Christoph Henning

As from 1 October 2023, Christoph Henning is full professor of Humanism and Philosophy at the University of Humanistic Studies. From 2014 until 2023, he was Fellow for Philosophy at the Max Weber Centre for advanced Cultural and Social Studies of the University of Erfurt in Germany. Previously, he was Assistant Professor at the University of St. Gallen in Switzerland and at Zeppelin University on Lake Constance. He earned his PhD with distinction at the TU Dresden. He has written extensively on social and political philosophy, particularly the history of critical theory, philosophy of economics, and theories of happiness and its counterpart, alienation. He is currently working on the history of philosophical humanism in the 20th century, environmental ethics, and theories of ideology. 

Throughout his academic career, Christoph Henning has focused on various philosophical themes related to humanism. His habilitation thesis focused on the political philosophy of “perfectionism”, where ideals of an ethics of flourishing are applied to questions of politics: what are the duties of the state in order to promote human happiness? How can we achieve a good life for all, if a good life is spelled out as a development of our human capabilities?
He is also an expert in the field of critical theory and editor of a series in the history of philosophy and humanism. His doctoral dissertation (summa cum laude at the University of Dresden) dealt with the history of Marxist idea in the field of social philosophy and social theory. He has also published books such as “The Good Life beyond Growth: New Perspectives”, “Critical Theory and New Materialisms”, a “Handbook on Happiness”, an introduction to “Theories of Alienation” or a book on artistic practices (“Creativity as a vocation”).