News and Press Releases

Carola Westermeier will join the MPIfG in April 2025 as the leader of a new Lise Meitner Research Group on Technology and Sovereignty, which will begin in October 2025. The new group will research at the intersections of economic sociology, international political economy, and critical security studies. more

The MPIfG is taking part in ARTEMIS, the Max Planck Society’s mentorship program to promote scientific exchange with African universities and research institutions. Camilla Locatelli and Dustin Voss (both MPIfG) are mentoring two doctoral researchers, Endalcachew Bayeh from the Department of Political Science and International Studies at Bahir Dar University, Ethiopia, and Ngone Mirimi, a doctoral candidate in Development Economics at the Africa Research University of Zambia. more

Matthias Thiemann, professor for European public policy at Sciences Po in Paris, will be joining the MPIfG between April and June as this year’s Scholar in Residence. During his stay in Cologne, Thiemann will offer a three-part public lecture series, “Financial Stability, Shadow Banking, and the Conditions of Monetary Modernity: A Struggle in Three Acts.” more

The Volkswagen Foundation is providing around 940,000 euros in funding for a joint research project by Isabell Stamm (MPIfG) and Julia de Groote (WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management). Their project, “The Capital’s Shadow: Wealth Concentration in Startup Ecosystems,” will examine the role of influential investors in shaping the startup scenes in Paris and Berlin. more

On February 12, 2025, Fritz W. Scharpf, Emeritus Director at the MPIfG, will celebrate his ninetieth birthday. One of the most renowned political scientists in Germany, Scharpf’s research on joint decision making and multi-level governance in the European Union is internationally regarded as groundbreaking. more

The political scientist Fritz W. Scharpf, for many years a director of the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies, turns ninety. more

February 2025 marks the start of the next installments of the MPIfG’s successful MAX CPE series of online workshops on comparative political economy. The series’ monthly 60-minute seminars are an international forum for current research on topics such as comparative capitalism, financialization, inequality, and social policy. more