News Archive

At irregular intervals we publish interviews with alumni of the Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology. We find out where they are living and working now, what they are conducting research on, and how their time at the MPI shaped their subsequent careers. In closing they share their advice for young anthropologists and name a book that has impressed them recently. more

Biao Xiang – Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology more

What will the health care of the future look like in Saxony-Anhalt? Is digitalization an opportunity or a danger? How do migrant women in Halle create a feeling of belonging in a new country? And how does globalization affect queer communities in Namibia? During Science Night in Halle on Friday, 3 July 2026, researchers of the Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology and University Medicine of MLU Halle-Wittenberg will present their work on these questions to interested members of the public. more

The Max Planck Society invites nominations, including self-nominations, for the position of Director at the Max Planck Institute (MPI) for Social Anthropology. The Director will lead a research Department at the Institute and contribute to the Institute’s mission. more

A new project entitled "Situated Care: Subjectivity, Knowledge, and Labor" recently began at the MPI for Social Anthropology, funded by the German Research Foundation's Emmy Noether Program. We spoke with Lauren Cubellis, the head of the research group. We wanted to know what her project is about and what brought her to Halle to work at the MPI. more

Ursula Rao, Director at the Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology, was elected as a Member of the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina at the end of 2025. Around 1,700 scholars from more than 30 are members of the Leopoldina, which has the mission of promoting the responsible application of scientific insight for the benefit of humankind and the natural world. more

Working together for better healthcare: A new research centre of the University Medicine at MLU Halle will investigate how public participation influences the quality, acceptance, and efficacity of healthcare research. In close cooperation with the Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology, the team will also investigate public perceptions of the digitalization of healthcare. more

From 4 to 5 December 2025 a conference entitled “Environmental Rights in Multiple Contexts – Stocktaking and Moving Forward” will be held at the Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology. Organized by Dirk Hanschel and his Max Planck Fellow Group “Environmental Rights in Cultural Context”, the conference is dedicated to the question of how environmental rights can help local communities whose everyday lives are threatened by various types of environmental destruction. The conference is supported by funding from the Volkswagen Foundation. more

On 27 und 28 November 2025 the Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology will host the annual conference of the CUREDI project. CUREDI (Cultural and Religious Diversity under State Law across Europe) is an initiative of the Department ‘Law & Anthropology’ at the MPI. The project aims to develop and maintain a publicly accessible database of case law involving issues related to the growing cultural and religious diversity in Europe, which includes analysis, commentary and related anthropological research developed by legal experts. more

Ikuno Naka, Research Fellow at the Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology and Garima Jaju, Smuts Research Fellow at Cambridge University, talk about filming bureaucracy, waithood and the workings of the state in India. Their recent work – an ethnographic short film titled Reception Room, Wing D – was showcased as part of the UK Royal Anthropological Institute Film Festival, where the film received Honourable Mention for the Marsh Short Film Prize. more