Pia Herzan has been a Research Associate at the Chair of North American History, University of Erfurt, from 2020 to 2024 and is Co-Investigator of the Research Unit on Voluntariness since 2020. Her research for her dissertation project focuses on voluntariness and political practice in the emerging United States. Prior to working for a German-American cultural and educational institute and a political foundation, she studied North American Studies and Political Science in Berlin and Konstanz.
By Pia Herzan
Several research trips for her project brought Pia also to Philadelphia, not just nicknamed as the “Cradle of Liberty” but also famous as the “Mural Capital of the World.” Read – and see! – more about the (re-)claiming of public space by voluntary urban art practices in Philadelphia.
By Pia Herzan
Self-government is one of the most crucial practices in a liberal democracy. Pia takes a look at the status quo of democratic knowledge and practices in the U.S. and how people as well as institutions are committing to it.
In order to explore how voluntariness functions as a resource for political participation and civic recognition in the US, our subproject in North American History provides a critical reexamination of the yellow fever outbreaks between 1793 and 1820 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and highlights first results.
By Pia Herzan
Seventeen years ago hurricane Katrina had shown that man-made and natural disasters pose a particular risk to the vulnerable city of New Orleans. This post will take a closer look at New Orleans’ Lower Ninth Ward, Katrina’s aftermath and the role voluntariness played in it.
In June 2022, the subproject “Voluntariness as Political Practice” welcomes distinguished American scholars in Erfurt and beyond. Deirdre Cooper Owens (University of Nebraska-Lincoln) and Van Gosse (Franklin & Marshall College), guests of next week’s workshop, will visit also Freiburg, Heidelberg and Bonn.
In June 2022, our team of the subproject “Voluntariness as Political Practice” will discuss key issues of their research field at the workshop „Dis-Cover Fellow Citizens: Voluntary Civic Engagement in the Early Republic and Antebellum America“. Find more info here…
By Pia Herzan
Almost exactly twenty years ago, I set off on what was, at the time, the biggest adventure of my life—my high school exchange year in the United States. The first couple of weeks were spent soaking up the last…
By Pia Herzan
Walking differs cross-culturally, in its manifestations, and in the specific distances covered. As a habitual practice, the bodily technique of walking exists in different forms, depending on the society and social…
