- Research Area A |
- Research Area B |
- Research Area C |
- Research Area D
Research Area C: Infrastructures and Public Goods
Infrastructures and public goods are essential foundations of social cohesion. The condition of public institutions – including hospitals, administrative offices, theaters, libraries, and transportation systems – shapes social relationships and reveals a great deal about societal priorities.
Infrastructures and public goods profoundly affect the relationship between citizens and their communities. They are, in a literal sense, experience shaping: They reflect narratives of decline or progress. They embody feelings of being “left behind” or isolated just as much as experiences of prosperity and advancement.
We assume that infrastructures and public goods can both promote and hinder social cohesion. Our research investigates whether – and how – they are used to support democratic cohesion.
Guiding Questions of the Research Area
We examine the design and resilience of infrastructures and public goods, their capacity for innovation, and strategies for their development. Three overarching questions guide our work:
What integrative or divisive effects do public goods have?
How is responsibility for public goods distributed between government and civil society?
What local forms of cohesion exist in relation to public goods?
We study the tension between social forces that either strengthen or undermine cohesion in connection with public goods and infrastructures. Our empirical focus is especially on Social Places and local stakeholders.
Associated work packages:
This area explores who creates public goods and infrastructures, and in what ways.
Associated work packages:
C_03 Kooperative Rekonfigurationen von Infrastrukturen …
C_04 Krisen der Reproduktion. Gesundheitsinitiativen als Feld der Erprobung alternativer Politiken …
In this focus area, we analyze how transformation processes either produce or pressure social cohesion. We investigate what kinds of (interest-based) conflicts emerge in the process and how they can be resolved.
Associated work packages:
C_05 Planung für klimaneutrale Städte als Faktor des Zusammenhalts
C_06 Verteilung und Perzeption von Umweltbelastungen und Naturressourcen …
Knowledge Transfer in the Research Area
The transfer activities of Research Area C aim to strengthen local participation in the provision of public goods and infrastructures. A central focus lies in advising municipal administrations and local initiatives. Our goal is to provide practice-oriented, actionable knowledge about infrastructures and public goods in innovative, site-specific formats. We also incorporate insights from civil society, politics, the economy, and the broader public into both our research questions and ongoing studies.
Research Area C offers transfer formats under the title “The Common Good and Civic Engagement at the Local Level,” which showcase how resilient infrastructures can be supported through collaborative design.