Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin - Urban Sociology

Prof. Dr. Hartmut Häussermann

Obituary

On October 31st, Prof Hartmut Häussermann, who chaired the section of urban and regional sociology at the Humboldt University Berlin, died. Hartmut Häussermann was one of the most, if not the most, established scholars in German urban sociology whose work has inspired generations of students and younger academics. He took his role as a public academic very seriously, and has brought sociological understandings of the urban to the field of applied urban policies, especially in Berlin, in highly significant ways. As a very engaged researcher who linked his research agenda to the pressing urban questions of the time, he has reminded us time and again that urban development and change and social questions can only be understood in tandem. His studies and essays have moved our understanding of integration, segregation, shrinking and growth of cities as well as gentrification to a higher level. His death is a big loss to the academy, and to Berlin.