Sander Chan, ©DIE
Sander Chan, Senior Researcher at the German Development Institute/Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik (DIE), has been awarded a prestigious research fellowship with the Käte Hamburger Kolleg/Centre for Global Cooperation Research (KHK/GCR21). From September 2020 on, he will conduct research on climate action and radical transformation at the Centre in Duisburg.
Sander Chan’s research topic is especially relevant in light of the SARS-CoV-2 outbreak. “We must ask what the corona virus outbreak means for climate commitments made in recent years by businesses, local authorities, and civil society. Is such action premised on growth – which has been badly hurt? If so, will low-carbon and climate-resilient development not happen? What alternatives are available to leverage an economic downturn for sustainability?”, Chan highlights.
Since 2012, KHK/GCR21 has been advancing to understand the possibilities and limits of global cooperation, building an interdisciplinary community that explores new options for global public policy. Sander Chan will contribute to the Centre’s focus on global cooperation and polycentric governance.
During his year-long fellowship, Sander Chan aims to develop a consortium of internationally leading researchers. “The complexity of interactions in global governance and knowledge gaps in the study of climate action require interdisciplinary and multi-method approaches. The contributions of many will far exceed those of an individual researcher,” he explains.
Sander remains affiliated with the Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development at Utrecht University as adjunct assistant professor. He will also continue being at DIE, coordinating work on transnational climate governance under the Klimalog Project, funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).