Short Biography

Since 2016: Lecturer, Department of Cultural and Social Anthropology, University of Cologne, Germany, and Department for the Study of Religions, University of Lucerne, Switzerland.

Since 2016: Professional Teaching Competence for Higher Education certification program, Centre for Higher Education Didactics, University of Cologne and Teaching Development Centre, University of Lucerne, Switzerland.

Since 2016: Professional staff, Competence Center for the Counseling and Integration of Migrants, Lucerne, Switzerland.

2016: Assistant to the Management, Monitoring Center for Asylum and Alien Law Eastern Switzerland, St. Gallen.

Since 2013: Doctoral Student, Cultural and Social Anthropology, University of Cologne, supervisor Prof. Dorothea E. Schulz, Ph.D.

2013-2016: Research Fellow, DFG-funded project: "Resilience, collapse, and reorganization in social-ecological systems of African savannas," Department of Cultural and Social Anthropology, University of Cologne, Germany.

2013-2014: Certified Trainer and Coach for Intercultural Competence, ARTOP Institute, Humboldt-University of Berlin, Germany.

2013: Master of Arts in Cultural and Social Anthropology and the Study of Religions,  Free University of Berlin, Germany
Studies of Cultural and Social Anthropology, Study of Religions, Secondary Education Religion, and Art History, Free University of Berlin, Germany, and University of Lucerne, Switzerland

2008: Research Assistant, Department for the Study of Religions, University of Lucerne, Switzerland

Academic Memberships

African Association for the Study of Religions (AASR)

German Anthropological Association (DGKSA)

Deutsche Gesellschaft für Volkskunde (DGV)

German Association for the Study of Religion (DVRW)

European Association of Social Anthropologists (EASA)

European Research Network on Global Pentecostalism (GloPent)

Swiss Anthropological Association (SAA)

Swiss Society for the Study of Religion (SSSR)

Scholarships

2016: Scholarship from the a.r.t.e.s-Graduate School for the Humanities Cologne for a Conference in Accra, Ghana.

2013-2016: Scholarship from the German Research Foundation (DFG) for a doctoral research project.

2008-2009: Scholarship from the Erasmus exchange program.

2006-2007: Scholarship from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) and the Free University of Berlin for field research in Orissa, India.

2006: Scholarship from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) for an internship in Pangani, Tanzania.

Thematic Interests and Regional Focus

Anthropology of religion and sociology of religion; History of religion(s) in Africa, especially Christianity in Africa; Migration, religion, and integration; Media anthropology; Anthropology of childhood and youth; intercultural competence and interreligious training and coaching.

East-Africa (Kenya and Tanzania); Switzerland.

Research Projects

2013-2016: "Charismatic religious leaders as navigators in socio-ecological crisis in the Lake Naivasha Region, Kenya" (working title, doctoral project); C2 subproject "Mediality and local creativity in the negotiation of social-ecological resilience, collapse and reorganization" in the interdisciplinary DFG-funded research project "Resilience, collapse and reorganization in social-ecological systems of East and South Africa's savannas" (RCR).

Supervisor: Prof. Dorothea E. Schulz, Ph.D.

2004-2006 "Nitakupiga wewe: Live Worlds of Tanzanian children in times of AIDS" (Master’s project); research project partially funded by the DAAD about children from HIV/AIDS-affected families and their coping strategies in Pangani, Tanzania, in cooperation with local NGOs, Muslim FBOs, and local healers.

Supervisor: Prof. Dr. Ute Luig

2006-2007: "Hearing the voices of women in white robes", DAAD and FU-funded project about the transnational, neo-Hindu movement Brahma Kumaris and their tradition of female asceticism in Sambalpur/Orissa (India), in cooperation with the Department of Anthropology, Sambalpur University, India.

Supervisors: Prof. Dr. Georg Pfeffer, Prof. Dr. Uwe Skoda, Dr. Berit Fuhrmann 

Courses and Seminars

Spring term 2017: BA/MA seminar: "African-Christian prophets: authority, legitimation and global influence of religious virtuosi", Department for the Study of Religions, University of Lucerne, Switzerland.

Winter term 2016/17: BA seminar: "Pentecostal-charismatic Christianity in a global historical perspective", Department of Cultural and Social Anthropology, University of Cologne, Germany.

Latest Presentations and Workshops

06/2017: "Youth and Islam", workshop for teachers and school-related professionals together with Dr. Andreas Tunger-Zanetti, Center for Research on Religion, University of Lucerne, Lucerne, Switzerland.

05/2017: "Islam at school. Problem or opportunity?", presentation at the Conference of School Presidencies of Canton Uri, Switzerland.

2016/2017: "Awareness training for intercultural competence", Certification program "Sprache, Integration und Qualität", training and further education for pre-school teachers, Lucerne, Switzerland.

09/2016: "Isaya Orishi Ole Ntokoti: a contested virtuoso in Maasailand", presentation at the 3rd Congress of the DGV-Commission "Religiosität und Spiritualität", Bonn, Germany.

07/2016: "This is the work of the devil. Negotiations about homosexuality in a Neo-Pentecostal church in Kenya", presentation at the 7th Biennial AASR-Conference, Accra, Ghana.

04/2016: "Contested charisma: prophecy, religious authority and media in Kenya". Presentation at the Conference for Junior Research Fellows of the Swiss Society for the Study of Religion (SSSR), Lucerne, Switzerland.