International Summer School
Critical Junctures and Windows of Opportunity for (Post-) Pandemic Societies in
Europe and Latin America – JUNCTURES_2022

JUNCTURES_2022  is organized by the Heidelberg Center for Ibero-American Studies (HCIAS) of Heidelberg University in cooperation with the Heidelberg Center Latin America in Santiago de Chile (HCLA), Chile.  

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The organization and planning of JUNCTURES_2022 are financed by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD)  

The Heidelberg Center for Ibero-American Studies of Heidelberg University (HCIAS) invites all master’s and Ph.D. students from the social sciences and the humanities, as well as those in the late stages of their bachelor’s degrees to participate in the summer school JUNCTURES_2022, which will be held in the city of Heidelberg (Germany) from July 25th to August 2nd 2022. Information on how to get to Heidelberg can be consulted here. On an aditional note, the summer school will take place in the Seminar Room in the Guesthouses facility of Heidelberg University.

JUNCTURES_2022 invites applications from interested students from all around the world to participate and contribute to the success of the summer school. Additional information on the application and selection process can be found here. The application deadline is May 27th. Participants residing within the Latin-American region are eligible for an allowance of up to 1.500 Euros to help cover their accommodation and travel expenses. Participation at JUNCTURES_2022 is free of any tuition costs.   

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The current global Covid-19 pandemic has had an immense impact on the social and political dynamics and structures around the whole world. Our daily life has been directly affected by the events encompassing this unique historic event. In some cases, the Covid-19 pandemic has contributed to a radical change in the way we perceive reality and evaluate our surroundings. Social dynamics have consequently undergone deep transformations. What implications for societies have emerged as a consequence of the pandemic? What problems have arisen from it? How are we supposed to address these problems? How are solutions to be implemented? How much has our world changed as a result of the pandemic? These questions illustrate the enigmatic and challenging reality we currently find ourselves in.  

JUNCTURES_2022 considers the Covid-19 pandemic to be a critical juncture, which may have contributed to the strengthening of current polarization dynamics and social and economic inequality, but that may alternatively be visualized as a window of opportunity for political reforms and for social, economic, and ecological transformation processes. JUNCTURES_2022 departs from this background and seeks to encourage participants to critically analyze this window of opportunity and its implications for the post-pandemic societies of Europe and Latin-America from three different analytic perspectives: 1) from the perspective of the relevant political and social actors; 2) with a focus on the economic, social, and cultural processes; 3) regarding the performance and resilience of institutions. 

All courses and events held in the context of JUNCTURES_2022 will embrace these distinct analytical perspectives. A further central characteristic of JUNCTURES_2022 is the emphasis on transatlantic perspectives: through a systematic comparative approach, participants will become familiar with global tendencies and good practices from different political and cultural contexts and critically evaluate and discuss their transferability via institutional learning. Here you can find the description of academic courses encompassig JUNCTURES_2022! Furthermore, a list of the participating profesors can be consulted here.

JUNCTURES_2022 offers participants an interdisciplinary and open discussion platform. It combines analytical perspectives from the humanities and the social sciences and explores answers to the following guiding research questions constituting the conceptual core of JUNCTURES_2022: 

  1. Which institutional structures increase the resistance of democratic societies against political and social polarization as well as against actors with democracy-skeptic positions and ideas? 
  2. Which social and economic inequalities and ecological crisis tendencies has the Covid-19 pandemic made visible? 
  3. How do language and identity influence a) polarization and social inequality and b) their interpretation and analysis? 
  4. Which strategies are proposed and communicated to counter the effects of polarization and inequality?  
  5. Which modern technologies can democracies use in order to confront polarization and increasing inequality?  

Applications with project proposals that engage with one or more of the above research questions are particularly welcomed (for further information, consult the application requirements). 

Apart from the activities encompassing the academic core of the program, JUNCTURES_2022 also integrates as part of a complementary program a wide range of informal social activities, dynamics and exchange opportunities that allow participants to enrich their experience! The academic goals of JUNCTURES_2022 are thus complemented by the objective of creating a friendly and open environment.  

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Financed by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) 

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