Sandra Kurfürst

Professor Dr Sandra Kurfürst is Professor at the University of Cologne where she conducts research and teaches in the fields of urban anthropology, media anthropology and globalization studies. Her work focuses on Southeast Asia and the Pearl River Delta, with particular attention to urbanism, state–society relations and the cultural politics of public space.

Educational & Professional Background

• Full Professor, University of Cologne (current)
• Principal Investigator, DFG Graduate School 2661 “Connecting/Excluding”
• Co-director of annual international field schools in Vietnam, China and South Africa

Research Interests

Her research integrates urban anthropology with media and communication studies to examine how cities in the Global South negotiate globalization, governance and everyday creativity. Specific interests include:

• Visual and audiovisual methodologies in participatory urban programmes
• Hip Hop as a lens into youth identity and gender politics in post-socialist Vietnam
• Symbolic and communicative functions of urban gardening and food production
• Re-definition of public space and civic culture in rapidly transforming cities such as Hanoi

Recent Publications & Trends

Between 2022 and 2023 she has published open-access studies on Vietnamese hip hop culture, gender norm-breaking through music, and the micro-politics of shared streets in late-socialist Hanoi. Collectively, these works illustrate a consistent engagement with youth agency, gender performativity, and the negotiation of public order in Asian megacities.

Scientific Awards & Fellowships

No specific awards are listed in the provided material; distinctions may be recorded elsewhere.

Advising, Grants & Collaborative Projects

• Principal Investigator of the DFG-funded Research Training Group 2661 “Connecting/Excluding – Global Dynamics of Social Cohesion”
• Supervises master and doctoral students within the RTG and through annual field schools
• Runs intensive two-week summer schools in Hanoi (2023) and other Asian cities in partnership with local universities such as VNU-USSH
• Provides ethnographic fieldwork modules preparing students for master’s theses

Labs, Teams & Research Hubs

Professor Kurfürst is affiliated with the Global South Studies Center Cologne (GSSC) and leads thematic initiatives on “Globalization, Mobilities and Cities”. She hosts the seminar series “60 Minutes in Ethnography, Theory, Anthropology” and co-organizes the interdisciplinary RTG colloquium on connectivity and exclusion.