Reflections on the SFB 1199

Flying in to Leipzig University in December 2016 I could only guess at the true research focus of the Collaborative Research Centre (SFB): 1199, the branch of the university I was to be affiliated with and that had sponsored this research opportunity. I knew that the research project I was about to embrace had something to do with better appreciating new approaches to “Processes of Spatialization under the Global Condition” – but apart from a general familiarity with spatial concepts from the geography discipline, I was not too certain what the conceptual nomenclature really referred to.

As it turned out, the SFB 1199 is a specialized research extension of the Centre for Area Studies, a core higher-level teaching and research unit of Leipzig University devoted to in-depth investigation and cutting-edge analysis of the formation of new amalgamations of forms of authority and society beyond the realm of the nation-state. This analytic agenda of the SFB 1199 benefits from a core faculty and research staff not only engaged in their own specific research and writing projects on new spatial developments in various world areas (with some connecting multiple world areas), but also is heavily involved in the recruitment of research affiliates from universities around the world who are brought to the Leipzig campus on a temporary basis to contribute to this research productivity and to provide additional analytic insights. At the same time, the core faculty of the SFB 1199 oversee PhD students writing dissertations directly related to the analysis of specific aspects of spatial change in different local contexts – and who are incorporated into many of the seminar and workshop-related activities of the centre, adding to the intellectual depth and organizational richness of the SFB 1199.

So then, what I found upon my arrival was a beehive of scholarly activity – from all-day workshops and lectures, free-flowing discussions, and more narrowly focused graduate seminars, to informal conversations taking place in offices and lecture halls throughout the physical space of the SFB 1199. I was overwhelmed by the remarkably wide geographic range under investigation and by the profoundly multidisciplinary immersion in the study of new transformations of “space” on local, regional, and continental and global levels. Moreover, the opportunity to engage in these activities gave rise to a great deal of thoughtful reflection, mild disagreements, and differing specificities in the way spatial analysis is applied to given contexts. These are made clear in the paper presentations, workshops, and seminars – which are held throughout most days – and they are so intellectually interesting that I felt pulled in the direction of simply abandoning my own research agenda so as to partake in as many scholarly events as I could! Quite frankly, it was not so easy to find the correct balance between taking advantage of my own focused writing time in the generously provided office space at the SFB 1199, on the one hand, and the temptation to simply listen to the wise ponderings of other SFB-affiliated scholars presenting their papers or research findings in progress a few feet down the hall.

Perhaps predictably, I spent the first three days of my visit leaning on the side of an “active learning” approach, becoming immersed in conversation with a relatively large bevy of researchers and attending seminar presentations and workshops devoted to utilizing a spatial approach to better understand not only the rise of “new regionalisms” contemporarily but also re-evaluating older historical and social processes – ranging from such topics as the French Revolution and its impact, to new approaches to analysing recent intercontinental labour migrations, and to an eye-opening revelation regarding corporate land grabs in Australia. In addition, within the first few days of arriving I delivered my own workshop lecture on the struggle of local communities in various parts of the world to retain control over their natural resources – followed by over an hour of in-depth discussion, questions, and feedback.

All of these collective events and experiences provoked me to re-evaluate the way I was analysing the comparative study of natural resources management by local communities, with particular reference to rural Guinea-Bissau and to “fracking” in the US state of Pennsylvania. I became convinced that a paper in progress grappling with both of these seemingly disparate geopolitical spaces could benefit from changes that reflected conceptual and analytic tools and refinements that I had gleaned from my time at the SFB 1199. Motivated to undertake substantial revisions and even rethink the way localities were reacting to natural resource management options, the “spatial” framework helped me to begin to formulate an analytic basis of relative comparability between two areas of the world characterized by very differing historico-political contexts.

As the final few days of my research venture approached, I sought to rev up the intensity of my writing efforts even as I also met with a growing number of SFB 1199-associated faculty, dissertators, and graduate students. No doubt, this reflected a near-panicky effort to be sure I made the very most of my time at this remarkable research centre. On the final day, I nearly rebelled – refusing to begin packing until only an hour or so before it was time for the ride back to the airport. As my transatlantic flight rose into and then seemingly reached beyond the bright sky’s highest clouds, I closed my eyes with a sense of deep appreciation for the graciousness which my scholarly hosts and administrators had shown me throughout what proved to be a most intellectually productive fortnight.

I would like to give special acknowledgements to my remarkably capable and insightful host and colleague (and fellow Guinea-Bissauan-ist) Jens Herpolsheimer and to Professor Ulf Engel for inviting me in the first place and for meeting with me in a wonderfully productive, lengthy luncheon. I very much appreciated Matthias Middell for his unique insights on a number of different presentations and for helping to facilitate my stay. And a special thanks to Steffi Marung, Antje Zettler, and Katharina Döring for helping me with so many practical aspects of my research visit, and for speaking at length with me about many of the topics discussed in the workshops and presentations.