معرفی
Sebastian Schipper is a Heisenberg Professor for Geographical Urban Research at the Institute of Human Geography, Department of Geosciences/Geography, Goethe University Frankfurt am Main. He has held this prestigious position since May 2020, funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG). His academic journey includes previous positions at Bauhaus University Weimar, Free University of Berlin, and Tel Aviv University. He completed his doctorate in 2012 on the 'Genealogy and Present of the Entrepreneurial City' and his habilitation in 2017 on 'Removing Housing from the Market? Urban Social Movements in Tel Aviv-Jaffa and Frankfurt am Main.'
Professor Schipper's research focuses on critical housing studies, urban geography, and the political economy of cities. His work examines gentrification processes, housing policies, urban social movements, and the post-neoliberal transformations of housing regulation. He employs interdisciplinary approaches that bridge geography, sociology, and political economy to analyze how urban spaces are transformed through market forces, state interventions, and social struggles. His research often centers on Frankfurt am Main as a case study while maintaining comparative perspectives with other global cities like Tel Aviv-Jaffa. He has published extensively on topics including corporate gentrification, housing activism, and the spatial materialization of housing policies.
His recent scholarly output demonstrates a growing emphasis on post-neoliberal housing regimes, examining how social movements challenge market-oriented housing policies. His work increasingly focuses on practical solutions for affordable housing, analyzing municipal policies and citizen initiatives. Schipper's research combines theoretical rigor with practical engagement, often collaborating with urban activists and policymakers to address the housing crisis in German cities.
Professor Schipper's most significant recognition is the Heisenberg Professorship from the German Research Foundation, a prestigious award supporting outstanding researchers on the path to professorship. He also serves as deputy spokesperson for the DFG Research Training Group 'Habitual Change – Social Transformation and Spatial Materialization of Housing' (GRK 2892/1), which examines how social transformations become materially embedded in urban spaces.
His teaching activities include specialized seminars on critical housing research, political economy of housing, and urban social movements. Professor Schipper leads several DFG-funded research projects, including 'Large-Scale Housing Estates in Transition: Intersectional Perspectives on Resident Use Behavior and Needs' and 'Home and Housing in Urban Regeneration Processes.' He has established a research team comprising scientific staff members Sarah Klosterkamp, Tabea Latocha, Aisha Salih, and Florian Janik, who work collaboratively on housing-related research projects.
Professor Schipper is actively involved in public discourse on housing issues, regularly contributing to media discussions in outlets like Deutschlandfunk, Frankfurter Rundschau, and Süddeutsche Zeitung. His work bridges academic research and practical urban policy, making significant contributions to understanding and addressing the contemporary housing crisis in German cities.
