Alternative employment and training projects in Berlin

The research presented in the thesis is a case-study of attempts to develop socially useful and environmentally sound technology (suest), products or services, as undertaken by alternative employment and training projects in West Berlin. The research is important for the exploration of several issues: the limits of training as a process of changing employment patterns and technological practices; the role of the voluntary / alternative sector; the role of "suest" generally. The initiator group and the eight member groups of the Kooperationsverbund Entwicklungswerkstatt comprised the focal point of the research. Findings from the study suggest that the "training" focus has nearly as many limits as the "products" focus: there were internal problems which in part reflect the confusion about the role of training as a social / technological change agent. The fate of these initiatives will depend largely on what happens to the German economy: will it re-expand conventionally or will "alternative" models prevail?

Name dc:type.qualificationname

phd

Level dc:type.qualificationlevel

doctoral

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

The Open University

Year dc:date.issued

1994

Author dc:creator

• Rüther-Greaves, Renate

Language dc:language

en