Valentin Feneberg Receives Klaus J. Bade-Prize for Migration Research

2025-11-25 Dr. Valentin Feneberg examines migration and migration policy not only from a social science perspective but also by integrating insights from legal studies. Equally central to his work is ensuring that his research findings are accessible to the broader public. In recognition of this comprehensive engagement, the Leuphana research associate has now been awarded the Klaus J. Bade-Prize.

©Humboldt Universität Berlin
Valentin Feneberg (with flowers) at the Bade Prize award ceremony surrounded by the jury (from left): Gökçe Yurdakul, Aileen Edele, Efpraxia Dermitzaki, Pauline Endres de Oliveira, Herbert Brücker

The Klaus J. Bade-Prize honors outstanding and innovative contributions in the fields of migration and integration research – but it extends beyond that. “In keeping with the academic vision of Klaus J. Bade, particular recognition is given to achievements that have generated public resonance in the sense of knowledge transfer (‘Third Mission’),” the call for nominations states. The Institute for Empirical Integration and Migration Research (BIM) at Humboldt University awards the prize annually in partnership with the non-profit Hertie Foundation.

“My goal is to bridge the gap between social sciences and legal studies, thereby strengthening dialogue and knowledge exchange across disciplines,” Feneberg explains. In his doctoral research, for example, he examined how courts identify and use country-of-origin information in asylum procedures. “In doing so, I took the legal perspective seriously, without losing sight of my social scientific research interests,” the migration scholar notes. As a result, his findings have proven highly relevant both for legal scholarship and legal practice. Through interviews and other media formats, he also works to introduce these insights into public discourse.

“The prize encourages me to continue working in an interdisciplinary manner and to comment on political developments in an evidence-based and critical way,” Feneberg said at the award ceremony in Berlin.

Valentin Feneberg is a research associate at Leuphana University’s Institute of Political Science and co-editor of the Journal of Refugee and Forced Migration Studies. “At present, I am focusing on European migration and asylum policy and particularly on the role of courts in liberal democracies,” he explains. Prior to joining Leuphana University of Lüneburg, he worked as a research associate at the German Center for Integration and Migration Research (DeZIM) in Berlin and as a research coordinator and research associate at the Integrative Research Institute Law & Society at Humboldt University Berlin. In 2024, Feneberg was a visiting researcher at the Refugee Studies Centre and the Centre for Socio-Legal Studies at Oxford University. His book “Die Heimat der Anderen”, which examines country-of-origin information in asylum procedures, received both the Humboldt Prize 2024 and the Dietrich-Thränhardt Dissertation Prize 2025.

The prize bears the name of Prof. Dr. Klaus J. Bade, considered a pioneer in migration research. Until 2007, he was Professor of Modern History at the University of Osnabrück, where he founded the Institute for Migration Research and Intercultural Studies (IMIS). He also served as founding chair of the Expert Council of German Foundations on Integration and Migration (SVR). In recognition of his contributions to scholarship and critical political engagement, Bade received the Federal Cross of Merit, First Class.

Funded by the Hertie Foundation and awarded by BIM, the Klaus J. Bade-Prize is dedicated to researchers in the early stages of their academic careers who have distinguished themselves through exceptional contributions to migration and integration research. The award includes a prize worth of €7,500.