It is no secret that the gap between rich and poor continues to widen. Even in prosperous Germany, poverty is a topic that is becoming increasingly contentious: poverty is becoming entrenched and effective responses from those in charge of anti-poverty and social policy are in increasing demand, along with social solidarity with the poor. What can be done about this and what does a modern and effective labor and social policy look like? On Friday, February 1, 2019, in the Bremen Haus der Wissenschaft [house of research] (Sandstr. 4/5), the Stephan Leibfried Conference of the SOCIUM Research Center on Inequality and Social Policy at the University of Bremen will take place, on the topic of poverty and anti-poverty policy. In the evening (6 p.m.) there will be a public panel discussion on this topic with high-profile guests.

Conference in Honor of Stephan Leibfried

The internationally renowned Bremen social scientist Stephan Leibfried, who died unexpectedly in spring 2018, would have turned 75 on February 1, 2019. This conference deals with the very topic with which Leibfried began his academic work in Bremen at the beginning of the 1970s: poverty and anti-poverty policy. In the spirit of Leibfried, the conference is not a review of the 1970s, but rather deals with the current situation and social science research.

High-Profile Panel Discussion

The event comprises three parts. The introductory conversation with Ulrich K. Preuss, professor emeritus of Freie Universität Berlin, aims to discuss Leibfried’s time in Berlin, where he studied law in the late 1960s, published his first publications, and finally passed both state law examinations at the beginning of the 1970s. In the second part, seven contributions to the discussion deal with questions of current poverty situations and anti-poverty policy. In the evening, starting at 6 p.m., a panel discussion will take place, in which Anja Stahmann, Bremen’s senator for social affairs, Jutta Allmendinger, the president of the Berlin Social Science Center, Antonio Brettschneider, professor for local social policy at the TH Cologne, and Georg Cremer visiting professor at the SOCIUM and former secretary-general of Caritas will participate, rounding off the evening and forming the third part of the event. The spokesperson of the SOCIUM, Professor Frank Nullmeier, will moderate the event.

Additional Information:

www.socium.uni-bremen.de
www.uni-bremen.de

Contact:

Dr. Dieter Wolf
University of Bremen
SOCIUM – Research Center on Inequality and Social Policy
Phone: +49 421 218-58641
E-mail: diwolfprotect me ?!uni-bremenprotect me ?!.de