Research Cooperations

TRIC stands for Transformations of Religious Identities and Communities and describes an international research network which unites researchers from i.a. the Netherlands, the UK, South Africa, Sweden, Serbia and Germany since 2012. They examine religious transformation processes in urban, rural and virtual contexts and their overlapping areas. During the annual meetings contributions from the different subjects and regional contexts are discussed and correlated. 

The International Research Consortium for Congregational Studies and Social Sciences meets annually since 2004. They discuss issues of a missionary theology and church development. Participants are theologicans and religious sociologists from i.a. Amsterdam, Greifswald, Kopenhagen, Oslo, Princeton, St. Paul and Stellenbosch. 

›Think Rural!‹ is an interdisciplinary research consortium of the University Greifswald under the direction of Prof. Dr. Michael Herbst (theology) and Prof. Dr. Frieder Dünkel (criminology). All faculties of the University Greifswald participate in the research to create an interdisciplinary understanding of rural areas. Since 2011 experienced scientists gather their findings in order to find answers to the complex questions posed by peripheral rural areas.

Since 2016 there is a cooperation with the CVJM-Hochschule in Kassel and the charitable society "Wertestarter - Stiftung für christliche Wertebildung". They are supposed to shed light on topics like migration, integration and interculturality. 

In February 2016, the "Community of Protestant Churches" (CPCE) invited international researchers to a first conference about "Reform and Renewal in Europe", in which also the IEEG participated. After this meeting a research group was formed examining the subject "Mixed Economy of Church". The IEEG created a discussion paper to initiate further conversations, i.a. at a research meeting in Durham, UK, in fall of 2017. At this meeting the "Regiolocal Church Development" (Herbst/Pompe), a German adaption of the Mixed Economy, was discussed.