Derek Hattemer

Derek Hattemer serves as a Lecturer at the Chair of Social and Economic History at the University of Basel, appointed in the winter semester of 2023/24 and currently representing Dr. Martin Lutz during the summer semester of 2024. He concurrently pursues doctoral studies at the Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa and the University of Basel since 2020.

Education:

• 2019: MA in European History, Humboldt University of Berlin
• 2014: BA in Political Science, University of Chicago

Research Focus: His work centers on the social and economic history of Germany and Italy, examining corporate structures and fascist-era economic policies. His dissertation "Underwriting Autarchy: Commercial Life Insurance for the Masses in Interwar Italy and Germany" investigates how mass-market life insurance functioned as an alternative to state social insurance in Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany, revealing intersections of commerce, autarky policies, and population control.

Teaching Activities: Delivers courses including History of European Integration: Critical Perspectives and Debates (1950-2023), Comparative Approaches in Fascism Studies, and Industrial Policy in Historical Paradigms of State Economic Intervention, emphasizing critical analysis of state-market relationships across 19th-20th century Europe.