Transformation shock – Georg Diez interviews Steffen Mau
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| free of charge |
| Please book your ticket in advance online or at the box office in the Foyer. |
| 14 years and older |
| German |
| Humboldt Lab, 1st floor |
| Part of: SCRIPTS Short Talks |
| Belongs to: After Nature |
The current crises of democracy go way back to the 1990s. Back then, many people experienced the transformation as the shock that the introduction of capitalism was for them. Long concealed by promises of growth, contradictions between democracy and the market economy are now erupting with force. The East German experience shows that change can succeed – or fail.
In an interview with journalist Georg Diez, sociologist Steffen Mau answers questions on the path from transformation shock to transformation knowledge.
How much nervousness can democracy tolerate? Where do these tensions come from? How is our concept of democracy currently changing? Which forms of democracy do we need to preserve, which do we need to unlearn and relearn? And where will we be in five years’ time?
The journalist and author Georg Diez will be talking to SCRIPTS researchers on three evenings about the state and future of ‘nervous democracy’: about the transformation shock of democracy after 1989, about the tension between hysteria and reason using the example of the USA and about the politics of unrest, protest and revolt as essential elements of a living democracy.
Further dates in the series:
14.11.2024: SCRIPTS Short Talk #2: POLITICS OF UNREST – Georg Diez interviews Christian Volk
18.12.2024: SCRIPTS Short Talk #3: HYSTERY AND CONFUSION IN THE USA – Georg Diez interviews Lora Anne Viola
Steffen Mau
Steffen Mau is a Professor of Macrosociology at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. In his award-winning work on the dynamics of modern societies, he explores social processes such as inequality, digitalization, borders, and migration. In 2021, he received the Leibniz Prize, and in 2023, he was awarded the Communicator Prize from the German Research Foundation. His recent books focus on the transformation processes in East and West Germany after reunification. Additionally, he conducts research as a Principal Investigator at the Excellence Cluster SCRIPTS.
Georg Diez
Georg Diez is an author, journalist, and curator who has worked as a cultural critic and political editor for prominent German media outlets, including Spiegel Online, Süddeutsche Zeitung, and Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung. His books tackle the societal tensions and the shift to the right, technology and opportunities for democracy. Diez was a Nieman Fellow at Harvard, served as editor-in-chief at The New Institute, and curated the exhibition Survival on the 21st Century. He is currently a fellow at ProjectTogether and the Max Planck Society, where he focuses on issues of democratic innovation.
Partner
An event in cooperation with the Cluster of Excellence Contestations of the Liberal Script (SCRIPTS).
