Information Brochure M.A.

Program Visual and Media Anthropology

Department of Political and Social Sciences Institute of Social and Cultural Anthropology

Head of the Program: Prof. Dr. Undine Frmming E-mail: fromming@zedat.fu-berlin.de Program coordinator: Tobias Becker M.A - Teaching Coordinator: M.A. Florian Walter. Artistic Supervisor: M.A. Kristian Petersen - Program/admission information requests:
www.master.fu-berlin.de/visual-anthropology/ - E-mail: mainfo@zedat.fu-berlin.de

Content

1 Editorial ........................................................................................................................ 3 2 Facts about the Program .............................................................................................. 5 2.1 Students and Alumnis ............................................................................................................................................ 5 Nationalities ............................................................................................................................................................................ 5 Example CVs of some of our students ........................................................................................................................... 6 2.2 Technical Facilities .................................................................................................................................................. 7 Editing Work Stations, Cameras and Sound Systems ............................................................................................ 7 2.3 National and international cooperations ..................................................................................................... 8 3 Overview: Program Structure ....................................................................................... 9 4 E-learning- and social network tools ........................................................................... 10 5 Example Online-courses ............................................................................................. 11 5.1 Example Online course Profile Module 2B: Social Anthropology in virtual Worlds ............... 11 5.2 Example Online course Profile Module C2: Africa Online ................................................................... 14 5.3 Example Online-Course: Basic Module 1b Classics and Varieties of Ethnographic Film ...... 16 5.4 Example Online-course: Profile Module B2 Indigenous Media ........................................................ 19 6 Virtual 3D-classrooms ................................................................................................. 21 6.1 Special Activities in 3D environments ......................................................................................................... 23 7 Research Activities ..................................................................................................... 23 7.1 Steps for a continuous improvement of our E-learning tools ........................................................... 23 7.2 Papers and Conference Participations (selection) ................................................................................. 24 7.3 Research and PhD Projects ............................................................................................................................... 24 Third Party Research project ........................................................................................................................................ 24 Examples for running PhD-Projects ........................................................................................................................... 25

1 Editorial
During the Bologna process in the years 2006-2008, the idea was born to create this new M.A. Program in Visual and Media Anthropology. The institute had to restructure the old Magister Program, Ethnologie, into B.A. and M.A. Programs. This lead to the creation of the M.A. in Visual and Media Anthropology. the B.A. Sozial- und Kulturanthropologie (inception 2005), and the M.A. Sozial- und Kulturanthroplogie (inception 2008). The Program in Visual and Media Anthropology, as a subfield of Social and Cultural Anthropology, should be even more radical in its renewal than our new B.A. and M.A. programs in Social and Cultural Anthropology. We had the vision to build up a program that should bring visual and media anthropological knowledge to people who have already settled, and are future leaders, in the film industry or governmental and non governmental organizations, as well as to the current and future leading voices of the museums, new Most of the in-house courses take place media and art production industries. The continuous high at the new conference centre of Freie number of applications since the inception of the program in Universitt Berlin The Dahlem Cube the year 2008, demonstrates that there is a strong interest in our program, which is unique in Germany. None of the existing programs worldwide (e.g. University of London, University of Manchester, University of Barcelona; University of Troms; University of Southern California; University of Kent) offer a M.A. program in Visual and Media Anthropology as an online program with 3D classrooms in combination with in-house courses. Our lectures are visual and media anthropologists from different universities worldwide (see international cooperations). The aim of the program is to overcome the Eurocentric, non-scientifically grounded, audio-visual documentations about non-European countries that often give the local or indigenous communities of least, or better to say alternatively developed countries, no voice and ignore other important ethical guidelines in documenting and interpreting cultures. Furthermore the role of new media, especially social networks in political processes, resistance, transnational migration and community building is one important research area of Media Anthropology. Another idea of the program is to widen the traditional concept of ethnographic audiovisual research in terms of integrating ideas of sensual, artistic and fictional ethnographic film/photography-making and herewith cross the boundaries from a mere distant scientific interpretation of cultures to a participation in trans-regional cultural processes. According to the Bologna declaration, the program should fulfill the following criteria: 1. International Program: students from all over the world and media professionals or professionals engaged in the development cooperation sector (with a first degree (BA) in Social and Cultural Anthropology and related subjects such as Philosophy, Sociology, Human Geography, Mass Communication studies etc.) have the opportunity to apply for this program, therefore all courses are taught in English. 2. The Program is open for professionals in sectors that are relevant for Visual and Media Anthropology: Professionals from governmental and non-governmental organizations in the sector of sustainable development and capacity building in least or alternatively developed countries. People employed in the media / documentary film industry (e.g. journalist) or independent professional photographers engaged in documentary photography. People engaged in the museum landscape and art industry (curators, artists).
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3. Flexible Program: The use of e-learning tools in combination with in-house courses in workshop /block-style with a duration of two to three weeks, twice a year, enables students and lecturers to study this program flexibly, in the sense of being able to participate in the weekly courses from all over the world with abilities such as: Staying in the home to take care of their children and families (opportunities for single mothers or fathers) Staying in different countries (idea of the global /transnational citizenship as a opportunity for professionals with a global job description such as international governmental and non-governmental organizations). Being on long-term ethnographic fieldwork (opportunity for students interested in a professional carrier as Anthropologists)

4. Real-time-Online-Meetings: The difficult question was: how can our lecturers, besides our own staff, coming from different international universities, be in more personal contact with the students during the online-courses other than only in terms of a written communication (Blackboard Discussion board, E-mail), and how can the students tie their social network with each other and feel comfortable in our academic community without being present the whole time. The solution for this question leads us to establish the following steps: 1) 3D-virtual classroom lectures and courses with avatars and voice chat; 2) Virtual 3D office hours of lecturers with avatars and voice-chat; 3) Virtual real time 3D-Film screenings; 4) Social Network tools: newsletter, Facebook group, student Blog; 4) Skype video call meetings. 5. Multimedia Content Management System (CMS)-Online Modules: The idea was to present the whole content of the online courses in attractive multimedia online-modules in the form of a combination of the course in weekly units, that with content in form of text, film and picture, supplemented with mandatory and recommended readings, questions and assignments. Each course is written / designed by the lecturer who teaches the course as well. The courses are only to a small part self-learning courses and are accompanied by weekly online meetings with the lecturer, similar to the traditional in-house courses where students give weekly presentations in the virtual classroom and discuss the mandatory readings with the lecturer and fellow students. We offer two forms of Online courses: 1.) Synchronal realtime courses in the 3D classroom with avatars and voice chat and 2.) asynchronal non-real-time courses (the course discussion takes place via LMS Blackboard), which allow a wider flexibility for students and lecturers by offering participation in the discussions at any time with their posts. Furthermore, mini online units that offer a reading, in form of pfd. downloads, on the most important course content, questions and assignments, accompany each in-house course. In March 2012 we start the fifth application process and again about 20 students will be matriculated to start the Masters Program in Visual and Media Anthropology in October 2012.

Prof. Dr. Undine Frmming- Junior Professor, Head of the M.A. Program Visual and Media Anthropology

2 Facts about the Program

The Institute of Social and Cultural Anthropology (Department of Political and Social Sciences) at the Freie Universitt Berlin is offering an innovative new Master's (M.A.) program in Visual and Media Anthropology. The two-year-full-time Master's program comprises 120 ECTS. We offer 25 places each year. The M.A. program is a blended learning Program (a combination of e-learning and in-houseclasses). Our E-learning philosophy is a mixture of different web based learning tools: 1) LMS Blackboard 2) CMS-Online modules with multimedia content 3) Avatar based 3D-virtual classrooms with multi-learner scenarios, notably simulation of ethnographic field work in 3D environments. The program is a combination of E-learning and in-house learning with five main units: 1. The distance-e-learning modules 2. Four in-house workshops (lasting from two to three weeks long) 3. An internship in a TV production company, film festival, Ethnological Museum, film archive or other related fields 4. A short film or media project 5. The Master's thesis and/ or the film/media project This two-year-full-time Master's program comprises 120 ECTS and is educating both researchers with a background in anthropology and media professionals. The Master's Program focuses on the relationships between culture and media in a number of areas, such as: virtual cultures; problems in representation of culture and gender through media, the significance of ethnographic films and photography for Social and Cultural Anthropology, the development of media in Indigenous, Diaspora, and non-Western communities. The language of instruction is English. The program is highly international. For our real-time online-classes (via avatars and voice-chat) with students coming from countries all over the world we use a world-clock meeting planner. Tuition Fees The tuition fees are 4,450 per year of study (2,225 per Semester). In addition, there are the universitys regular registration fee of approximately 88,18 Euro per semester and 158,50 Euro Semesterticket (allows to use one year the whole Berlin railway / U-Bahn-System). Please note that the additional university registration/semester fees may change slightly. Students must assume additional (travel, room) costs arising from the in-house and fieldwork periods. In the cases of financial need and in particular social circumstances of the applicant, the fee may be reduced upon written request. This shall be decided by the Selection Committee (see 2 (3), tuition statue).

2.1

Students and Alumnis

Nationalities Angola, Australia, Bangladesh, Brazil (2), Bulgaria, Colombia, China, Denmark, United Kingdom (2), Estonia, Finnland, Germany (10), Greece (2), Hungaria, Iran (2), Italy (2), Latvia, Malawi, Nepal, Netherlands (2), Panama, Pakistan, Poland, South Africa, Switzerland (2), Thailand, USA (2), Vietnam.

Institute of Social and Cultural Anthropology, Freie Universitt Berlin

Example CVs of some of our students

Farhana v. Mitzlaff Nationality: Bangladeshi I studied Mass Communication and Journalism in Bangladesh. Being interested in photography and social issues, I worked for a news agency and reported on sensitive issues including those of tribal communities. Later I had the opportunity to work on issues to improve the situation of industrial workers in the clothing sector. Few years back I moved to Germany adding my experience with a television project and working with an Internet Radio. Socio-cultural differences, I regard as opportunities although realizing that often this is the beginning of non-understanding and hostility. Talking about ethnic minorities can easily happens in a context of vulnerability and being bias whereby it may be worth to examine the impact of non-representative media. Indigenous knowledge is often not visualized and is not acknowledged with its alternative concepts of human coexisting with global sustainability. Those and other questions brought me to this study at the FU Berlin and I look forward to experiment in the fieldwork.

Nora Mertens Having a BA degree in Cultural Studies (social studies, literature and languages such as English, French and Russian), Im currently doing my MA is Visual and Media Anthropology at FU Berlin. I previously worked in the music business -both on the side of a record label and as a band-/tour manager for an international music band. Since childhood I have been fascinated by people's differing realities, values, ideas and stories, while trying to find my individual 'truth'. Realizing that I was already doing 'ethnographic fieldwork' in my daily life by visually documenting and observing (video and photography) my own experiences and surroundings, combined with an artistic/aesthetic approach and a great interest in 'others' and traveling, it came natural to me to pursue a degree in Visual and Media Anthropology, where I'm improving my technical and academic skills and am enjoying to meet and be inspired by similar minded people. I'm intending to apply my skills and knowledge in an aesthetic and respectful approach, looking to be involved in projects that help promote understanding and tolerance with all kinds of forms of expression, people and backgrounds, without being too sophisticated and while being true to my own values.

Lefteris Fylaktos Eleftherios Fylaktos Born in Thessaloniki, Greece in 1973. Studied Communication Arts in the United States from 1991 to 1995. Have been working as a TV director for ERT (Greek Radio Television) from 1997 to date. Have directed documentaries, corporate videos, etc. for television, private, public and international institutions. At the moment living in Berlin, Germany, in pursuit of a Master of Arts in Visual and Media Anthropology in Freie Universitt Berlin. Homepage: http://web.me.com/lefterisfylaktos

Thomas John Born 1984 in Germany, currently living in several places, predominantly in Granada, Spain. After doing a year alternative civilian service and trekking and traveling for a year in India and Nepal, I did from 2006-2010 a B.A. in Cultural- and Social Anthropology and a B.A. in Comparative Religious Science in Mnster, Germany. In 2010 I started with the Visual and Media Anthropology M.A. at FU Berlin. Within undergraduate studies I got in touch with anthropological film, went to ethnographic film festivals, did two visual anthropology classes and resulting from those a few documentary films and participation in an ethnological intercultural youth-film project. The combination to do science and being in the same time creative in an audiovisual way turned out to be something I like and enthuse over. I tasted blood and decided therefore to follow this path by doing the M.A. of Visual and Media Anthropology. Besides other reasons for developing skills in this field, I really appreciate the possibility to combine anthropological research and knowledge with the creation of very visible outcomes as representation, to have a practical emphasis through combining anthropology with creativity and audiovisual art. I`m looking forward to make something out of it!

2.2

Technical Facilities

Editing Work Stations, Cameras and Sound Systems The M.A. Program purchased together with the institute of Communication Studies and the Department of Political and Social Sciences two new Avid-Editing Work stations and two Final Cut-Editing Work stations. The M.A. Program furthermore purchased for the in-house courses (camera and editing) several new HD-Sony cameras (Sony VX 2100; HVR-A1), Sennheiser wireless sound systems (SK 100 G2) and Tascams (DR 100) and uses several cameras (Sony VX 1000) and other camera equipment (statives, light, sound) of the department.

2.3

National and international cooperations

Universities and international lecturer

Loughborough University, UK, Department of Social Sciences, Sociology, Prof. Dr. Sarah Pink University of Troms, Norway, Department of Cultural Sciences, Dr. Rosella Ragazzi, Associate Professor Centre for Transcultural Research and Media Practice, Dublin Institute of Technology (Marc Curran) Goldsmiths, University of London Department of Anthropology, Dr. Christopher Wright, Assistant Professor Australian National University, Department of Anthropology, Dr. Gary Kildea, Prof. Dr. Peter Crawford CIESAS Sureste in San Cristbal de las Casas, Mexiko Social Anthropological Research Centre (Jose Luis Escalona, Director) Photography programme at Institute of Art, Design and Technology, Dun Laoghaire, Dublin (Marc Curran) Zentrum Moderner Orient (ZMO) (Dr. Samuli Schielke) The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Department of Linguistics, cooperation on EduNation Island (Dr. Randall Sadler) Freie Universitt Berlin: Department of Media and Communication Science (Prof. Dr. Juliana Raupp, Margret Lnenborg); Seminar for Film Science, Department of Theatre Studies (Prof. Dr. Gertrud Koch)

3 Overview: Program Structure

Master Thesis / Film/Media Project 4. Semester, 30 credits
IV Picturing Intangible Cultural Heritage I Visualizing Environmental Anthropology V The Ambiguity of Photography III Beyond overservation

II) Visual Anthropology of Childhood and Migration

Supervision Courses (Collouium) 4. Semester, 15 credits (choose on)

P1b Professional Perspectives (online) P1a Internship (9 weeks - 15 credits) Project Module 1 Internship

P2b Exploring boundaries (in-house) P2a Haptic Cinema (Super 8 workshop) Project Module 2: Film/Media Project

Project Modules 3. Semester, 30 credits

C1 Photography and Anthropology (in-house course + mini-online-unit)

C2 Africa Online (online-course)

C3 Applied Visual Anthropology (onlinecourse)

Profile Module C: Applied Visual and Media Anthropology (15 credits)

B2 Indigenous Media (onlinecourse) B3 Experimental Film (in-house course + mini-online-unit)

B1 Montage and the reflexive application of the photograph (in-house course)

Profile Module B: Communication/Mediascapes (15 credits)

A1 Ethnographic Short Film Workshop I (in-house-course)

A2 Ethnographic Short Film Workshop II (in-house-course)

A3 Poetic Framing (online Course, with inhouse supervison)

Profile Module A: Basics and Varieties of Ethnographic Film Production Profile Modules (2. Semester, 15 credits, choose two Profile Modules)
2a) Introduction to Media Anthropology (in-house-course + mini-online-unit) Social Anthropology in Virtual Worlds (online-course)

Basic Module 2: Media Anthropology (1. Semester, 15 credits)

1c) Producing and reading moving images (camera workshop, in-house) 1a) Introduction to Visual Anthropology (in-house course + mini-online-unit)
1d) Reading and editing moving images (Digital Editing workshop, in-house-course) 1b Classics and Varieties of Ethnographic Film (online course)

Basic Module 1: Visual Anthropology (1. Semester, 15 credits)

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E-learning- and social network tools

Virtual office cinema 3D-classrooms

Communication Tools Newsletter Website News E-mail

Social Network Tools

Video Calls

M.A. Programm Visual and Media Anthropology

Student Blog

Join us on

Multimedia CMS-Online-Modules

Blackboard (DiscussionBoard,Chatroom)

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5 Example Online-courses
See below three examples of CMS-Online-Courses of the M.A. Program in Visual and Media Anthropology. The aim of the courses is to deliver content of the courses written by the lecturer and professors in form of a lecture to each unit. Supplemented by mandatory and recommended readings (with pdf. downloads), streamed film material and assignments or questions for each unit. Students can navigate to each weekly unit with the unit navigation. The weekly online-lectures to the courses take place either on the discussion Board (LMS Blackboard) or at real-time-classes with Avatars and voicechat in our virtual classrooms on EduNation Island, according to the preference of the responsible lecturer.

5.1 Example Online course Profile Module 2B: Social Anthropology in virtual Worlds

Image 1 Startpage Online course: Module B2: Social Anthropology in Virtual Worlds

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Image 2 Content Example Unit 3

Image 3 Readings Unit 3

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Image 4 Assignments Unit

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5.2 Example Online course Profile Module C2: Africa Online

(The classes take place via Discussion Board - LMS Blackboard. This course has 13 units you see parts of one unit)
This module focuses on modern Information- and Communication Technology (ICT), especially the Internet, for the purpose of audio-visual self-representation of African people. Special emphasis will be placed on a currently significant anthropological, but also political and even economic, subject: the mediation of transformation- and appropriation processes as they actually accrue after dramatically improved broadband Internet connectivity since Sept. 2009 in (East-) Africa. Indeed some scientists also prognosticate a leap frogging effect of ICT for the continents development. The module is created for a highly practical approach to the topic as we are also cooperating with media companies such as the Kenyan based online news agency A24 Media. A24 calls itself An African Voice telling the African Story... So it aims to self-represent the African complexity by selling video content of African freelance journalist to broadcasters worldwide. Does the Internet offer any potential for the sustainable transformation of the predominately negative perception of African reality to a more balanced one? Students will analyse and have a closer look at it by discussing and using the recent scientific approaches to media anthropology. Doing so, students will furthermore analyse which role Open Source Applications, Web 2.0 and mobile technology can play also towards an e-democracy and Africans forms of development. In addition students will also learn more about indigenous and traditional forms of self-representations and their continuities or even dis-continuities. Because of the topics complexity, the cooperation with A24 Media and the improved broadband access in East Africa, the focus of the Module lies firstly on developments in Kenya

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Image 5 Startpage Online course: Africa Online

Image 6 Content Unit 1

Image 7 Questions Unit 1

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5.3 Example Online-Course: Basic Module 1b Classics and Varieties of Ethnographic Film
This course has 12 units (you can see a part of unit 1)

Image 1 ) Introduction to the course

Image2) Content 16

Image 3 Films

Image 4 Students can watch the films directly

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Image 5 Readings

Image 6 Assignments

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5.4 Example Online-course: Profile Module B2 Indigenous Media

This course has 12 units (you can see a part of unit 1)

Image 8 Content

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6 Virtual 3D-classrooms
The M.A. Program in Visual and Media Anthropology has rented two plots on EduNation island (Second Life Software). Some courses of the program take place in our virtual classroom on this island. Students and lectures meet up with Avatars and communicate (via voice-chat). Furthermore we simulate ethnographic fieldwork situations and practice visual anthropological methods. At the beach of the plots is an outdoor cinema available that enables to watch films together. Click here for Teleport

Image 9 Virtual 3-D classrooms M.A. Program Visual and Media Anthropology on EduNation Island

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Image 10 Class of the course Social Anthropology in Virtual Worlds Virtual 3-D classroom of the M.A. Pro- gram on EduNations Island

Image 11 Class of the course Professional Perspectives in Visual and Media Anthropology - Virtual 3D class- room of the M.A. Program on EduNation Island

Image 12 Our professors and lecturers offer virtual office hours for all students.

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6.1 Special Activities in 3D environments

The 3D environment on EduNation Island enables us to offer special events such as excursions to exhibitions, or seasonal special happenings, e.g. a winter party which was used to evaluate the course in form of a personal feedback discussion between students and lecturers of the Program. After ice skating and sledding with the avatars we met up in an igloo to start the feedback discussion.

Image 13 Virtual winter party with students and lecturers in Second Life

7 Research Activities 7.1 Steps for a continuous improvement of our E-learning tools
The future development of our program according to the ongoing changes in E-learning technologies and new forms of E-Didactic is one of our aim, therefore professors and research associates of the Program participate regularly at international E-learning conferences. The focus of our interest lies in a concentration of the best E-learning tools for Visual and Media Anthropology. Furthermore we participate at several conferences to present our own research in the field of Visual and Media Anthropology.

Image 14 Prof. U. Frmming participated with her Avatar at the Roundtable: conference: Universities in Second Life 8th INST World Conference CCKS, Cities, Cultures and Knowledge Society (UNESCO), Click here to a video link of the conference and panel discussion

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7.2 Papers and Conference Participations (selection)

18.09.2011 Undine Frmming particpted at the Panel discussion at the Slanguages conference Universities in virtual words Sky conference centre. 17.09.2011 Virtual Cultures Research (panel organization: Undine Frmming) Slanguages Conference. Situated Learning ans serious games http://www.master.fu-berlin.de/visualanthropology/Conferences/Slanguages_conference_2011/index.html Undine Frmming 17.09.2011 paper presentation panel introduction: Situated learning methods in Visual and Media Anthropology, Slanguages Conference 17.09.2011 Tobias Becker: Learning from Virtual Architecture Slanguages conference 28.01. 2011 Tobias Becker und Martin Tscholl: Vortrag: Experimentelle Reprsentationsstrategien in der Visuellen Anthropologie. Kunstakademie Dsseldorf 26.11.2010: Undine Frmming: 8th INST World Conference CCKS, Cities, Cultures and Knowledge Society (UNESCO) Section title: Cities, Cultures and Language in virtual worlds. Panel discussion: Universities in virtual words. Organisation: INST Vienna, Austria and in Second Life 15.10.2010 Undine Frmming and Tobias Becker: Vortrag: "Visual Anthropology in Virtual Culture. The construction of Culture through Language and Image" with short machinima-film presentation: "Jazmin Orfan" by Tobias Becker, based on a visual anthropological research in virtual muslim cultures. Slanguages conference, organisation: University of Manchester, UK 24.-27.8.2010 Florian Walter: Vortrag On the road with Maruch: the promises and limits of open, non-linear hypermedia documents in anthropological work after the crisis of representation and Web 2.0 im Rahmen der 11th EASA Biennial Conference in Maynooth, Irland / 24.-27. August 2010 10.11.2009 Undine Frmming, Vortrag: "Visuelle Anthropologie in virtuellen Kulturen". (Visual Anthropology in Virtual Cultures) Institutskolloquium Institut fr Europische Ethnologie, Humboldt Universitt Berlin mit Live-bertragung aus Second Life Oktober 2009 DGV-Tagung Vortrag: "Ethnographic Machinimia. Kulturelle Aneignungen virtueller Rume" (Ethnographic Machinima. Cultural Appropriation of virtual spaces) Workshop der AG Visuelle Anthropologie auf der DGV-Tagung 30.09.-03.10.2009: Kulturelle Aneignungen - Anverwandlung Camouflage 14.09.2009 Participation Workshop "Virtuelle Welten - 3D-Seminar- und Tagungsorte als internationale und hochschulbergreifende E-Learning-Architekturen" Pre-Conference "E-Learning 2009: Lernen im Digitalen Zeitalter". 15.09.09-17.09.09 Participation Conference "E-Learning 2009: Lernen im Digitalen Zeitalter" A conference of: GMW'09, DeLFI 2009 und Verleihung des Medida-Prix 2.10. 2007 paper: "Digital iconic tun. ber die Bedeutung globaler Digitalisierungsprozesse fr die ethnologische Forschung und Theoriebildung", Tagung der deutschen Gesellschaft fr Vlkerkunde, Halle (Salle).

7.3 Research and PhD Projects

We try to offer the best graduates of our program further research positions in our research areas of our institute (besides Visual and Media Anthropology, Environmental Anthropology, Anthropology of Emotions and Medical Anthropology) and integrate them during their time as PhD candidates into teaching activities of the M.A. program. Therefore we offer them teaching contracts for in-house classes and online-courses and help them in finding appropriate PhD scholarships. See a list of all running PhD projects under this link. See a list of all running PhD projects under this link Third Party Research project BMBF-project: Visualizing and mapping of local knowledge in the alps (Prof. Dr. U. Frmming) (part of the joint research project: Alpine risks in times of climate change (Alpine Naturgefahren im Klimawandel) (Prof. Dr. W. Dombrowsky). One Phd candidate (Christian Reichel M.A) and one Postdoc (Dr. Josef Bordat) are employed in this project at the Institute of Social and Cultural Anthropology (April 2011-March 2014).

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European Union research project - Longlife Learning (LLP) - GRUNDTVIG-GMP with the Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency Project title: WRITING READING INCLUSION: TOWARDS EUROPEAN REINASSANCE / WRITER Project coordination: Universitt Perugia, Italien: Tiber Umbria Comett Education Programme, Prof. PAOLO CARBONE, project partner Prof. Dr. Undine Frmming (Visual and Media Anthropology, Freie Universitt Berlin)

Examples for running PhD-Projects

PhD-Project: Africa Online How World Wide is the Web? Africa between Adaptation und audiovisual Innovation Kani Tuyala (PhD project funded by DAAD: Promos, supervision: Prof. Dr. U. Frmming) Start: October 2010

A 24 Media Kenia, Photo: Kani Tuyala 2010

Abstract of the PhD project Kani Tuyalas research project Africa Online. Audio-visual self-representation of African People in the Internet is based on the cooperation with the Kenyan Media Company A24 Media. Through an adequate and contemporary methodology the aim is to scientifically analyze the dictum of media as a motor of social and political transition in an African and virtual context. Even to leapfrog whole stages of development now seems possible for several parts of the African continent. The potential of online-communication to overcome the biased and all to frequent single-sided perception of the mystified African continent, forms a further vital pillar of the thesis not least because both emphases describe two sides of the same coin. Due to the issues and the African continents complexity, the research project Africa Online focuses on the state of Kenya and local online-initiatives (A24 Media, Ushahidi etc.), with the potential to ensure a scientifically funded analysis. Furthermore, besides representatives of the corresponding faculties of the university of Nairobi, also the opinions and estimations of journalist e.g. from the ARD Studio in Nairobi will be considered, to ensure a holistic approach to the topic.

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PhD-project: Critical theory on new media and Internet and the impact of the Internet on social commonality - case study of Iran

Sadaf Javdani Haji, PhD project funded by DAAD (Stibet-Program), Supervision: Prof. Dr. Undine Froemming Start of the project: January 2011

No country for young men Sadaf Javdani 2010

Abstract This study will focus on Iranian students between the age of 20 and 30 in two groups: Students who live and study in Iran; students who has left Iran in favor of continuing their education. The first part will explore the role of Internet as a new way of communication. With the special focus on the critical theories about technology in the work of Marcuse, Habermas and Heidegger, the second part will explore the role of Internet in changing social interaction and commonality in my target group. Comparing my two target groups, one aim of this study is to analyze if the role of Internet and its negative/positive sides could be altered by the context of the study. The theoretical focus throughout both parts will be on media studies and critical theories starting out from Martin Heidegger and the Frankfurt School, that is, from doctrines keenly sensitive to the failure and indeed the threat of modern technology. On the other hand, this study also aims to go beyond the pessimist approaches about modern technology and look into the advantages of the Internet and the alternatives and new possibilities that it provides. Internet open new opportunities for human communication and build an integrated and unified picture of our world. Consequently there are two sides while studying this new media: Capitalism has survived its various crisis and now organizes the entire globe in a fantastic web of connections with contradictory consequences (...) The internet opens fantastic new opportunities for human communication, and is inundated with commercialism. Human rights prove a challenge to regressive costumes in some countries, while providing alibis for new imperialist ventures in others (Feenberg 2005). Therefore while studying this subject, we should pay a parallel attention to both sides. In summary, the study has two aims: the first is the theoretical exploration of internet and analyzing its impacts on human interactions and the second is to use these studies and gather data that enable the author to analyze the impact of internet on the social interactions of Iranian students living both inside and outside of country.

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