Ten subjects, three terms, one certificate: for the past year, students at the University of Münster have been able to enrol in the interdisciplinary certificate programme “Religion and Politics” that the Cluster of Excellence offers. This allows them to study from a wide range of courses and learn about different disciplinary cultures. More than 50 students are currently enrolled in the certificate programme, with the numbers rising. “This testifies not only to the relevance of ‘religion and politics’, but also to the great interest that students have in acquiring additional disciplinary skills”, says religious studies scholar Astrid Reuter. Read more

According to scholars of Scandinavian studies, ideas about Vikings and pagan Norse mythology today can often not be verified scientifically. “They are based essentially on reports written by Christian scholars in the High Middle Ages well over a century later, since, besides brief runic inscriptions, no written texts from the original period have been preserved”, says  Scandinavian scholar Roland Scheel from the Cluster of Excellence announcing the international conference “Imagining Nordic Paganism” from 6 to 7 November. Read more

Mit innovativen Konzepten des Politischen befasst sich die politische Philosophin Franziska Dübgen, Leiterin des Projekts „Artikulationen des ‚Politischen‘ in gegenwärtigen postkolonialen Kontexten Nord- und Subsahara-Afrikas“, in ihrer Forschung am Exzellenzcluster. Sie richtet den Blick vor allem auf Konzepte, die in der Politischen Philosophie und Politischen Theorie der vergangenen Jahrzehnte in und mit Blick auf Afrika entwickelt wurden. Im Interview spricht sie über ihr Forschungsprojekt am Exzellenzcluster, mögliche Lernpotenziale zwischen Nord und Süd im Umgang mit globalen Herausforderungen und die Debatte um Postkolonialismus.  Read more