the program for the annual conference of the Collaborative Research Center (CRC) on “Problematic Objects of Property” is now available, and registration is open. The conference will bring together a wide range of international scholars who will join the CRC’s researchers in discussing the processes by which objects of property are created and transformed, as well as the conflicts surrounding these processes. The conference takes place in Jena from November 4-6.

New dossiers on the transformation of China’s property order as well as on property and the media, a new podcast episode, new blog posts, and a wide range of new academic articles from different projects invite you to read and listen.

A new dossier brings together texts and interviews from the CRC that analyze how property is being reorganized in China amid profound social transformations, global shifts in power, and environmental crises. A second dossier examines the connection between structural changes in property and those in the public sphere. It focuses primarily on the role of digital media and the debates surrounding intellectual property. The dossiers can be read here.

In a new episode of the CRC podcast, Irina Herb talks with Steffen Liebig about the book “Umkämpfte Transformation: Konflikte um den digitalen und ökologischen Wandel”. They discuss not only why green capitalism is failing and whether we are experiencing an authoritarian, fossil-fuel-driven backlash, but also what Deutsche Post’s ownership structure has to do with transformation conflicts and digital change. The podcast episode can be found here.

The program for this year’s annual conference, “Problematic Objects of Property—Form, Materiality, Politics” is now online, and registration is open. From November 4–6, scholars from Germany, Europe, and around the world will join researchers of the CRC in discussing problematic objects of property. Topics will range from land and housing to digital goods and knowledge, as well as bodily substances, nature, and resources. Keynote speeches by K-Sue Park, Timothy Mitchell, and Quinn Slobodian will round out the conference program. The full program and registration form can be found here. We look forward to seeing you there!

The book "Kants Kritik des Eigentums: Aktualität und Perspektiven im Anschluss an den ethischen Sozialismus" by Sebastian Bandelin and Yann Schosser, recently published in the CRC's Campus Verlag series, was reviewed in the FAZ. Click here to read the review (paywall).

Like wealth, inheritances in Germany are unevenly distributed. Silke van Dyk, Reiner Eichenberger, and Anatol Dutta discuss whether a higher inheritance tax would lead to greater social equality in the podcast from the Federal Agency for Civic Education.

Tilo Wesche appeared as a guest on the show “Jung & Naiv” in May, where he spoke with host Tilo Jung about nature, property, and colonialism, among other topics. The full conversation is available on Spotify and YouTube and can be watched here.

The new volume in the CRC series published by Campus Verlag examines the historical dimension of current property conflicts. Edited by Roman Birke, the book "Eigentumspolitik vom Kaiserreich bis zur Weimarer Republik" brings together articles that explore how historical property arrangements continue to have an impact in new systems despite political and economic upheavals. The texts analyze a wide range of aspects: from conflicts over land and real estate to ideological and legal justifications for property claims, and historical debates about the public and the private. Together, they contribute to the CRC’s central debate on the continuity and transformation of property relations.

The book is available to read here via Open Access.

Carsten Herrmann-Pillath’s "Sharing as Having" has been published in the CRC’s Working Paper series. It brings together the theoretical approaches of projects C01 and C06 to better understand developments and phenomena in the sharing economy.

New posts are available on the CRC blog, including an article by Veit Braun on ownership of plants and their genetic information, as well as a text from project B04 on the influence of ownership on democratic processes in Germany.

• Krämer, Felix (2026): „Versklavung, Enteignung, Schuldknechtschaft“, In: Alexander Engel, Eva Brugger (eds.), Handbuch Koloniales Wirtschaften, 15. bis 21. Jahrhundert, Berlin (forthcoming).
• Grigoleit-Richter, Grit; Krämer, Felix (2026): Whiteness as Property: Re-assessing the Convergence of Race and Property in U.S. History, In: Ethnic and Racial Studies 49 (10), 2103-2117.
• Kleeberg, Bernhard (2026): „Die Figur der Konsumentin. Psychologie und Praxis der frühen Werbung“, In: Maximilian Bergengruen, Elisabeth Weiß-Sinn (eds.), Prekärer Konsum, Freiburg, 203-234.
• Lettow, Susanne (2026): "Making Babies, Making Money: Reproductive Bioeconomies in Neo-Authoritarian Capitalism", In: Berliner Gazette, 27.05.2026.
• Peters, Florian (2026a), “Referendum on Austerity: Poland's Rapprochement With the IMF and the Run-Up to Neoliberal Shock Therapy”, In: Journal of Contemporary History, online first.
• Peters, Florian (2026b), "The 'Battle over Street Trade': Bottom-Up Market Practices and the Contested Spirit of Capitalism in Post-Socialist Poland", In: Communist and Post-Communist Studies, online first.
• Stamm, Isabell, Sandham Allan (2026): "A Bird’s-Eye View on Family Business Succession: Ownership Transfer Regimes and How They Change", Family Business Review.
• Vollmer, Lisa (2026): "Rezension: Philipp Kadelke, Mietwohnung oder Eigenheim? Soziologie des Wohneigentumsstatus (Beltz Juventa 2025)", Soziologische Revue, 49(2), 204-208.