UNIVERSITY OF COLOGNE International

The topics of our Cologne Summer School on Equality of Opportunity 2022 range from Psychology and Health, Economics and Politics, Philosophy, Social Sciences, Education, Arts and Culture.

Coherency and consistency are in the core of our interdisciplinary summer school project. Thus, the lecturers will address the following core questions in order to build bridges between the various disciplines:

How does your discipline define (in)equality?
Which are the methods used to identify and test (in)equality?
What concepts of (in)equality are dominant in your discipline?
What specific (in)equality challenges do researchers face? Here lecturers will adapt the question to their research expertise and report the results of their studies.
Based on your research, what actions do you identify as important to be taken (for example on a political level with social policy) in order to raise equality of opportunity?
And finally, what could be a discipline-specific definition of balance between (in)equality and fairness? How can we achieve equality without compromising fairness from your perspective?

Prof. Dr. Wilfried Hinsch

Keynote "Equality of What?"

Workshop "Equality of Opportunity"

University of Cologne, Chair for Practical Philosophy

The keynote and workshop address questions of economic inequality and social discrimination in Europe. We shall discuss contemporary philosophical accounts of social well-being and justice. Beyond philosophy, we will take a fresh look into the challenges of diversity and inequality also from the perspectives of economics and the social sciences. Concerning economic inequality, our discussion will focus on theories of distributive justice that put ‘basic needs’ (Frances Stewart), ‘basic capabilities’ (Amartya Sen & Martha Nussbaum, or ‘basic goods’ (John Rawls) center stage. Concerning discrimination, we shall examine familiar ideas of ‘unfair disadvantage.’ How well do received conceptions of discrimination in terms of ‘vulnerable groups’ and ‘disparate treatment’ cope with emerging phenomena of social ‘super-diversity’ and computerized data mining and statistical discrimination.

Students who want a head start may wish to take a closer look at the following books:

•    Amartya K. Sen, The Idea of Justice, Cambridge MA 2009.
•    François Bourguignon, The Globalization of Inequality, Princeton 2017.
•    Virginia Eubanks. Automated Inequality. How High-tech Tools Profile, Police, and Punish the Poor, New York NY 2018.
•    Stijn Oosterlynck, Divercities: Understanding Super-Diversity in Deprived and Mixed Neighborhoods, Bristol 2020.

Mrinalini Shinde, LL.M., M.Sc.

University of Cologne, Chair for US American Law

Inequality and Environmental Law: Insights from Practice and Research

In this workshop students will be introduced to the core aspects of Environmental Law and will be challenged to conceptualise the word "equality" into the context of Environmetal Law. We will discuss different approaches to the topic and follow the historic development of International Environmental Law. We will critically look at juridical mechanisms of compesating polution and non-envoronmentally friendly behavior on a big international scale. In an open discussion we will talk about equality and fairness and include the national perspectives of the attending students. Is equal always fair for nations which are at a different stage of their economic development? What criteria are adequate to reduce inequality but also preserve fairness? These and many more questions will be addressed in an interactive workshop manner. No background knowledge in Law or Law Studies is required. Environmental Law can be approached by anybody and in this slot the students will be provided with strategies with which to navigate in the field and critically assess policy making in the discipline.

Kritica Economica, Students initiative

Giorgio Michalopoulos and colleagues

Introduction into the academic debate over the issue of equality of opportunity and inequality

It was April 2021 when Joe Biden spoke in Congress against the so-called “trickle-down economics”, an approach to economic policy according to which cutting taxes on the rich is needed to unleash productive forces and increase the welfare of overall society. This approach had had a great influence over American economic policy since the ‘80s, when the neoliberal wave started gaining momentum thanks to the Reagan administration. However, times have changed. More and more economists, politicians and activists are calling for an increase of government’s social investment against inequalities and poverty. This new approach which is taking shape is of course incompatible with a structural continuation of fiscal and economic favors to the wealthiest.
But what are the intellectual roots of these competing approaches?
In the history of economic thought, a long and rich debate has been held on this issue. The first breaking point is the division between the problem of production and the problem of distribution, originated from the split between the Classical Economists and the Marginal Revolution by the end of the 19th century. Embedded in the notion of Pareto efficiency, obtained by efficient markets, equity of distribution was not the main focus of economists anymore. In this interactive introduction to inequality in the history of economic thought, we show how the link between the neoclassical paradigm and neoliberal policies downplayed economic inequality to a secondary problem. Other influential economists however, notably Karl Marx, put inequality at the center of their discourse. We will present this context so that participants will be able to contextualize the current debate. We will conclude with a large “philosophical” discussion on equality of opportunity asking some questions that will trigger the debate: is perfect equality a desirable outcome? Meritocracy and equality: where should we go? Is inequality good for development?

Kritica Economica is an independent magazine involved in the critical economic debate. The editorial staff, composed of young students and researchers, is moved by passion for a pluralist and multidisciplinary approach. This approach is supported by the neglection of simplistic assumptions and an integration of complexity from the very first stages of the writing. If the end is a transparent analysis, the means is scientific journalism. Every source in the articles is verifiable and data are carefully studied before every publication. Apart from the website, Kritica Economica publishes articles with “Il Sole 24 Ore” (Econopoly) and Huffington Post.it. A prestigious  collaboration with the historic foundation Fondazione Feltrinelli shall be mentioned. These publications contribute to consolidating the name and the approach of this magazine. The magazine also organized online and live events with top guests from the European economic debate. The main target are university students and young people, coherently with the composition of the editorial staff: 45 members (students and researchers) from all over Italy. At an international level, Kritica Economica collaborates with the Young Scholars Initiative, which funded the project “Economic of Complexity”, a series of seminars around Italy with discussions about inflation, money and inequality with top economists from European universities and organizations.

Collaborting with Giorgio, Anna and Francesco from Kritica Economica this year was particularly special for us. We knew Giorgio from our online summer school on Opinion Forming Processes in 2021 in which he took part as a student. We were fascinated by his diligence and commitment to economic topics beyond the responsibilities he takes on as a student of Economics. The initiative he had founded together with like-minded people like Anna and Francesco called "Kritica Economica" was a perfect example for passionate academic and journalistic work with a mission. So we inquired whether they would like to give an online lecture during the Cologne Summer School on Equality of Opportunity and received an enthusiastic reply and definitely fell their excitement to design and conduct a workshop on the topic of inequality. Giorgio, Anna and Francesco presented their analysis with openness to discussion addressing multiple approaches to inequality and its manifestations- for example geographically in metropolian areas in Western Europe and Latin America. They critically discussed with the group shortcomings of economic model like the neoclassical one and undermined them with data-derived examples of successful and unsuccessful welfare policies. If you are particularly interested in Economics, we definitely recommend you take a look at the three articles Kritica Economica published after their participation in the summer school program.

https://kriticaeconomica.com/joy-and-revolution-at-cologne-summer-school/

https://kriticaeconomica.com/rethinking-the-core-periphery-relationship-in-inequalities/

https://kriticaeconomica.com/when-economics-stopped-caring-about-inequality/

Vasilena Stefanova PhD, Bethan Iley MSc, Teresa Gomes Arrulo-Clarke PhD

Queens University Belfast, School of Psychology*

Equality of Opportunity in Psychology: Research, Practice, and Importance within and Beyond Academia

This interactive workshop will define equality of opportunity from a psychology perspective and will introduce research methods within psychology that are used to study equality in career-related contexts. In particular, it will discuss research focusing on hiring decisions and equality of opportunity (e.g., gender, caregiver status). This workshop will also discuss initiatives aiming to support gender equality in STEM fields, and how to overcome backlash against them. Finally, this workshop will address the use of personality assessments in the hiring process, the importance of the wording used across the different stages of recruitment, and how effective equal opportunity practices may be fostered in academia through research and teaching.

Vasilena Stefanova is a social psychologist and postgraduate researcher at Queen’s University Belfast and a member of the Centre for Identity and Intergroup Relations. Her research investigates the motherhood penalty effect in occupational settings and the impact of gender and parent stereotypes on career progression.

Bethan Iley is a second-year PhD student in social psychology at Queen’s University Belfast and a member of the Centre for Identity and Intergroup Relations. She is interested in how intergroup dynamics and political beliefs shape attitudes towards progressive social change. Her research specifically investigates why men respond negatively to Equity, Diversity and Inclusion policies within male-dominated fields, and how to change negative attitudes towards EDI once they have developed.

Teresa Gomes Arrulo-Clarke is a postgraduate researcher and a current member of the InteRRaCt Lab and the Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Group at Queen’s University Belfast (School of Psychology). As a music and personality psychologist, her research investigates the relationship(s) between stress, personality, and music in adults, with a particular focus on the contextual benefits of predominantly socially aversive personality traits (e.g., narcissism) and music genres (e.g., hip-hop/rap). Her most recent work addresses gender bias in the music industry (particularly hip-hop/rap music videos) and its implications for gendered self-perceptions and feelings of empowerment.

*(at the time of the summer school Vasilena Stefanova and Teresa Gomes Arrulo-Clarke were researching and teaching at the QUB)

Prof. Dr. Michaela Pelican

University of Cologne, Department for Social and Cultural Anthropology

Production and Reproduction of Social Inequalities

In this class we will tackle the subject of (in)equality from an anthropological perspective and focus on social inequalities. We will ask how social inequalities are produced and reproduced, and how this relates to epistemic inequality. We will draw inspiration from the sociologist Göran Therborn and his distinction of different kinds and mechanisms of (in)equality. We will also engage with the call of the anthropologist Arjun Appadurai to recognize the role of cultural differences in how people around the world imagine a just society and in what they aspire. Finally, we will take serious the argument of the historian and decolonial theorist Sabelo Ndlovu-Gatsheni who draws attention to the long history of epistemic inequalities and how it has impacted the production and practical implementation of knowledge in Africa. The class also draws on the work of the research unit “The Production and Reproduction of Social Inequalities: Global Contexts and Concepts of Labour Exploitation” (https://socialinequalities.uni-koeln.de)  

Recommended readings:

Therborn, Göran (2013). The Killing Fields of Inequality. Cambridge: Polity Press. Part II: Theory. p. 35-66.
Appadurai, Arjun (2004): The Capacity to Aspire: Culture and the Terms of Recognition. In: Rao, Vijayendra and Michael Walton (eds.): Culture and Public Action. Stanford: Stanford University Press. p. 59–84.
Ndlovu-Gatsheni, Sabelo (2018): Chapter 1: Rethinking Development in the Age of Global Coloniality. In: Mpofu, Busani and Sabelo J. Ndlovu-Gatsheni (eds.). Rethinking and Unthinking Development: Perspectives on Inequality and Poverty in South Africa and Zimbabwe. New York: Berghahn Books. p. 27-49.

Carlo Botrugno PhD

University of Florence, Department of Legal Sciences

The Equity Challenge in Digital Health(care)

During COVID-19 pandemic, the severe pressure faced by healthcare systems led to significant restrictions of hospital admissions to increase capacity to treat patients while also reducing physical contact between other patients and healthcare professionals in order to contain infection risk. As a consequence, many countries have implemented strategies aimed at digitalizing healthcare delivery. Those countries that promoted the use of digital healthcare services (DHSs) before the pandemic outbreak were significantly advantaged in channeling the benefits of remote healthcare, while others were forced to adopt emergency measures. Regardless of whether these attempts have been effective, it is undeniable that the pandemic accelerated this digital transition and contributed to the birth of new awareness about the benefits of DHSs. In the meantime, however, this transition made (digital) healthcare inequalities more apparent and widened the gap between those who are well acquainted with the functioning of the healthcare system and those who suffer from inequalities.
In all countries gravely affected by COVID-19, detainees, undocumented migrants, homeless people, people with disabilities, elderly people housed in residences, and other vulnerable groups were exposed to higher physical and psychological harm than any other populations.  This can be explained by significant, sometimes extreme, reduction of the autonomy experienced by most of these people, which often made it difficult, if not impossible, to take basic precautions against infection risk, such as maintaining social distancing, sanitizing hands frequently, and using personal protective equipment.
They, like people in remote areas, also often did not have ready access to telemedicine services and AI applications. Material access to the internet and related technologies (computer, tablet, smartphones, and other connected devices) still represents the primary digital divide. Disparities in the kinds of care available, together with differences in familiarity with and knowledge of both the healthcare system and digital technologies, affect deployment and use of telemedicine, further exacerbating digital divides.
In light of these considerations, digital exclusion must be analyzed as an emerging form of social exclusion, as it contributes to worsening individuals’ material and social deprivation in a “digital vicious cycle”. Policy promoting using telemedicine or smartphone applications clearly helped many people from the outset of the pandemic and will continue to do so. Still, the choice of deploying these technologies instead of increasing access and care in other ways or of improving conditions conducive to better health are policy choices with ethical and social implications. Combined with biases in AI, the current direction risks further disadvantaging those already disadvantaged.

Prof. Dr. Barbara Potthast

University of Cologne, Department of History

Gender, Ethnicity, Intersectionality

The class will discuss the interrelatedness of some basic social markers like gender, class and ethnicity and their embeddedness in local and cultural settings. It also will point out to the fact that the meaning of these categories are subject to changes over time. Far from being stable or self-evident, identities like gender, “race” or ethnicity are defined and redefined according to the specific social and cultural settings and marked by power relations. We will discuss the importance of language, clothing or work but also of phenotype in the construction of identities within a historical process and the ways these different identities intersect, overlap and sometimes reinforce each other. Even though the idea of fixed identities does not prevail in science and an informed public any more, and we are aware of the problems of labelling, we cannot totally relinquish them completely, since categorizations are crucial in daily life but also in administration and politics. So, how can we compensate for marginalisation and inequalities (e.g. via affirmative action programs) without recurring to clearly defined identities? These topics will be discussed with a special focus on Latin America.

Cadena, Marisol de la (1995): “Women are more Indian. Gender in a community near Cuzco”, in: Larson, Brooke & Olivia Harris (Hg.). Ethnicity, Market and Migration in the Andes: at the crossroad of history and anthropology, Durham, pp. 329-348.

Gabbert, Wolfgang (2006): Concepts of Ethnicity, Latin American and Caribbean Ethnic Studies, 1:1, pp. 85-103. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/17486830500510034

Roth, Julia (2015): "Intersectionality." Online Dictionary Social and Political Key Terms of the Americas: Politics, Inequalities, and North-South Relations, Version 1.0 (2012). http://elearning.uni-bielefeld.de/wikifarm/fields/ges_cias/field.php/Main/Unterkapitel93

Scott, Joan W. (2001): “Millenial Fantasies. The Future of „Gender“ in the 21st Century”, in: Claudia Honegger & Caroline Arni (ed.). Gender – die Tücken einer Kategorie. Joan W. Scott, Geschichte und Politik, Zürich, pp. 19-37.

Association "First Generation PhD"

(In)Equality of Opportunity in Higher Education. Insights from a Practical Perspective

"First Generation PhD" is a non-profit organization which was founded by PhD students of the University of Cologne. The purpose of the initiative is to provide peer coaching and networking services that are open to first-generation master's students and doctoral candidates from all over Germany and abroad.

The Workshop with the non-profit organization “First Generation PhD”, founded in Cologne in 2014, will inform about structural and individual challenges that students and PhD candidates face in Germany, who are the first in their families studying at a university. During the workshop we will do exercises on the one hand to reflect on a personal and individual level one’s situatedness in society and academia, on the other hand to analyze from an international point of view the socio-political context of and access to higher education. We will discuss the challenges that not only first-generation students face while studying and we will develop strategies for equal opportunities in higher education – the members of the association will share insights from their practical experiences of peer coaching, networking, and political engagement.

Dr. Meghan Campbell

Joint Keynote "Is Equality Law Up to the Challenge?"

Birmingham Law School, Reader in International Human Rights Law

This was a joint keynote between two summer school projects: Cologne Summer School on Equality of Opportunity and the KölnAlumni WELTWEIT (KAW) summer school on Human Rights and EUniWell consortium. The keynote built a bridge between the topics of the summer schools in a typical multidisciplinary manner.

The current global political climate is revealing the fragility of equality. Achievements in especially for women, children, racial minorities, disabled persons and sexual and gender minority rights are being rolled back and hollowed out. The rise of conservative populism, the concentration of wealth, the impacts of the climate crisis and the continued repercussions of COVID-19 have perpetuated and cemented inequalities in the lives of so many people. The promise of the constitutional right to equality is tantalizing. But is equality law up to our contemporary challenges? Drawing on the jurisprudence from the US, Canada, South Africa, the UK, India, this presentation explores the potential within equality law. It traces the evolution of equality law from identical treatment to a more substantive conception and consider how this substantive conception can speak to current inequalities. The presentation also canvasses theoretical and doctrinal challenges equality law faces in responding to new crisis and emergencies. It concludes by reflecting on ways forward so that the right to equality remains a pillar of transformative social justice.

Prof. Michele Raitano

Sapienza University of Rome, Department of Economics and Law

Intergenerational inequality: concepts, mechanisms, measures and policies

The economic literature is increasingly interested in analysing intergenerational inequality, i.e. how much (and why) economic (dis)advantages persist between parents and their children. Taking account of the links with several disciplines (e.g. sociology, philosophy, political science), this lesson will focus on the issue of intergenerational mobility from various perspectives. First, it will clarify the meaning of the concepts and the link between intergenerational mobility and the most used concepts of equality of opportunity. Second, the possible theoretical mechanisms which may engender a link between parental background and children's economic perspectives will be depicted, also highlighting in what steps of the children's life course these mechanisms might play a role (e.g. in the early infancy, at school, at the labour market entry). Third, measurement issues of intergenerational inequality will be discussed and, then, cross country performances in intergenerational inequality indexes will be compared. Then, empirical and theoretical links between income inequality and intergenerational inequality will be inquired. Finally, possible policies to deal with intergenerational inequality will be discussed

Dr. Nora Probst

University of Cologne, Institute for Media Culture and Theatre & Paderborn University, Department of Media Studies

(In)Equality in Data? Ongoing Debates in the Digital Humanities

Data is everywhere. We use and produce data every day. It shapes our lives, it shapes the way we see the world and the way we interact with our surroundings. In 2010, the amount of data created, consumed, and stored worldwide was about two zettabytes (that equals 2.000.000.000.000.000.000.000 Bytes). Only one decade later, in 2020, the volume increased up to 64.2 zettabytes – and by 2025, it is projected to exceed 180 zettabytes.

Data is the new oil, was the title of an article in the Economist in 2017 – and even though this is a quite poor comparison for a variety of reasons, the article does point to the fact that data, power, and capitalist structures are interconnected on a global scale. There still is a prevalent notion of objectiveness ascribed to data and only in recent years, have we started to challenge the presumption that data or data technologies are in any way neutral. Who collects data about whom? Who profits? Who is visible in data – and who is not?

My presentation will elaborate on the question of how data can presuppose, reproduce, and amplify hegemonial norms of gender, race, class, nationality, sexual orientation, age etc. On the one hand, I will give examples of the ways in which data, archives and algorithms form structures feeding from and leading to systems of oppression. On the other hand, I will present possibilities to tackle those inequalities by developing a data literacy that enables us to challenge power structures connected to data models and information technology.

Karim Zafer M.A.

University of Cologne, Development for Social and Cultural Anthropology

University of Cologne, Director of Cairo Office

Perspectives from the Anthropology of the Future

Future from an Anthropology perspective? What do anthropologists have to say about it and why would they even engage with this topic? In this workshop we will approach "future" from many angles starting with the definition of aspiration and the factors that enable and influence personal and collective dreaming. The capacity to aspire can be observed as a navigational tool, especially for poor communities, in order to debate and change their current economic circumstances. Based on this premise, future is considered a cultural act. Meaning, future is constructed rather than determined and it represents the interaction between human imagination, aspiration and anticipation. Thus, anthropology can bridge the gap between economics and development. Consequently, those who seek to design the future, or design for the future must consider that the future is not a blank space for the inscription of technocratic enlightenment or for nature’s long-term oscillations, but a space for democratic design that must begin with the recognition that the future is a cultural fact. On this basis we can address the core question of the summer school- what is equality of opportunity from an anthropology perspective?

Ann-Kristin Kolwes PhD and Phuong Glaser PhD

University of Cologne, HR Development for Researchers

Measures against Inequality - Mentoring Programs in Higher Education

For more than twenty years, the University of Cologne has been supporting early career researchers in their career development by offering them mentoring programs. Through specific offers for different target groups, we support young academics in achieving their goals. The main focus is to address and reduce inequalities in the higher education system and to support those groups that have to overcome larger hurdles.

The mentoring program for international female scholars (IFS Mentoring) and the first generation doctoral mentoring (EGP+ Mentoring) are two examples of this work. Together with you, we will reflect on the challenges that international and first generation students face at university, on the one hand, and talk about how these target groups can be better supported and what possibilities as well as opportunities mentoring offers to deal with exactly these challenges, on the other.

Franziska Iwan (Mediator) and Josephine Thiel (School Psychologist)

University of Cologne alumnae, M.Sc. Psychology

Inequality in Education. An educational psychology perspective.

Fostering education systems where all students can fulfill their potential regardless of their backgrounds is crucial for democracy, economy, and social justice. Yet, the reality in many countries looks different as educational opportunities highly depend on social background. This lecture examines equality and equity in education from an educational psychological perspective, drawing on international data from the PISA assessment. Furthermore, the lecture introduces the concept of a growth mindset, that is, the belief that personal attributes are malleable and can be developed. We will not only address how a growth mindset is associated with the way students face academic challenges but also how it is connected with mental health and well-being. Can fostering a growth mindset help overcoming inequality in education?

Dr. Ina-Maria Maahs

University of Cologne, Department of Education and Social Sciences

More equal opportunities through a linguistic empowerment?

Language is one, perhaps the central resource for mutual understanding between different people. It can explain thoughts, feelings as well as actions. It’s possible to build emotional and diplomatic bridges through language. But language can also be used as a marker of difference to support othering processes or to justify discrimination. We experience this socially, for example, when people with a certain accent experience poorer access to the housing or labour market. Another example would be the less representation of people with migration-related multilingualism in politics, so that they literally do not have a say.
Inadequate support for multilingual learners at school leads to poorer educational and professional opportunities. But also the dominance of a single "legitimate" language in educational institutions leads to devaluation of other languages and possibly a poorer self-concept of multilingual learners.
This workshop will advocate an approach that understands linguistic diversity as an enrichment in school and society. To this end, we will first become aware of our own overall linguistic repertoire and then critically discuss the effects of language prestige and language ideologies. Finally, the didactic approach of translanguaging will be presented, which should enable learners with a second language not only to be adequately supported in the surrounding language, but also to be linguistically empowered in order to support social structures of equal opportunities in the long term.