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10/08/2025 | Further training

Institutional Analysis Course 2025: Exploring Institutions, Power, and Collective Action in Practice

@International Agricultural Policy and Environmental Governance

From 22 to 26 September 2025, the Section of International Agricultural Policy and Environmental Governance at the University of Kassel hosted the Comparative Institutional Analysis of Social-Ecological Systems course (Module 4900), as part of the Promotionskolleg in Institutional Analysis. The module, held every two years, brought together doctoral researchers and postdocs from the University of Kassel, the Universities of Göttingen and Humboldt, as well as researchers from CGIAR centers.

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The course was led by Prof. Dr. Andreas Thiel, Dr. Christian Schleyer, and Dr. Nora Schütze, and examined how institutions shape the dynamics and outcomes of agricultural and social-ecological systems. Participants engaged with a range of theoretical and empirical approaches, including the Institutional Analysis and Development (IAD) and Social-Ecological Systems (SES) frameworks, as well as the concept of polycentric governance developed by Elinor and Vincent Ostrom.

Throughout the week, short lectures, directed reading, group discussions, and practical exercises guided participants in applying empirical and analytical methods of institutional analysis. One of the highlights was when students presented in front of the group, explaining in remarkable detail and complexity how they would apply these frameworks to their own research topics.

A key moment of the module was the field trip to the Kommune Niederkaufungen, an intentional community near Kassel that has practiced collective ownership, consensus-based decision-making, and ecological self-sufficiency for almost four decades (see picture). The visit offered first-hand insights into how institutional arrangements shape collective action, cooperation, and sustainability outcomes in the management of common resources. The group explored governance structures, decision-making processes, and the community’s efforts to reduce its ecological footprint through organic agriculture, shared economies, and renewable energy systems. Enthusiastic participants engaged the host with numerous questions about the community’s rules, habits, and modes of coexistence—gaining valuable insights into the complexity of self-managed communal systems.

Building on the reflections and questions that emerged during the visit, the final sessions deepened discussions on polycentric governance, comparative institutional analysis, and the methodological challenges of studying institutions within complex social-ecological systems.

The next edition of the Comparative Institutional Analysis of Social-Ecological Systems module will take place from 20 to 24 September 2027, continuing the tradition of bridging conceptual rigor with practical engagement in the study of institutions and sustainability transformations.