Heat and cold: Duisburg professor researches the sociology of sweating

Heat and cold: Duisburg professor researches the sociology of sweating

On April 28, 2025, Elena Beregow was appointed junior professor at the University of Duisburg-Essen, where she works in the College for Social Sciences and Humanities. Her focus is on the so-called “sociology of sweating,” an interdisciplinary project that examines questions about who, when, where and why people sweat. This research has a direct connection not only to rising temperatures due to climate change, but also to societal inequalities in access to cooling and the vulnerability of different population groups.

Beregow explains that the climate crisis is increasing heat disparities in society and can increase the vulnerability of specific groups. Its aim is to analyze the modern ideal of coolness, control and distance in an environment increasingly characterized by heatwaves. Her approach includes both cultural-historical and sensory-sociological perspectives and deals with the interpretation patterns of sweating in different social contexts, such as fitness studios, saunas, pop culture and everyday life.

Interdisciplinary collaboration and international collaborations

Beregow actively strives for interdisciplinary exchange and makes beneficial use of the college's conditions. She is planning international collaborations, including with the Heat Lab at the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA). She finds the inclusion of perspectives from the Global South particularly valuable. She previously worked at the University of the Bundeswehr in Munich (2020-2025) and at the University of Hamburg (2015-2020). Her dissertation on thermal figures in social theory was awarded the dissertation prize of the Sociological Theory Section of the DGS in 2022.

The increased temperatures that are already being felt in Germany due to climate change make their research all the more urgent. Climate change, which is becoming visible in many places in the hot and dry summers, has led to increased awareness in German society. Unusually high temperatures, such as the record highs of over 30 degrees Celsius in 2019, have become the norm, and extreme events such as heat waves, heavy rain and droughts are becoming more common.

Consequences of climate change in Germany

These changes have profound effects on society. According to the Robert Koch Institute, there were 1,200 heat-related deaths in Berlin and Hesse alone in the summer of 2018. Agriculture is also suffering from crop failures as a result of the ongoing drought. Extreme weather events not only cause premature deaths, but can also impact economic well-being and create infrastructure problems. Cities, for example, urgently need measures to ensure both flood protection and solar protection.

The federal government presented the German Adaptation Strategy to Climate Change (DAS) in 2008, which represents a groundbreaking document for many adaptation measures. Adaptation measures are essential, especially as climate change progresses gradually despite successful climate protection measures. Experts emphasize that prevention is more cost-effective than repairing damage later and that adaptation and climate protection should go hand in hand.

Elena Beregow's research could make a crucial contribution to developing a deeper understanding of the social implications of climate change. With a clear focus on the social dimensions of sweating in a warming world, it makes a valuable contribution to the discussion about climate change and social inequality.

Further information on the effects of climate change in Germany, the necessary adaptation measures and the role of cities can be found at Environment in the classroom and more specific aspects of social inequality OEGS.