, people have imagined the relationship between cities and nature in different, sometimes contradictory ways. Cities have often been regarded as the opposite of nature: completely artificial constructs engineered according to human needs, powers, and ideas. At the same time, authors from Aristotle to the present day have argued that cities resemble living organisms or bodies that can be dissected into organs such as the “heart” for the city center, the “lungs” for public parks, the “arteries” for streets and highways, and the “intestines” for pipes and sewers.

Through a series of “walkshops,” students will critically reflect on the relationship between cities and nature with the help of selected readings from the fields of science and technology studies (STS) and urban environmental history. Each week, the class will discuss specific case studies and analyze the relevant theoretical and methodological approaches to the topic, paying particular attention to the key role of technology in this debate.

Students will gain historical and theoretical insights into major contemporary challenges such as the global environmental crisis. They will also learn to think critically and constructively about important concepts such as sustainability, ecology, and the Anthropocene. Finally, they will learn how to combine theoretical approaches and methods from history, geography, and STS.

Dr. Felix Mauch
E-Mail: felix.mauch@tum.de

Projektleitung: Dr. Felix Mauch

Zeitraum: 01.01.2022 – 31.12.2026

Projekttyp: Postdoc-Projekt

Fördergeber: TUM