Wangari Maathai Visiting Professorship Program

Wangari Maathai Portrait by the Beninois Artist Youss Atacora

General Information

The GPN Visiting Professorship is established at the University of Kassel for suitable candidates from all GPN partner universities and related universities in the field of research collaboration on global partnerships for sustainable development. It is intended for outstanding scientists from institutions of higher learning and research institutions who have achieved appropriate recognition in their fields and who have obtained positions as senior researchers.

Our professorship programme is named after a prominent activist from Kenya: Wangari Maathai is to be honoured as the name giver on the one hand and at the same time stands symbolically for her commitment to justice, environmental and human rights.

General Information: Learn more about Wan­ga­ri Maat­hai

What we offer

The GPN Visiting Professorship will be awarded for a term of four months in 2026 and in 2028. 
The terms of the professorship are:

  • 1st of October to 31st January each year

  • 1st of April to 31st July each year

The professorship includes financial remuneration resp. a salary for the duration of the stay in Kassel and round-trip airfare (at the cheapest direct commercial fare).

The call for applications is currently closed.

Responsibilities

The responsibilities of the GPN Visiting Professorship include the following:

  • Teaching 2 courses with 15 seminar sessions of 90 minutes each in the MA programme Global Political Economy and Development. One course should cover a core course of the programme and one course will be offered as an elective. The elective will also be offered to MA students from other programmes.
  • Participate in the GPN PhD colloquium
  • Engage in collaborative research
  • Contribute to the development of the E-learning tools / Online Educational Resources for the GPN network
  • Write a working paper for the GPN

Recipients are required to use the title "Wangari Maathai Professor" in all articles and publications resulting from research activities performed under those auspices and while attending conferences during the Wangari Maathai Visting Professorship.

Upon termination of their stay at the GPN, recipients are requested to submit a short report on their activities as Visiting Professor at the GPN.

Currently there is no active call for applications. Call for Applications for 2028 will be informed in late 2026.