Erik Burtchen
Stations
- B.A. Social Sciences (Marburg) with semester abroad at the University of Stellenbosch, South Africa
- M.A. Peace and Conflict Studies (Marburg)
- Postgraduate programme International Cooperation for Sustainable Development (SLE, HU Berlin)
- Since 2024 extra-occupational M.A. Evaluation (Saarland University)
- 2017-2024 Advisor in the Civil Peace Service of GIZ Ethiopia, Addis Ababa
Erik Burtchen was born in Cottbus and has extensive experience in the planning, implementation and evaluation of projects in the field of civil conflict transformation and international cooperation. In his work with various groups, organisations and institutional actors, he has learned how important it is to moderate different interests and, where possible, to use relationship building as a key resource for sustainable solutions.
Dollmann, S., Burtchen, E., Diekjürgen, D., Kübke, L., Younan, R., Zimmermann, S. (2017). Keep the bee in Ethiopia's wheatbelt. Series of the Seminar for Rural Development, 271.
https://doi.org/10.18452/18168
Erik Burtchen has been working as a teaching and research fellow in Cluster 3 of the Centre for Structural Change and Regional Development (ZeStuR) since November 2025.
He enjoys working at the interface of practice and reflection: science helps him to better understand developments and benefit from the experiences of others, while working on the ground shows what actually works. He is particularly interested in how people and organisations find ways to understand conflicts, tackle problems together and shape social change in such a way that real change becomes possible. He sees conflicts not only as a challenge, but also as an important indicator that something is moving - often as a sign that needs, structures or relationships need to be renegotiated. Being involved in precisely these areas is what motivates him in particular.