240526 SE MM3 Exploring matters of material (non-)consumption. Post-growth lifestyles and material culture (2025W)
Continuous assessment of course work
Labels
Participation at first session is obligatory!The lecturer can invite students to a grade-relevant discussion about partial achievements. Partial achievements that are obtained by fraud or plagiarized result in the non-evaluation of the course (entry 'X' in certificate). The plagiarism software 'Turnitin' will be used.
The use of AI tools (e.g. ChatGPT) for the attainment of partial achievements is only allowed if explicitly requested by the course instructor.
The use of AI tools (e.g. ChatGPT) for the attainment of partial achievements is only allowed if explicitly requested by the course instructor.
Registration/Deregistration
Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).
- Registration is open from Mo 01.09.2025 00:01 to Mo 22.09.2025 23:59
- Deregistration possible until Mo 20.10.2025 23:59
Details
max. 25 participants
Language: English
Lecturers
Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N
- Friday 10.10. 13:15 - 16:30 Übungsraum (A414) NIG 4. Stock
- Friday 24.10. 13:15 - 16:30 Übungsraum (A414) NIG 4. Stock
- Friday 07.11. 13:15 - 16:30 Übungsraum (A414) NIG 4. Stock
- Friday 21.11. 13:15 - 16:30 Übungsraum (A414) NIG 4. Stock
- Friday 05.12. 13:15 - 16:30 Übungsraum (A414) NIG 4. Stock
- Friday 16.01. 13:15 - 16:30 Übungsraum (A414) NIG 4. Stock
- Friday 30.01. 13:15 - 16:30 Übungsraum (A414) NIG 4. Stock
Information
Aims, contents and method of the course
Assessment and permitted materials
To complete the course students must attend classes continuously and in person. There will be no hybrid classrooms (no online attendance). You can miss a maximum of one double session.
Students choose their own research topic. Students give a poster presentation on their topic during the semester and present the results of their independent research in a seminar paper at the end of the course. Both should demonstrate an independent and critical engagement with the topics of the course.
For a positive participation-grade students write self-reflections after each class (max. 500 words).Erlaubte Hilfsmittel:
Course content and academic literature. The use of AI-tools will be discussed during class.
Students choose their own research topic. Students give a poster presentation on their topic during the semester and present the results of their independent research in a seminar paper at the end of the course. Both should demonstrate an independent and critical engagement with the topics of the course.
For a positive participation-grade students write self-reflections after each class (max. 500 words).Erlaubte Hilfsmittel:
Course content and academic literature. The use of AI-tools will be discussed during class.
Minimum requirements and assessment criteria
Permanent assessment; students can miss a maximum of one double session; attendance is in person (no online attendance); participation at first session is obligatory.
There are three parts to the final grade; each part will be assessed independently (scale 1-5); each part must be positive; all parts are equal:
• Reflection papers (4-7 papers): 33,33%
• Poster presentation: 33,33%
• Seminar paper: 33,33%
More details will be given in the first session.
There are three parts to the final grade; each part will be assessed independently (scale 1-5); each part must be positive; all parts are equal:
• Reflection papers (4-7 papers): 33,33%
• Poster presentation: 33,33%
• Seminar paper: 33,33%
More details will be given in the first session.
Examination topics
Course content and academic literature.
Reading list
Reading suggestions:
Derwanz, Heike (Hg.): Minimalismus. Ein Reader. Bielefeld 2022.
Roscoe, Paul/Isenhour, Cindy (Hg.): Consumption, Status, and Sustainability. Ecological and Anthropological Perspectives. Cambridge 2021.
Derwanz, Heike (Hg.): Minimalismus. Ein Reader. Bielefeld 2022.
Roscoe, Paul/Isenhour, Cindy (Hg.): Consumption, Status, and Sustainability. Ecological and Anthropological Perspectives. Cambridge 2021.
Association in the course directory
Last modified: Tu 30.09.2025 16:07
Everyday practices of non-consumption in societies otherwise associated with mass- or over- consumption are a multi-faceted and global phenomenon – and a new and intriguing research subject of material culture, as we study the connections between lifestyles, identities, and material culture. Some acts of voluntarily reduced consumption are prominently present in e.g. social media – such as veganism, voluntary simplicity, or downshifting. Other everyday practices are less visible but just as present in today’s societies, like frugal living out of necessity – developing social and economic strategies to get by with fewer consumer goods. At the same time, concepts of degrowth (post-materialism or post-growth) bring together political activists advocating for urban degrowth, motivated by environmental sustainability and social justice issues. These are just some examples of actors, their practices and motives regarding matters of (non-)consumption that we will explore in this course.Ziele:
Students are familiar with basic concepts and current discourses regarding the topics of the course and and are able to discuss and critically engage with the topics in a knowledgeable manner. Students develop and expand their academic research skills by independently researching a topic of their own choice and presenting the results in a written and oral format. By reading and discussing academic literature, students practice their abilities to engage with and understand academic writing. Through written reflections and group discussions, students improve their skills in independent and critical thinking.Methode:
Some lecture input and possibly audio-visual input, discussions of literature, written self-reflections, poster presentation, seminar paper. We will use Moodle.