Cluster of Excellence ‘Contestations of the Liberal Script (SCRIPTS)’ with ZOiS Participation to be Continued

The Cluster of Excellence ‘Contestations of the Liberal Script (SCRIPTS)’ investigates how various actors around the world are challenging liberal democracies – be it through geopolitical crises, growing societal polarisation or the deliberate reinterpretation of liberal values. In its second funding phase, the focus will be on the resilience of democratic social orders. Among other questions, the Cluster will explore how different variants of the liberal script react to or actively resist contestations.   

In the second phase, ZOiS will continue to contribute its social science expertise on developments in Eastern Europe and Central Asia to the Cluster and is represented by two principal investigators, Gwendolyn Sasse and Julia Langbein. Gwendolyn Sasse currently coordinates the SCRIPTS Knowledge Exchange Lab and will focus her research on the various impacts of Russia’s war against Ukraine.  

As a new PI, Julia Langbein is analysing transformation processes in the EU accession candidates Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia and examining how China, Russia and the EU influence political and economic structures in the region. A new chair for ‘European Integration with a Focus on Eastern Europe’ will be established for this thematic area at the Freie Universität Berlin.