Global health in crisis? Global health politics between economic rationality, securitisation and emergency response

The objective for the PhD project is to highlight and analyse governing rationalities in the political field of global health, particularly in Germany. By doing so, I intend to make visible the relations between health, security and economics. Ideally, this will provide for a better understanding of global health as a global-national political field and the problematisations at its centre that emphasise some issues and necessarily de-centre others. Looking at practices, I point out how problematisations are actually done in the field, e.g., in the German ministry of foreign affairs and its cooperation partners. The focus on socio-technical arrangements allows me to include both situatedness and (temporary) stabilisation of rationalities, problematisations and practices, and take into account the momentum and fluidity of global health with its shifting rationalities.

My objective for the residency at Fondation Brocher is to conclude my PhD project. I intend to finalise writing the dissertation by revising and re-writing the first draft I will have written before the stay on the basis of necessary changes and comments from my supervisor and colleagues. In an environment with few disruptions and away from daily tasks at the university and teaching, I would benefit from a routine of working and writing in an inspiring atmosphere. In addition to writing the thesis, I would like to begin preparing the defence of the thesis. Furthermore, the setting provides the excellent opportunity for conversations with other researchers interested in health, medicine and ethics, especially from other disciplines to engage outside usual networks and borders. The proximity to WHO and important actors in the global health architecture allows for further networking which I consider particularly helpful for additional comments and feedback for the book version of the thesis as well as upcoming presentations.