A brand-new website!
Yes, you heard that right: no more cobwebs in the corner of our digital home. Max Lorenz, the bona fide design wizard, gave us a site that’s slicker than iced coffee on a hot day.
What can you discover there?
- News
- Key Research Areas
- Programs
- The ISI-Team
- Upcoming Events
- Jobs (maybe we are looking for you!)
If fresh layouts, smooth navigation, and some good-looking charts make you smile, you're in for a treat.
Hop on over and explore all that our shiny new site has to offer!
Hey there!
We know, following research institutes online isn't exactly the plot of a Netflix thriller.
But we promise: smart updates, sharp visuals, behind-the-scenes moments, and inequality insights in snackable form.
THE PIPELINE PROGRAM
Wanna join?
Anyone conducting research on social or economic inequality often encounters the very challenges they study: limited resources, lack of visibility, and fragile networks. The ISI Pipeline Program is designed to change that.
Our one-year international mentoring program supports early-career researchers — during their PhD, postdoc phase, or at the beginning of a professorship — who focus on questions of social or wealth inequality. The program offers them the opportunity to gain orientation, build lasting academic connections, and work closely with a senior scholar in their field.
Matching is based on thematic fit, not geography or status. Each mentee is paired with a mentor for regular virtual meetings and a short research stay at the mentor’s institution. The cohort also meets in person for a joint workshop in Munich. By the end of the year, participants aim to complete a working paper manuscript.
Applications for the 2026 cohort are open from July 15 to September 15, 2025. We invite scholars from around the globe to apply with a clearly defined project and a desire to engage in an international network shaping the future of inequality research.
Suggestions for mentors are welcome but not required. The program starts on January 1, 2026, and the final workshop will take place October 7–9, 2026 in Munich.
Find out more here.
Did you know our Inaugural Report is out?
It’s official: the ISI is no longer just a twinkle in the eyes of inequality nerds – we’ve arrived, we’ve researched, and now we’ve… reported.
Inside:
A look back at our first year (spoiler: it was not boring)
Highlights from events, fellowships, and late-night Slack debates about wealth distribution
What we’ve done, who we’ve met, what we’re planning and how many times we used the word “inequality” (it’s a lot)
Think of it as the ultimate cheat sheet to all things ISI: sharp minds, bold ideas, and the occasional glamorous conference coffee break.
Curious?
Read the report and share it with anyone who’s ever asked:
Wait, what exactly does ISI do?
Who are they?
Meet the Team
We’re the humans behind ISI. The ones who turn questions into research, spreadsheets into insights, and academic jargon into… slightly friendlier academic jargon.
Some of us are deep in theory. Some are deep in data. Some are just deep in deadline mode. Together, we make ISI tick: designing programs, planning events, publishing findings, and sometimes arguing about whether a bar chart can be too colorful.
We don’t have matching tote bags (yet), but we do share a commitment: making inequality research sharper, braver, and more visible.
And: we promise we’re more fun than our email signatures suggest.
From left to right: Arielle Helmick (Managing Director), Fabian Pfeffer (Director & Founder), Michèle Loetzner (Communications Director)
If you've read this far, congratulations
You’ve just completed the pilot issue of our ISI newsletter. We’re still in beta mode, testing formats, adjusting variables. Academic chaos, but with heart.
Thanks for bearing with us while we calibrate our communication model. Standard errors may apply.
If you need a break now, take it. The next issue won’t hit your inbox tomorrow or the day after. We're not that kind of newsletter.
But we will be back soon with new insights, updates, and maybe a provocative thought experiment.
Until then, enjoy the summer, stay curious, and don't forget to question the assumptions.
Affectionately yours,
The ISI team