Global History at the University of Vienna
The Forschungsschwerpunkt Globalgeschichte (FSP Global History) is a network of scholars and students interested in global history. Since the 1980s, faculty, graduate students, and visiting lecturers have collaborated on and contributed to various programs, conferences, and publications in global history and global studies at the University of Vienna. While the FSP Global History is part of the Faculty of Historical and Cultural Studies, our aim is to break up institutional boundaries and to connect people from different departments and universities. For a list of currently involved scholars see People. We are always interested to further expanding the FSP Global History network!
For a history of Global Studies at the University of Vienna, see the following article by FSP member Susan Zimmermann, Professor of History at the Central European University, Budapest, and a member of the FSP Global History.
International Organizations & Global Studies
Members of the FSP Global History come from a number of disciplines, such as history, political science, development studies, and area studies. They study the history and present of global governance and international organizations including NGOs; human rights and international justice; development cooperation; and international security.
This interdisciplinary approach is also reflected in the two master programs on Global History and Global Studies.
Labor & Global Inequalities
Social history has a strong tradition at the University of Vienna, and members of the FSP work on the history of free and unfree labor; social inequalities; the politics of housing and social welfare; urban and rural history; and migration.
The Vienna-based COST Action "Worlds of Coercions in WorK" (WORCK) is open to researchers and institutions across Europe and the globe working on bondage and coercion.
Commodity Chains & Global Capitalism
Members of the FSP Global History show a keen interest in the history of global capitalism and commodity chains as well as the role of marxism and development theories in global history.
Ongoing research includes studies on the history of food and nutrition, from the global history of the soy bean to the chewing gum.
Protest, Revolutions & War
Students and faculty examine the causes and consequences of war and peace; the global connections between protest movements; and revolutions in a global contexts. Bridging the gaps between different historical disciplines such as diplomatic history, social history, and cultural history, members of the FSP Global History show a particular interest in the history of Latin America.