KFG 76:  Reflexive Globalization and the Law: Colonial Legacies and their Global Implications in the 21st Century

• Subject Area: Social and Behavioural Sciences
• Term: since 2024
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 529663869

The legacies of colonialism and empire are becoming visible everywhere these days, indicating a new phase of globalization. While globalization was perceived especially in recent decades mostly in economic terms and often as uni-directional 'Westernization', we argue that globalization has entered a new phase, which also has important intellectual dimensions and is multidirectional; the positions of South and North, centre and periphery are redefined and rebalanced. For the purpose of our research, we frame this new phase, tentatively, as reflexive globalization. Our Kolleg-Forschungsgruppe wants to study the role of law in reflexive globalization and its implications for basic concepts of law. We will rethink such concepts through a South-North lens and look at law in four dimensions: as current norm, as historical formation, as practice and as local phenomenon. Through our interaction, we aim to contribute to debates about asymmetries in global structures of knowledge production and academic practice, develop a better understanding of meaning, contextual preconditions and scope of legal notions and further develop the concept of reflexive globalization to frame current processes of South-North rebalancing and global de-coupling. Sustained, iterative conversations between voices from South and North as made possible in a Kolleg are the essential path to those studies. Thus, the fellows program forms the heart of the Kolleg. At the same time, we face particular challenges that follow from the South-North dimension of our theme. We aim to address these challenges through a particular process and criteria of selecting fellows, through specific formats of including fellows in the Kolleg (e.g. digital fellowships, academic ambassadors) and by sending the "Kolleg on tour". Berlin has seen vibrant and heated debates about colonial legacies and we want to reflect and advance these debates. To that end will involve partners from both, other disciplines (such as global history, political theory, and anthropology) and civil society.

• DFG Programme: Advanced Studies Centres in SSH

Projects

• Coordination Fund (Applicant Dann, Philipp )
• Reflexive Globalization and the Law: Colonial Legacies and their Global Implications in the 21st Century (Applicants Dann, Philipp ;  Jeßberger, Florian )

• Spokesperson: Professor Dr. Philipp Dann
• Project Head: Professor Dr. Florian Jeßberger