Gregor Dobler

Prof. Gregor Dobler is a Professor of Ethnology at the University of Freiburg's Institute of Social and Cultural Anthropology. He has held this position since 2010 and previously served as spokesperson for the Collaborative Research Center 1015: Leisure (2019-2022). His academic roles include membership in the Philosophische Fakultät's faculty council and directorial positions in institutions like the Freiburg Institute for Basic Income Studies and the Africa Center for Transregional Research.

Education: Studied Ethnology, Political Science, and Folklore in Freiburg, Berlin, and Bayreuth (1991-1996). Completed his PhD in Ethnology on material culture and need perception in Brittany (2000-2002), supported by the Cusanuswerk and a graduate program in intercultural relations in Africa.

Research focuses on political anthropology, economic anthropology, and leisure studies. Key themes include cross-border dynamics in Africa, Sino-African relations, colonial economic history, and the anthropology of work and leisure. His work combines historical ethnography with contemporary fieldwork in Namibia and western France.

Publications span over 30 books and articles, with recent works emphasizing leisure theory (2023), Swiss extractivism in Zambia (2019), and Chinese influence in Namibian political economy (2017). His research appears in journals like Africa, Journal of Modern African Studies, and Anthropology of this Century.

Grants and awards include DAAD, DFG, and ERC project involvement. He advises on development research for KfW and the Verein für Socialpolitik. Active in editorial roles for Africa, Anthropology Southern Africa, and Journal of Namibian Studies.

Led initiatives like the SocialSIM interdisciplinary simulation project and co-edited series such as the AEGIS-Brill Series in African Studies. His teaching includes courses on political ethnology, material culture, and research design.