Nikias Obitz

Nikias Obitz is a Temporary Assistant Professor (Akademischer Rat auf Zeit) at the Institute for Social Pedagogy, Adult Education and Early Childhood Education (ISEP) within the Faculty of Educational Science, Psychology and Educational Research at Technical University of Dortmund since September 2021. He completed his PhD in July 2021 at Carl von Ossietzky University Oldenburg with a dissertation on children's self-organization in Colombia.

His research focuses on children's rights and protection, qualitative-reconstructive social research, participatory research with children, childhood research in Latin America (particularly Colombia), social inclusion in health and education, poverty research, inequality research, and agency research. His work often centers on participatory approaches and action research with children and youth.

Dr. Obitz's publications and research demonstrate a strong emphasis on children's self-organization in Colombia, particularly among socially disadvantaged youth. His work spans qualitative studies of children's rights implementation, social inclusion practices, and participatory research methodologies. He has published a 2023 monograph on children's self-organization in Colombia and co-edited a 2022 volume on solidarity and crisis.

• Hans Böckler Foundation Doctoral Fellowship (2014-2018)

Dr. Obitz teaches at TU Dortmund in the MA and BA programs, focusing on social pedagogy, early childhood education, and professional competence development. He also teaches at Evangelische Hochschule Bochum and has previously taught at Hochschule Münster. His practical experience includes social work with disadvantaged youth in Freising, Germany, from 2006-2013.