Hamburg Institute for Social Research

The Hamburg Institute for Social Research was established in 1984. The Institute is an independent private foundation; its main goal is to initiate and conduct research projects and organize academic conferences and workshops.

The Hamburg Institute for Social Research is governed by a Board of Directors comprised of three members. Head of the Board of Directors is Jan Phillip Reemtsma, who established the Institute as a Foundation with his endowment, directs the Foundation, and sets the priorities for the Institute’s research and activities.

At the Institute, scholars from various academic disciplines (in particular sociologists and historians) focus in their work on empirical social research, historical analysis, and theory-building in the social sciences. In a number if cases, this work as well as conferences and other academic meetings held by the Institute occur within the context of collaborations with other institutions in Germany and abroad. Some of these projects are also co-financed by partner institutions, foundations, or public grants.

There are currently three research units at the Institute: The Society of the Federal Republic of Germany, Nation and Society, and Theory and History of Violence. Despite the heterogeneity of ongoing research, intersecting and overlapping research interests in the three units are intentional. Scholars from the humanities and the social sciences work together under one roof and draw not only on their own field but on transdisciplinary exchange as the basis for their research.The Institute presents the results of its research in lectures and lecture series, conferences, book presentations, and exhibitions. Further forums for academic debates and publication are the in-house journal, “Mittelweg 36”, and publishing company, the Hamburger Edition. Last but not least, the Institute offers a library and archives, both of which are open to the public.

Executive Director and Founder: Prof. Dr. Jan Philipp Reemtsma
Secretariat of the Executive Director: Matthias Kamm

Hamburg Institute for Social Research
Mittelweg 36
20148 Hamburg
Germany

Phone: +49 (0)40 41 40 97 - 0
Fax: +49 (0)40 41 40 97 - 11
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