Dr Reiner Grundmann

Reiner Grundmann received his first degree in Sociology from the Free University in Berlin and obtained his PhD in Political and Social Sciences from the European University Institute, Florence. His research is in the field of global enviromental problems, especially global climate change. He is interested in the role of expert knowledge in modern societies and its political uses. Expertise exists in many forms- not only scientists should be regarded as experts. Reiner was a consultant to the United Nations Global Public Policy Project and before his arrival in the UK he worked at the Wissenschaftszentrum in Berlin (Germany) and the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies (Cologne, Germany). He teaches sociology within the School of Languages and Social Sciences and is course director of the new Masters degree in Social Research and Social Change.

Reiner Grundmann is one of the co-authors of The Hartwell Paper, a new international report published in May 2010 which calls for a radically different approach to climate policy.  For more information, visit The Hartwell Paper website.

Reiner is deputy director of ACCIS, the Aston Centre for Critical Infrastructure and Services.

Want to read some of his work online? Have a look at Academia.edu

Have a look at the blog KLIMAZWIEBEL where he posts regularly on issues related to climate science and policy. 

Research students

He would like to hear from students who are interested in conducting research in the area of climate change and related issues. If you are considering a PhD in this area, from a social science perspective, please get in touch.

Publications

Edited Books

• Society, Critical Concepts, 4 vols. Edited and introduced by Reiner Grundmann and Nico Stehr. London: Routledge, 2008.
• Knowledge. Critical Concepts, 5 vols. Edited by: Reiner Grundmann, Nico Stehr. London: Routledge, 2005.
• Werner Sombart. Economic Life in the Modern Age, edited and introduced by Nico Stehr and Reiner Grundmann, New Brunswick, N.J.; Oxford: Transaction Boks (2001).

Books

• (Forthcoming) Experts: The knowledge and power of expertise. London: Routledge (with Nico Stehr). (2010) Expertenwissen: Die Kultur und die Macht von Experten, Beratern und Ratgebern. Frankfurt am Main: Velbrueck (with Nico Stehr).
  
• Transnational Environmental Policy: ReConstructing Ozone. London: Routledge (2001).  
• Transnationale Umweltpolitik zum Schutz der Ozonschicht. USA und Deutschland im Vergleich. Frankfurt a.M.: Campus (1999). Fulltext
• Marxism and Ecology. Oxford: Oxford University Press (1991).
• Korean translation of Marxism and Ecology, published by Dongnyok, Seoul (1995).

Journal articles (selection)

• (2010) The Two “Limits” Debates: Limits to Growth and Climate Change, accepted by Futures (with J. Eastin and A. Prakash).
  
• (2011) Climate Change: What role for Sociology? A Response to Constance Lever-Tracy, accepted by Current Sociology (with Nico Stehr).
  
• (2010) The Discourse of Climate Change: a corpus-based approach, accepted by Critical Approaches to Discourse Analysis across Disciplines (with R. Krishnamurthy).
  
• (2008) The Role of Expertise in Governance Processes, Forest Policy and Economics
• (2007) ‘Climate Change and Knowledge Politics’, Environmental Politics 16 (3): 416 – 434. Download
• (2006) ‘Ozone and Climate: Scientific consensus and leadership’ Science, Technology, and Human Values 31(1): 73-101. Download
• (2003) ‘Social control and knowledge in democratic societies’, Science and Public Policy, 30(3): 183-188. (with Nico Stehr). Download
• (2002) ‘Elites nationales et discours transnationaux dans la guerre des Balkans. Comparaison entre la presse de l’Establishment française, allemande et britannique’, Questions de Communication No 1, pp 19-41. (with S. Wright and D. Smith).
• (2001) ‘Why is Werner Sombart not part of the core of classical sociologists? From fame to (near) oblivion’ Journal of Classical Sociology 1 (2): 257–287 (with Nico Stehr). Download
• (2001) 'The Authority of Complexity', British Journal of Sociology 52 (2): 313-329 (with Nico Stehr). Download
• (2000) 'National elites and transnational discourses in the Balkan war: a comparison between the French, German and British establishment press' European Journal of Communication 15 (3): 299-320 (with Dennis Smith and Sue Wright). Download
• (2000) 'Simplicity in Science and its Publics', Science as Culture 9 (3): 353-389 (with Jean-Pierre Cavaillé). Download
• (2000) 'Social Science and the Absence of Nature' Social Science Information 38 (1): 155-179 (with Nico Stehr). Download
• (1999) 'The European Public Sphere and the Deficit of Democracy', in Whose Europe? Sociological Review Monograph, 125-146.
• (1991) 'The Ecological Challenge to Marxism' New Left Review 187 (May-June), 103-120. Spanish translation in Trabajo y capital [Uruguay], Vol. 3, 1991-1992, 27-48 and in Cuadernos del Sur [Argentina]). Download English version

Chapters in edited books (selection)

• (2007) The Unique Complexity of Social Phenomena and the Uses of Social Science Knowledge, in Samir Dasgupta and Robyn Driskoll (eds.) Discourse on Applied Sociology, Volume 1 Theoretical Perspectives, London/New York/Delhi: Anthem Press (with N Stehr).
• (2006) Okologie, in C. Henning (ed.) Marxglossar, Berlin: Zeitungsverlag Freitag, 201-208
• (2006) Moral Ambiguity, in N. Stehr (ed. with C. Henning and B. Weiler), The Moralization of the Markets. New Brunswick, New Jersey: Transaction Books, 327-343
• (2003) ‘Free flow of information or embedded expertise? Notes on the regulation of knowledge,’ in N. STEHR (ed.) The Governance of Knowledge, New Brunswick, N.J.; Oxford: Transaction Books.
• (2003) Die Natur und die Natur der Gesellschaft, L. Fischer (ed.) Projektionsflaeche Natur. Hamburg: Hamburg University Press (with N Stehr). Download
• (2003) ‘Sozialwissenschaft ohne Natur?’ [Social Science without Nature?] in M. Maurer and O. Hoell (eds.) Natur als Politikum.� Wien: RLI Verlag (with N Stehr).
• (2003) ‘Transnational Policy Networks and the Role of Advocacy Scientists’, in F Biermann et al. (eds.) Global Environmental Change and the Nation State: Proceedings of the 2001 Berlin Conference on the Human Dimensions of Global Environmental Change. Potsdam: Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research.
• (2002) 'Klimawissenschaft als Akteur in der wissenschaftlichen Arena' in W. Hauser (ed.) Klima. Das Experiment mit dem Planeten Erden. Begleitband und Katalog zur Sonderausstellung des Deutschen Museums vom 7.11.2002 bis 15.6.2003. M�nchen: Deutsches Museum/Munich Re (with N Stehr).
• (2001) ‘Die Arbeitswelt in der Wissensgesellschaft’ [Work in the Knowledge Society] in T. Kurtz (ed.) Aspekte des Berufs in der Moderne, Leverkusen: Leske + Budrich (with Nico Stehr), 315-336.
• (2001) ‘Organizations, Networks, and Learning,’ in S. Conway, O. Jones and F. Steward, Social Interaction and Organisational Change: Aston Perspectives on Innovation Networks, London: Imperial College Press, 251-286.