How are social categories like race, gender, and migration status being transformed? Futures of Difference finds out. Hosted by Steven Vertovec (Max Planck Institute) and journalist Georg Diez, this academic podcast features leading scholars on human diversity, superdiversity, cosmopolitanism, ethnic diversity, right-wing populism, and intersectionality. Guests: Michèle Lamont, Dan Hiebert, Junjia Ye, Miri Song, Ann Phoenix. Vertovec is Director of the Max Planck Institute for Political and Social Science, originator of the superdiversity concept. Also on YouTube and Substack.
Futures of Difference
Claim This Podcastby Steven Vertovec, Georg Diez
6 episodes
Updated Daily
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Podcast Overview
How are social categories like race, gender, and migration status being transformed? Futures of Difference finds out. Hosted by Steven Vertovec (Max Planck Institute) and journalist Georg Diez, this academic podcast features leading scholars on human diversity, superdiversity, cosmopolitanism, ethnic diversity, right-wing populism, and intersectionality. Guests: Michèle Lamont, Dan Hiebert, Junjia Ye, Miri Song, Ann Phoenix. Vertovec is Director of the Max Planck Institute for Political and Social Science, originator of the superdiversity concept. Also on YouTube and Substack.
Language
🇺🇲
Publishing Since
3/15/2026
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Recent Episodes
April 16, 2026
Beyond Essentialism: Social Complexity — Ann Phoenix
<p>What is essentialism — and how does intersectionality challenge it? Ann Phoenix (UCL) explores social complexity and the future of difference.</p><p>In this final episode, Steven Vertovec and Georg Diez discuss essentialism, intersectionality, and the psychosocial approach to identity with Ann Phoenix (University College London). They examine how simplified thinking about social categories — groupism, culturalism, racialization — does harm, and how intersectional, multiple identities point toward a more complex and tolerant future.</p><p>Ann Phoenix is a renowned scholar in social psychology and sociology. Her psychosocial approach examines how people internalize social categories, construct identities, and navigate power relations in everyday life.</p><p>Futures of Difference is a research-based video podcast by the Max Planck Institute for Political and Social Science (formerly the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Religious and Ethnic Diversity) that explores how social categories are being challenged, contested, and transformed.</p><p>---</p><p>Listen & watch: youtube.com/@FuturesOfDifference</p><p>Essays & more: futuresofdifference.substack.com</p><p>Produced by the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Religious and Ethnic Diversity mmg.mpg.de</p>
April 9, 2026
Mixity and How Social Categories Change — Miri Song
<p>How are mixed identities changing social categories — and what does the fastest-growing demographic mean for human diversity? Miri Song explains.</p><p>In this episode, Steven Vertovec and Georg Diez explore the concept of mixity with sociologist Miri Song (University of Kent / LSE). They discuss how the dynamics of assertion and assignment shape identity, why the fiction of monoracial thinking persists, and how mixed identities open up new possibilities for understanding social categories.</p><p>Key themes include the 2020 US Census finding that "mixed" is the fastest-growing social category, how people navigate multiple ethnic and racial identities, and what examples of social categories look like in a world of increasing mixity.</p><p>Futures of Difference is a research-based video podcast by the Max Planck Institute for Political and Social Science (formerly the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Religious and Ethnic Diversity) that explores how social categories are being challenged, contested, and transformed.</p><p>---</p><p>Listen & watch: youtube.com/@FuturesOfDifference</p><p>Essays & more: futuresofdifference.substack.com</p><p>Produced by the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Religious and Ethnic Diversity mmg.mpg.de</p>
April 2, 2026
Colonial Legacies and Cultural Diversity — Junjia Ye
<p>How do colonial legacies still shape social categories today — and what does Singapore's model mean for the future? Junjia Ye explains.</p><p>In this episode, Steven Vertovec and Georg Diez examine how colonial pasts continue to structure present-day social categories, with a focus on Singapore. Junjia Ye (Nanyang Technological University) discusses the CMIO model of racial management, the enforcement of temporary migration, cosmopolitanism, and how skill regimes are creating new forms of social difference.</p><p>Key themes include cultural diversity examples from Singapore, diversity representation beyond the West, creating belonging in multiracial societies, and the implications of enforced transience for migrant workers' rights.</p><p>Futures of Difference is a research-based video podcast by the Max Planck Institute for Political and Social Science (formerly the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Religious and Ethnic Diversity) that explores how social categories are being challenged, contested, and transformed.</p><p>---</p><p>Listen & watch: youtube.com/@FuturesOfDifference</p><p>Essays & more: futuresofdifference.substack.com</p><p>Produced by the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Religious and Ethnic Diversity mmg.mpg.de</p>
6 total episodes available
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This podcast updates daily.
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