Spring School 2026

Where: Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg & Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology, Halle (Saale)
When: Monday, 23 March 2026, 9:00 hrs to Friday, 27 March 2026, 12:00 hrs.

The annual Spring School 2026, hosted and organized by IMPRS Faculty members of Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg, brought together doctoral researchers for a week of exchange and joint work. The programme moved between different formats, beginning with project “speed dating” sessions that set a lively and interactive tone from the start. This was followed by sessions led by interdisciplinary tandems from anthropology, law, sociology, and history, which explored how different perspectives shape research questions and approaches, alongside discussions on fieldwork and well-being.

Midweek sessions focused on key academic skills, including publishing, data analysis, and funding strategies, and created space for doctoral researchers to learn from each other and discuss shared challenges. Smaller working groups on cross-cutting themes—such as autocratization, law and justice, and engaged science—allowed for more in-depth discussion and culminated in a collaborative exercise in which participants jointly developed fictional calls for papers, some of which may develop into future workshops. The programme was complemented by informal activities, including a film screening and joint dinners, contributing to a collegial and open atmosphere throughout the week.

Keynote by Prof. Arzoo Osanloo (Princeton University)

Where: Institute for Social and Cultural Anthropology, Halle (Saale)
When: Monday, 23 Mar 2026, 16:00–18:00 hrs
Title: By-Design: Material and Affective Conditions of Being under Economic Sanctions in Iran

Since the early 2000s, economic sanctions have spread across the globe, evolving from temporary political tools into enduring regimes that shape everyday life. Drawing on ethnographic research in Iran, this talk explored how sanctions function as infrastructures that govern not only economic conditions but also social and affective life. It showed how such measures produce new modes of living while mirroring forms of neoliberal restructuring, raising broader questions about governance, responsibility, and the lived experience of global political interventions.