Federalism has come under pressure in the Covid 19 pandemic. Everywhere, the "patchwork" of regulation in dealing with the pandemic was criticised. What was allowed in one federal state was forbidden in another. At the same time, the federal states certainly switched back and forth between "Team Vorsicht" (Team Caution) and "Team Freiheit" (Team Freedom). The abbreviation MPK was previously familiar only to insiders, but since then it has become the talk of the town. For the eye was always fixed on the conferences of the Minister Presidents with the then Chancellor.
It is not the first time that the structures of German federalism have come under criticism in times of crisis. The need for reforms to improve the federal state's ability to act was also discussed during security policy crises (for example, in the aftermath of terrorist attacks). In the Covid 19 pandemic, personal concern about state regulation was clearly felt, not least in view of the unprecedented depth of encroachment on citizens' civil liberties.
Against the backdrop of the debates, the question arises as to the capacity to act and the need for reform of federalism in crises, specifically in the pandemic. How can the handling of the coronavirus and its consequences be explained? How efficient were the federal structures in Germany - not least in comparison with other states? Are unitary systems more capable of acting in crises? Are democratic states possibly even too slow in their decision-making processes in crises? What need is there for reform of German federalism and how can it be implemented?

These questions were discussed at a multidisciplinary symposium organised by the ECRF and the Akademie für Politische Bildung (Scholarship - Education - Public Services) in Tutzing.
You can find the program here.

This was a cooperation between the International Relations Department of Webster Vienna Private University (WVPU) and the Institute for Political Science (IfP) and the European Center for Research on Federalism (ECRF) of the Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen. The programme of the workshop can be found here.

In a digital format. Here you can find a recording of the event.

Here you will find the programme of the international conference, which also included the following programme items:

• the workshop "Europa@School",
• the Key Note Lecture "Regional voices in Multilevel Politics and the Pandemic" (for a recording see here),
• the panel discussion "Europa von unten bauen" (for a recording see here)

For a conference report see "Von Mitspielenden zu Gestaltenden? Herausforderungen für Regionen im dynamischen Mehrebenensystem der Europäischen Union. Tagungsbericht, Mirjam Zillober, in: Jahrbuch des Föderalismus 2021, pp. 471–475".

In a digital format. Here you can find a recording of the event.

In the State Representation of Baden-Württemberg in Berlin.

In the State Representation of Baden-Württemberg in Berlin.

Lecture series on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the ECRF.

Joint conference with Akademie für Politische Bildung (Scholarship - Education - Public Services) in Tutzing.

Joint conference with the Akademie für Politische Bildung (Scholarship - Education - Public Services) in Tutzing.

Joint conference with State Representation of Baden-Württemberg in Berlin with the support of the DAAD (German Academic Exchange Service) as part of the "Meetings of the Friends of Federalism".