Blog | Europe

By Zoé Perko Introduction It’s 7:53 a.m. I hurry through the endless drizzle of a Brussels winter, weaving my way toward the subway station. Businesspeople stride across the crowded sidewalks, […]

Care can be understood in different ways depending on the social-political context in question. What for some may seem like a lack of care, for others is just a different way of caring. By researching environmental/urban education activities with children, the author seeks to relate children´s autonomy regarding urban issues in Berlin to care practices. This blog article shows some of the first reflections of Joana Martins' field work in Berlin as a visiting fellow at CRC.

This blogpost reveals how Ukrainian cities under occupation have become unexpected battlegrounds of non-violent resistance. Amidst surveillance and oppression, civilians employ ingenious tactics to defy the occupying forces, reclaiming urban spaces with symbols of hope and resilience. This exploration delves into the strategies of silent protest and civic defiance that transform everyday streets into arenas of courage and solidarity.

By Olena Kononenko Tradition or Transition? “When do you celebrate Christmas?” is a question that was often asked in Ukraine at the end of December 2023. It indirectly inquires whether […]

CRC 1265 researcher Eric Lettkemann unravels the intriguing dynamics between digital technology and public spaces. Uncovering contrasting approaches to the of hybrid reality game Pokémon Go, from cemetery bans in Germany to seamless integration in Tokyo, he discusses the social implications and future challenges of such locative media as we navigate an evolving world where the digital of physical increasingly overlap.

The environmental movement of Turkey has three decades of history. A culture of resistance was transferred from the first women's ecological resistance that attracted attention in the Bergama peasant movement to today's struggling women.[1] One of the areas of resistance discussed in this article is the Mount Ida (Kazdağları) Resistance, which is one of the most reported ecological struggles in the press in recent years in Turkey. [2]  Global companies came to this significant area, within the borders of Turkey's Marmara and Aegean regions, to search for gold with cyanide and destroy some regions with the state's approval. Resistance temporarily stopped the destruction and cutting of trees in the area.

This blogpost explores how counterpublic spaces act as intrinsically intersectional spaces shaped by power, history and emotion. In his celebrated 2019 book Afropean: Notes from Black Europe, Johny Pitts sets off by train from Sheffield on a five-month journey across continental Europe. Pitts’ mission seeks to explore the everyday life of black European experiences, beyond the “standoffish academic vernacular” (2019: 5) and to look for instances of “reverse colonialism” that highlight the long-term social and cultural presence and influence of blackness on European culture.

One likes to show guests something special, and depending on what they find interesting, the places usually selected range from museums, shopping malls, historic city centers, impressive nature reserves to the latest 5-star restaurant. In contrast, our visiting scientists from Chile are interested in how fruit production in Germany differs from that in their home country. For this reason, we, the CRC project A03 “Goods and Knowledge II” in cooperation with the DFG project “Apples and Flowers”[1], visited a fruit farm together with our guests Beatriz Bustos [2] , Patricia Retamal and Raúl Contreras.