Role: PhD Candidate at the Graduate School of East Asian Studies (GEAS) & Environmental Policy Research Centre (FFU), University of Berlin
Berlin, Germany

  Contact: juteebken@googlemail.com

  Research Interests:
Climate Change Politics | Environmental Justice | Conflict Resolution | Global Ethics

Julia is a PhD candidate at the Graduate School of East Asian Studies and the Environmental Policy Research Centre at Freie Universität Berlin. During her M.A. program “Ethics, Peace and Global Affairs” at American University in Washington D.C., Julia developed a focus on international climate ethics. Back to local levels, Julia's dissertation aims to compare how subnational governments in China and the U.S. deal with socially vulnerable populations in light of climate change. In particular, Julia is interested in the aspect of recognitional justice as part of adaptation planning and/or disaster risk reduction frameworks. With high degrees of social vulnerability, Jinhua city in Eastern Zhejiang province and Metro Atlanta in the state of Georgia will serve as case studies.

After an initial research phase in China from January-April 2017, Julia will return to the
U.S. to conduct field research and the second round of interviews. At VHC, Julia is excited to engage over the aspect of human vulnerability and the underlying socio-political factors that lead to disproportionate (climate) affectedness within a society and the role state institutions (can) play in this regard.