We're grateful for two inspiring days, discussing ethics, legality and historical responsibility. A big thank you to Matthias Weller, the contributors from all over the world and everyone participating for their diverse perspectives and inspiring exchanges. @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

Dear all, welcome back! We hope you had a great semester break. Wishing you a good start to the summer semester! 🪻 @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

How did late medieval debates shape the understanding of slavery and employment? Read up on Martin Schermaier's project here. 👉 buff.ly/n0dPpSF For an overview of all research projects, see the new Dependent: buff.ly/gi1LMwh @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

Don't miss the upcoming talk by BCDSS researcher Sinah Kloß on "Feminism and Handicraft"! ❗️ Please note: This talk will be held in German 📅 Thursday April 16th, 14:00–16:00 📍 Institute of Computer Science, Friedrich-Hirzebruch-Allee 8, Room 0.016 @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

How do African Anglophone literary texts represent mobility as both a product of and a response to structural SADs? Read up on Magdalena Pfalzgraf's project here. 👉 buff.ly/qqJ3x0k For an overview of all research projects, see the new Dependent: buff.ly/gi1LMwh @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

We are very pleased to welcome Elena Barattini, who joins the BCDSS as a Postdoctoral Researcher! 👉 To learn more about her work, visit: buff.ly/K5S9edl @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

A critical response to claims linking drought and conflict in late Roman History, co-authored by BCDSS postdoctoral researcher James M. Harland! 🔗 buff.ly/8oCejM0 @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

How was the 18th-century European universalist myth of “feeling” used to cement SADs? Learn more about Karin Peters' project here. 👉 buff.ly/zolpNpg For an overview of all research projects, see the new Dependent: buff.ly/gi1LMwh @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

How was prostitution displayed in diverse media of the 17th-19th century? Learn about Birgit Münch's project 👉 buff.ly/SbSptHa @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

How were strong asymmetrical dependencies established in the “pharaonic” territorial state? In his project, Ludwig Morenz will examine internal colonization and the establishment of radical dependency relationships in the protodynastic period. 👉 buff.ly/7LDZUeS @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

🎬 WHO’S GOT THE POWER film series returns this year again in collaboration with Förderverein Filmkultur! We will be screening "Aisha Can't Fly Away" (2025) Do not miss it! 📅 23 April 2026 🕖 19:30 📌 Kino in der Brotfabrik, Bonn. More info: buff.ly/wCzSirQ @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

Can the concept of "charisma" be seen as a type of strong asymmetrical dependency (SAD)? Read up on Hermut Löhr's project. 👉 buff.ly/fGauOL4 For an overview of all research projects, see the new Dependent: buff.ly/gi1LMwh @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

How did witnesses process extreme violence against people they cared about? Read up on Claudia Jarzebowski's project here. 👉 buff.ly/XUmYJoo For an overview of all research projects, see the new Dependent: buff.ly/gi1LMwh @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

How do indigenous communities understand and protect their heritage beyond Eurocentric and material categories? Read up on Carla Jaimes Betancourt's project here. 👉️ buff.ly/Ub4f2Wk For an overview of all research projects, see the new Dependent: buff.ly/gi1LMwh @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

How did gender shape who was seen and treated as a criminal in Late Antiquity? Read up on Julia Hillner's project. For an overview of all research projects, see the new Dependent: buff.ly/gi1LMwh @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

Congratulations to Dr. Jahfar Shareef Pokkanali, former BCDSS PhD researcher, for being awarded the UC Berkeley South Asia Art & Architecture Dissertation Prize 2026. He will present his work at an award lecture on 15 April via Zoom. More: buff.ly/HdY7TrC @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

Congratulations to Julia Binter and her team at the GHL on yesterday's spectacular opening of the exhibition "Knowing Plants – Ecologies of Memory and Practice". The exhibition is open Wednesdays to Sundays, 14:00–18:00, at GHL, Poststraße 26, 53111 Bonn. @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

In her project, Julia Hegewald will shed light on the role played by architectural styles in embodying and visualizing strong asymmetrical religious, national, financial and political dependencies. 👉 buff.ly/xM1RsIx @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

Join us for the international conference "Hermeneutics of Restitution, Reparation, and Redress: The Case of Cultural Property" on April 9-10, 2026, jointly organized by the BCDSS and the Faculty of Law. Register by March 30 (limited seats). 👉 buff.ly/Md1ItER @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

We are thrilled that the important research carried out by Julia Hillner, Pia Wiegmink and Jamie Wood is making waves!🥳 www.uni-bonn.de/en/news/048-...

How do local churches respond to Canon Law made in Rome? In her project, Judith Hahn will examine the tensions between the global claims of canon law and its local implementation as well as subversive mechanisms to challenge this law. 👉 buff.ly/r7mvOM8 @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

📣 The Bonn Center for Dependency and Slavery Studies (BCDSS), in collaboration with the Institute of Bolivian Studies (IEB) at UMSA, invites postgraduate students to explore the history and legacy of strong asymmetric dependencies in Charcas, Bolivia. For more information:https://buff.ly/E3iiOW1

How do fictional narratives shape our ideas about enslavement and other forms of SAD? In her project, Marion Gymnich will analyze literary genres with a view to how they incorporate and criticize strong asymmetrical dependencies. 👉 buff.ly/99gcR2l @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

Join one of our #MAprograms „#Dependency and Slavery Studies“ or „#Slavery Studies“. The application phase is open now. Apply now! 👉 buff.ly/8J5YFgz @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

Dr. Benjamin Etzold has published a chapter on precarious work and resistive agency among refugees in protracted displacement, in the new volume 'Arbeitswelten' (Springer Spektrum, 2026), co-edited by new BCDSS cluster member Michaela Doutch. @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de buff.ly/UX2njaJ

Congratulations to Jun.-Prof. Dr. Magdalena Pfalzgraf on receiving the BACLS Edited Collection Prize 2025, together with her co-editors Dr. des. Silvia Anastasijevic and Dr. Hanna Teichler. buff.ly/AklQjxY @bloomsburyacademic.bsky.social @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

I am on the advisory board for this exciting, newly launched series. Please be reassured that we are also interested in works that deal with archaeology and the world beyond the Roman frontiers (in so far as they relate to the world within them, of course).

Congratulations to Prof. Dr. Julia Hillner, and our best wishes for her new role at the Department of History. We are immensely proud of her tireless contributions to our Cluster. She will continue to serve as Co-Speaker and Principal Investigator at BCDSS and help shape our second funding phase.

Congratulations to @jmharland.bsky.social for his prominent role at the closing conference of the ERC Synergy Grant Project HistoGenes in Vienna, the largest archaeogenetics project ever completed. He addressed “Interdisciplinary method and problems of terminology”. www.oeaw.ac.at/fileadmin/In...

How were strong asymmetrical dependencies (SADs) shaped in Classic Maya society (250-900 CE)? 👉 buff.ly/n2nhVqn @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

A heartfelt thanks to the Academy of International Affairs NRW and the Bonn Center for Reconciliation Studies for the cooperation in yesterday's event, "The #ColonialImprints of the Contemporary Polycrisis: Political Challenges and Possibilities." @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de @aia-nrw.bsky.social

🎉 We are thrilled to be part of this excellent university and can't wait to continue contributing to its outstanding research in the future! 🔝 @unibonn.bsky.social

Great news—We remain the most successful German University of Excellence! With eight Clusters of Excellence and funding secured until 2033, we’re moving closer to our goal of establishing our Uni permanently among the best universities in the world: www.uni-bonn.de/en/news/040-... © VL/Uni Bonn

How are strong asymmetrical dependencies reshaped in South East Asia's resource sector? In her research project, Kristina Grossmann develops a multipolar model of relational SAD in the field in Southeast Asia. 👉 buff.ly/0m47Smd @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

How did ancient slavery function outside the shadow of the Atlantic trade? Do not miss this upcoming #JCMM lecture with Noel Lenski! 🗓️ 16 March 2026 ⏱️16:15 CET ❕Hybrid event: Niebuhrstr. 5 or via Zoom 👉For more info, visit: buff.ly/0UrzhQ2 @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

We welcome 15 new cluster members admitted at the latest General Assembly. Scholars from bicc, IDOS, a DFG Emmy Noether group, and several University of Bonn departments bring new expertise and perspectives to the cluster. We look forward to the collaboration ahead. @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

📣 The Bonn Center for Dependency and Slavery Studies (BCDSS), in collaboration with the International Institute of Social History (IISH), invites researchers to examine coercive labour regimes through the analytical lens of the household. For more: buff.ly/tmQLUm3 @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

What did travelogues and travel writing reveal about asymmetrical power dynamics in Tibet? In his research project, Lewis Doney explores both types of travel accounts, exploring their qualities and their reliance on asymmetrical personal dynamics. 👉 buff.ly/CeAWXHC @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

On International Women’s Day, BCDSS celebrates the women who shape our research community. Women are strongly represented across career stages and in management, within a truly international scholarly community with strong Global South representation. buff.ly/oXwYfrf @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

How have strong asymmetrical dependencies (SADs) developed since the 15th century? Professor Stephan Conermann explores this question in his research project, blending BCDSS research into a global history of SADs. 👉 buff.ly/XScj8Zs @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

In our series introducing our PIs, we continue with Junior Professor Julia Binter (Social and Cultural Anthropology). In her project, she examines the competing legacies of enslavement and colonization across the Atlantic World. 👉 buff.ly/ePnTvRY @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

For the second funding phase (2026-2032), we bring together 25 PIs from 5 faculties. We will introduce their research projects here, starting with Prof. Dr. Jan Bemmann (Prehistory and Early Historical Archaeology). buff.ly/ePnTvRY @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

#CallforPapers📣 We're now accepting paper proposals for the upcoming conference "Children’s Testimonies. Unveiling historical and art-historical archives", held at the University of Bonn from October 22–24, 2026. More: buff.ly/Pf8dbCM @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

Impressions of the 1.5-day joint workshop with researchers from the Wilberforce Institute (University of Hull, UK) and the BCSSS. We're grateful for the collaboration and look forward to future research projects! @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de @uniofhull.bsky.social @wilberforcehull.bsky.social

📕 Congratulations to Cristina de la Puente, Karen Moukheiber & Serena Tolino on their new publication "Slavery and the Shaping of the Premodern Muslim Family", Vol. 28 in the DSS Series. Now available via Open Access. 👉 More: buff.ly/IQbiYXr @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de @degruyterbrill.bsky.social

Language is never neutral. It reflects power & influences whose voices are recognised in academia. At BCDSS, our Language Policy promotes World Englishes and moves beyond narrow standards of British and American English. Academic quality & inclusion belong together. @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

Impressions of the workshop "Collaborative & Intercultural Methodological Approaches", organized by Taynã Tagliati and Carla Jaimes Betancourt. A heartfelt thank you to everyone who attended and to our keynote speaker, Juliana Salles Machado. @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

We are very pleased to welcome Neema C. Munisi, who joins the BCDSS as a Predoctoral Fellow! 👉 To learn more about her work, visit:https://buff.ly/MDZzpnJ @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

We are happy to welcome Ankit Chowdhury, who after finishing his Master studies with us, joins again the BCDSS as a Predoctoral Fellow! We are excited to have Ankit back in our community! 👉To know more about his work visit: buff.ly/HptzJTJ @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de

🗣️ Join us for the upcoming workshop "Collaborative & Intercultural Methodological Approaches" on February 19, 2026. To attend, please register by February 10, 2026 via [email protected] 👉 www.dependency.uni-bonn.de/en/outreach/... @unibonn.bsky.social @dfg.de