Globalisation Past and Present: First Albert Ballin Forum and Awards Ceremony in Hamburg

The Hamburg native and shipping company executive Albert Ballin played an important role in the globalisation process in the early part of the last century. To mark the centenary of his death on 9 November 2018, the Hapag-Lloyd AG has launched the Albert Ballin Awards and the Albert Ballin Forum.

At the inaugural Albert Ballin Forum, which was conceived as a scientific symposium, GIGA President Prof. Dr. Amrita Narlikar presented her research with a keynote speech titled “Trade Wars Today: Is the Multilateral Trading System in Crisis, and What Can Be Done about It?” Scholars from a variety of disciplines came together at the Museum of Hamburg History on 6 and 7 November to critically reflect on processes of globalisation both past and present.

During a ceremony in the context of the Forum, the newly established Albert Ballin Awards were presented at Hamburg City Hall on 6 November. GIGA President Prof. Amrita Narlikar served on the award jury for the “Albert Ballin Awards for Globalisation Research.” The prize was conferred to Dr. Johanna Beamish and Dr. Felix Hadwiger for their doctoral research on ship newspapers as documents of global connection and on transnational employee participation agreements, respectively. The awards aim to further the innovative and critical investigation of the processes and problems of globalisation. The organisation Doctors Without Borders was honoured with the “Albert Ballin Awards for Global Action.” The awards will be presented every four years.