Democratic theory has long grappled with the challenge of how to navigate the politics of difference while safeguarding against domination. Within this debate, agonistic democracy offers a compelling starting point due to its rejection of consensus-oriented models of democracy that obscure power relations under the guise of neutral deliberation. By foregrounding the constitutive inevitability of political conflict, agonistic theory reconceptualises democracy as a space of ongoing contestation among legitimate adversaries rather than the pursuit of final agreement. However, while agonistic democracy provides a powerful critique of consensus theory, it remains limited in its capacity to fully account for how power structures shape participation, epistemic subject formation, and the normative orientation of democratic struggle. This thesis addresses these limitations by placing agonistic democratic theory in dialogue with intersectional feminist scholarship. It investigates three central questions: how power affects who is able to participate in plural democratic systems and under what conditions; who counts as a democratic subject, whose knowledge is recognised as legitimate; and what democratic politics should ultimately aim to achieve beyond the management of conflict. Through conceptual analysis and critical theoretical synthesis, the study identifies three interrelated limitations within agonistic democratic theory: the abstraction of power away from historically embedded structures of domination; the underdeveloped role of standpoint epistemology in democratic subject formation; and the absence of normative criteria for distinguishing between emancipatory and domination-reinforcing forms of political contestation. Building on insights from intersectional feminist theory, in a mutually reinforcing exchange, the thesis develops a more socially grounded account of democratic pluralism that foregrounds how intersecting systems of oppression structure political participation, authority, and knowledge production. The framework is then applied to questions of governance and sustainability, demonstrating how a justice-oriented democratic approach must prioritise those situated at intersecting margins of power. Ultimately, the thesis argues that democracy should preserve pluralistic contestation while orienting political struggle toward dismantling structurally embedded systems of domination.

The study examines public memory of migration in Germany’s Siegerland region since 1945 from a diachronic and comparative perspective, analysing the media and practices involved, as well as their significance for the region’s culture of remembrance. To this end, it draws on theories and methods from memory studies, history didactics and social research, amongst other fields. The study focuses on ‘flight and expulsion’ from the regions east of the Oder and Neisse, the migration of migrant workers – referred to at the time as ‘Gastarbeiter’ – and the immigration of (late) resettlers. These migratory movements have been incorporated into the region’s culture of remembrance at varying speeds and to varying degrees. In each case, distinct phases, characteristics and specific trends can be identified. As a synthesis of the findings relating to the specific migration events, empirically grounded categories of analysis are presented which can be used to examine forms of collective memory of migration beyond the region and across the migration events studied.

Abstract This study presents a novel process for the microbial inactivation in liquids that can be used instead of pasteurization of fruit and vegetable juices. Instead of using high temperatures, high-pressure inactivation with carbon dioxide was improved by additional shear stress in turbulent flow with multiphase carbon dioxide caused by pressure drop and rapid degassing. The underlying mechanical effects, which are crucial for the efficiency of microbial inactivation and thus preserve the valuable ingredients of juices, were investigated. The development of efficient, economical and sustainable approaches for the gentle microbial inactivation of sugary liquids is a highly relevant topic in food science. This is dictated by the population's increasing interest in direct juices and fresh-like juices. Microbial inactivation with dense phase carbon dioxide (DPCD) and high-pressure carbon dioxide (HPCD) have been reported to be viable methods. However, the major challenge was to develop a more efficient and sustainable method that requires lower temperatures, less energy, and less time. In this work an enhanced DPCD and HPCD approach has been investigated that utilizes the application of mechanical forces due to the sudden release of carbon dioxide and a concomitant pressure drop in a mini tube with a diameter of less than one millimeter. In order to improve the microbial inactivation efficiency of the new „Multi-Phase-Pressure-Drop“ (MPPD) method, different parameters like the initial concentration of Escherichia coli (E. coli) to be inactivated, the initial inactivation pressure, the pressure drop, and the operating temperature have been varied. Performance tests were positive, as data from bacterial viability test and microscopic morphology studies revealed evidence of bacterial damage and disintegration. These observations suggest that strong mechanical forces were indeed acting on the cell walls, thus disrupting the integrity of the bacteria. The demonstration of improved MPPD mediated inactivation of bacteria confirms its potential as a promising, effective, and energy-efficient method as an alternative for liquid pasteurization.