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Institute of Social and Cultural Anthropology

Welcome!

As Social and Cultural Anthropologists, we connect local ways of life with global issues.
At the Freiburg Institute, we conduct contemporary, theoretically grounded, comparative research. In our teaching, we emphasize research-based learning and hands-on experience.

Institute & People

The Social and Cultural Anthropology Institute at Freiburg stands for committed, interdisciplinary research and teaching with a global perspective. Our institute is a place for exchange, collaboration, and critical reflection.

About the institute
Meet the team

Teaching & Learning

Our programs include a German-language Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) and an English-language Master of Arts (M.A.). We prioritize practice-oriented teaching, collaborative research-based learning, individual supervision, and supporting independent study projects.

B.A. Sozial- und Kulturanthropologie / Ethnologie
M. A. Social and Cultural Anthropology
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Research

Our research focuses on the intricate ways of life and challenges of an interconnected world. Key areas of study include environmental and resource issues, social inequalities, transnational economies, and political and social transformation processes, particularly in Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America.

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News

TALK
Language, Identity and Conflict Resolution: Lessons from Aceh (Indonesia), and Patani (Thailand)
Saiful Akmal, Universitas Islam Negeri Ar-Raniry Banda Aceh

17.11.2026 | 18-20 Uhr

HS 01 009 | Werthmannstr. 10

NEW BOOK PUBLISHED

The edited volume “Making and Unmaking Frontiers in Borneo: Interrogating Volatility in Human and More-than-Human Landscapes“, co-edited by Michaela Haug, has just been published. The book is available Open Access and in hardcover. The chapters critically examine the socio-environmental transformations associated with infrastructure development, resource extraction, and frontier expansion in Indonesian Borneo. Drawing on empirical case studies that foreground local perspectives and experiences, they show how frontiers are actively produced, contested, and continuously reconfigured.

Open Access

INSTITUTSKOLLOQUIUM WINTERSEMESTER 2026/27
Tuesday | 6-8 PM

Temporalities of Transit. Waiting and Hasting at the US-Mexico Border
Pia Berghoff, Freie Universität Berlin

Pia Berghoff’s research takes an ethnographic approach to the temporal aspects of migration. Based on extensive fieldwork in the North Mexican border city of Tijuana, in the presentation she will examine Central American and Mexican migrants’ experiences with the prolonged periods of involuntary waiting and unexpected moments of acceleration caused by pandemic and post-pandemic U.S. migration policies, namely, Title 42 (2020-2023) and the obligation to use the mobile application CBP One (2023-2025). A specific focus will lie on the role of future anticipations and aspirations throughout all stages of the migration process, and on migrants’ strategies for coping with temporal uncertainties.

Nov 10, 2026 | 6-8 PM

HS 01 009 | Werthmannstr. 10

Studieninformationstag 2026
The Institute of Social and Cultural Anthropology is represented with its own booth at the statewide university study information day.

MI, 18.11.2026, 08.00 – 14.00 Uhr

Prometheushalle, KG I

NEW BOOK PUBLISHED

Gregor Dobler’s new book, “Otium – An Anthropology of Work, Freedom, and Common Ground in the Global Economy”, has been published in paperback and open-access electronic formats. It explores work, productivity, and leisure, as well as their distribution in global capitalism, contributing to debates on post-work, universal basic income, and the distribution of life chances.

“A must-read for anyone interested in the future of critical theory.” (Axel Honneth)

“This splendid new book directly challenges our productivity-obsessed culture. It presents a compelling case for reclaiming otium, a universal experience in which individuals feel free from external demands.” (Judy Wajcman)

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LECTURE SERIES “RESILIENCE”

University of Freiburg’s Zentrum für Schlüsselqualifikationen and Zertifikat Nachhaltigkeit, in cooperation with the Institute for Social and Cultural Anthropology, are hosting an interdisciplinary lecture series on resilience during the winter semester.

Please note: The lectures will be held in German.

From October 29
Every Thursday at 4 PM c.t.
KG I, Lecture Hall 1119

ISCA Secretariat Opening Hours

Mon – Thu 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM
(and by appointment via email)

Office Hours: see individual staff pages

Exhibition at the Museum of Nature and Humanity: “Voll Unfair”

20 May 2026 to 3 January 2027

Museum Natur und Mensch

the exhibition features paintings by the Indonesian artist, scholar and activist Dewi Candraningrum. Her paintings depict the “Ibu Kartini Kendeng” – a group of women who campaigned vehemently against the extraction of raw materials for cement production in Indonesia.

Info

Contact

Student Council