The prize honors her dissertation on the conditions under which sustainable networks emerge within local civil society following the strong wave of solidarity in 2015/16. In her dissertation, Clara van den Berg examines how spontaneous volunteer initiatives can develop into long-lasting, community-based structures. Using the example of the 2015 refugee support efforts, she identifies three key factors that determine whether short-term engagement can grow into durable civil-society networks.
A concise summary of her findings is available on the website of the WZB Berlin Social Science Center: https://www.wzb.eu/de/news/was-vom-sommer-der-migration-bleibt

The photo shows the awardee together with her supervisor Swen Hutter and Christian von Scheve, who held the laudatory speech.