Principal Investigator

Darrel Moellendorf

Projects and positions at the research center
Principal Investigator

Funding period 2019-2021
Project management: Normative Economic Policy – Past, Present and Future | Research focus 2 – Liquefied Orders: Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence
Project Management: Normative Economic Policy – Past, Present and Future | Research Focus 4 – Overstretched Orders: Global Governance between De- and Renationalization
Project management: Interpreting the Anthropocene: Hope and Anxiety at the End of Nature | Research focus 4 – Overstretched orders: Global Governance between De- and Renationalization

Funding period 2012-2017
Project management: Sustainable Development, Global Governance and Justice | Research field 1

Subject areas
Political science

Main research
International Political Theory and Philosophy

  • Biografische Angaben

    Since 2013: Professor of International Political Theory and Professor of Philosophy (co-opted) at the Cluster of Excellence "Normative Orders" at Johann Wolfgang Goethe University Frankfurt am Main. 2002-2013: San Diego State University, Founding Director of the Department of Ethics and Public Affairs, Associate Professor of Philosophy 2002-2007, Professor 2007. 1998-1999: Boalt Hall School of Law, University of California, Berkeley 1996-2002: University of the Witwatersrand, Lecturer in Philosophy 1996-97, tenured early 1997, Senior Lecturer 1997-2001, Associate Professor 2001-2002. 1991-1995: California State Polytechnic University, Assistant Professor of Philosophy, tenure-track. 1990: PhD, Philosophy, Claremont Graduate School 1988-1991: Riverside Community College, Lecturer in Philosophy, tenured 1991. 1987-1988: Doctoral candidate in philosophy (exchange), Ruprecht-Karls University, Heidelberg 1985: MA, Philosophy, Claremont Graduate School 1983: BA, Liberal Arts, St. John's College
  • Publikationen

    2022 Moellendorf, Darrel (u.a.) (2022): “Ethical Choices behind Quantifications of Fair Contributions under the Paris Agreement,” Nature Climate Change 11, 2021, 300-305. Moellendorf, Darrel (2022): Mobilizing Hope: Climate Change and Global Poverty in the 21st Century, Oxford University Press. 2021 Moellendorf, Darrel; Callies, Daniel (2021): “Assessing Climate Policies: Catastrophe Avoidance and the Right to Sustainable Development” Politics, Philosophy, and Economics 20:2, 127-150. Moellendorf, Darrel (2020): “Hoffnung und Gründe”, in: Forst, Rainer; Gunther, Klaus (Hrsg.), Normative Ordnungen, Berlin: Suhrkamp Verlag, 648-671. English version available online: http://publikationen.ub.uni-frankfurt.de/frontdoor/index/index/docId/55449. 2020 Moellendorf, Darrel; Schaffer, Axel; Brun, Sebastian (2020): “Distributive Justice and Climate Change Economics, ” Zeitschrift für Umweltpolitik und Umweltforschung, Heft 1. Moellendorf, Darrel (2020): Hope and reasons. Normative Orders Working Paper 02/2020. Moellendorf, Darrel (2020): “Hope for Material Progress in the Age of the Anthropocene”, in: Blöser, Claudia; Stahl, Titus (Hrsg.), The Moral Psychology of Hope, Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield, 249-264. Blöser, Claudia; Huber, Jakob; Moellendorf, Darrel (2020): Hope in political philosophy, in: Philosophy Compass, 15. | https://doi.org/10.1111/phc3.12665 Moellendorf, Darrel (2020): Responsibility for Increasing Mitigation Ambition in Light of the Right to Sustainable Development, in: Fudan Journal of the Humanities and Social Sciences, 13, 181–192. Moellendorf, Darrel (2020): The cry of the earth and the cry of the poor, in: McKim, Robert (Hrsg.), Laudato si’ and the Environment. Pope Francis’ Green Encyclical, New York: Routledge. 2019 Moellendorf, Darrel (2019): Cosmopolitan Justice, New York und London: Routledge. Moellendorf, Darrel (2019): Hope for Material Progress in the Age of the Anthropocene, in: Blöser, Claudia/Stahl, Titus (Hrsg.), The Moral Psychology of Hope, Rowan and Littlefield. 2018 Moellendorf, Darrel (2018): Development and Climate Ethics, in: Lever, Anabelle/Paoma, Andrei (Hrsg.), The Routledge Handbook Ethics and Public Policy, London: Routledge, 487–500. Moellendorf, Darrel (2018): Ending Wars, in: Lazar, Seth/Frowe, Helen (Hrsg.), The Oxford Handbook of the Ethics of War, Oxford: Oxford University Press. | DOI: 10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199943418.013.14 Moellendorf, Darrel (2018): Justice in Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Policies, in: Schmidtz, David/Shahar, Dan (Hrsg.), Environmental Ethics. What Really Matters, What Really Works, 3. Auflage, Oxford: Oxford University Press. Moellendorf, Darrel (2018): Justice in Mitigation After Paris, in: Murphy, Colleen/Gandoni, Pablo/McKim, Robert (Hrsg.), Climate Change and Its Impacts: Risks and Inequalities, New York: Springer, 53–68. Moellendorf, Darrel (2018): Real-World Global Egalitarianism, in: Eckersley, Robin/Brown, Chris (Hrsg.), Oxford Handbook of International Political Theory, Oxford: Oxford University Press. | DOI: 10.1093/oxfordhb/9780198746928.013.7 Moellendorf, Darrel (2018): Three Interpretations of the Anthropocene: Hope and Anxiety at the End of Nature, in: Ethics, Politics and Society. 2017 Moellendorf, Darrel; Schaffer, Axel (2017): An Intergenerationally Fair Path to 2ºC, in: Climatic Change, 143:3, 213–226. Moellendorf, Darrel (2017): Justice and Climate Change, in: Wolff, Jonathan (Hrsg.), Essential Reading in Ethics, New York: W. W. Norton, 457–467. Moellendorf, Darrel (2017): Progress, Destruction, and the Anthropocene, in: Social Philosophy and Policy, 34:2, 66–88. 2016 Moellendorf, Darrel (2016): Absolute poverty and global inequality, in: Schramm, Michael/Pogge, Thomas (Hrsg.), Absolute Poverty and Global Justice. Empirical Data – Moral Theories – Initiatives, London: Routledge, 143–154. Moellendorf, Darrel (2016): Anti-Poverty, Development, and the Limits of Progress, in: Res Publica, 22:3, 317–325. | doi:10.1007/s11158-016-9329-y Moellendorf, Darrel (2016): Can a Liberal State Make Access to Medical Education Conditional on Public Service?, in: Moral Philosophy and Politics, 3:1, 45–53. Moellendorf, Darrel; Schaffer, Axel (2016): Equalizing the Intergenerational Burdens of Climate Change — An Alternative to Discounted Utilitarianism, in: Midwest Studies in Philosophy, 30:1, 43–62. Moellendorf, Darrel (2016): Global Distributive Justice (2): The Cosmopolitan Point of View, in: Held, David/Maffettone, Pietro (Hrsg.), Global Political Theory, London: Polity Press. Moellendorf, Darrel (2016): Taking UNFCCC Norms Seriously, in: Roser, Dominic/Heyward, Jennifer (Hrsg.), Climate Change and Non-Ideal Theory, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 104–125. 2015 Moellendorf, Darrel (2015): “Assistance, duty of”, “Cosmopolitanism”, and “Outlaw states”, in: Jon Mandle and David Reidy (eds.), A Rawls Lexicon, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Moellendorf, Darrel (2015): Can Dangerous Climate Change Be Avoided, in: Global Justice Theory Practice Rhetoric, 8:2, 66–85. Moellendorf, Darrel (2015): “Climate Change Justice,” Philosophy Compass, on line, March 2015, 173-186. Moellendorf, Darrel; Widdows, Heather (2015): Introduction, in: Moellendorf, Darrel; Widdows, Heather (Hrsg.), The Routledge Handbook of Global Ethics, London: Routledge, 1–3. Moellendorf, Darrel (2015): “Two Doctrines of Jus ex Bello,“ Ethics 125:3, 2015, 653-673. 2014 Moellendorf, Darrel; Schaffer, Axel (2014): “Beyond Discounted Utilitarianism – Just Distribution of Climate Costs,” Karlsruher Beiträge zur Wirtschaftspolitischen Forschung 34 (2014). Moellendorf, Darrel; Widdows, Heather (2014): “Global Ethics Then and Now,” Journal of Global Ethics, 10:3, 2014, 319-325. Moellendorf, Darrel (2014): “Just War,” in: Jon Mandle and David Reidy (eds.), A Companion to Rawls, Hoboken: Wiley Blackwell Publishing. Moellendorf, Darrel (2014): “Responsibility and the Right to Sustainable Development in Climate Change Treaty Deliberations” in Marcello Di Paola and Gianfranco Pellegrino eds. Canned Heat: The Ethics and Politics of Climate Change, Routledge. Moellendorf, Darrel; Widdows, Heather (ed.) (2014): The Handbook of Global Ethics, Durham: Acumen. Moellendorf, Darrel (2014): The Moral Challenge of Dangerous Climate Change: Values, Poverty, and Policy, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 2013 Moellendorf, Darrel (2013): “Human Dignity, Associative Duties, and Egalitarian Global Justice”, in: Gillian Brock (ed.), Cosmopolitanism For and Against, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 222-238. Moellendorf, Darrel (2013): “Transcendental Institutionalism and Global Justice,” Critical Review of International Social and Political Philosophy, 16:2,162-178. 2012 Moellendorf, Darrel (2012): “Climate Change and Global Justice,” WIREs Climate Change, 3:131–143. 2011 Moellendorf, Darrel (2011): A Normative Account of Dangerous Climate Change, in: Climatic Change, 108:1, 57–72. Moellendorf, Darrel (2011): A Right to Sustainable Development, in: The Monist, 94:3, 433–452. Moellendorf, Darrel (2011): Cosmopolitanism and Compatriot Duties, in: The Monist, 94:4, 535–554. Moellendorf, Darrel (2011): Why Global Inequality Matters, in: Journal of Social Philosophy, 42:1, 99–109. Moellendorf, Darrel (2011): Common Atmospheric Ownership and Equal Emissions Entitlements, in: Arnold, Denis (Hrsg.), The Ethics of Global Climate Change, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 104–123. Moellendorf, Darrel (2011): Cosmopolitanism and Compatriot Duties, in: The Monist, 94:4, 535–554. Moellendorf, Darrel (2011): Jus ex Bello in Afghanistan, in: Ethics and International Affairs, 25:2, 155–164. Moellendorf, Darrel (2011): Why Global Inequality Matters, in: Journal of Social Philosophy, 42:1, 99–109. 2010 Moellendorf, Darrel (2010): Human Dignity, Respect, and Global Inequality, in: Journal of Global Ethics, 6:3, 339–352. Moellendorf, Darrel (2010): Menschenwürde, Gleichheit und globale Gerechtigkeit, in: Broszies, Christoph/Hahn, Henning (Hrsg.), Globale Gerechtigkeit, Frankfurt am Main: Suhrkamp, 302–328. 2009 Moellendorf, Darrel (2009): Global Inequality Matters, Houndmills; New York: Palgrave Macmillan. Moellendorf, Darrel (2009): Justice and the Intergenerational Assignment of the Costs of Climate Change, in: Journal of Social Philosophy, 40:2, 204–224. Moellendorf, Darrel (2009): Treaty Norms and Climate Change Mitigation, in: Ethics and International Affairs, 23:3, 247–265. 2008 Pogge, Thomas; Moellendorf, Darrel (2008): Global Justice: Seminal Essays, St. Paul: Paragon. 2007 Moellendorf, Darrel (2007): Reconciliation as a Political Value, in: Journal of Social Philosophy, 38:2, 205–221.

News from the research center

News
30.06.2025

Article "Ideology and Suffering: What Is Realistic about Critical Theory?" by Amadeus Ulrich published in EJPT

The article "Ideology and Suffering: What Is Realistic about Critical Theory?" by Amadeus Ulrich has just been published open access in the European Journal of Political Theory (EJPT). Ulrich brings the perspective of radical realism into a productive dialog with Adorno's critical theory.

more information ›
News
30.06.2025

Prof. Dr. Franziska Fay awarded the Sibylle Kalkhof-Rose University Prize 2025

Prof. Dr. Franziska Fay (Junior Professor of Ethnology with a focus on Political Anthropology at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) and former postdoctoral researcher at the Research Center Normative Orders at Goethe University) receives the Sibylle Kalkhof-Rose University Award 2025 in the category Humanities and Social Sciences.

more information ›
Publication
25.06.2025 | Online article

Ideology and Suffering: What Is Realistic about Critical Theory?

Ulrich, Amadeus (2025): Ideology and suffering: What is realistic about critical theory? European Journal of Political Theory, 0(0).  https://doi.org/10.1177/14748851251351782

more information ›
News
24.06.2025

New series “Vertrauensfragen” in the Frankfurter Rundschau initiated by Hendrik Simon

Democracy thrives on debate - if it serves the joint search for solutions. There is often a problem with this cooperation. The new FR series “Vertrauensfragen”, initiated by Hendrik Simon (Research Institute Social Cohesion (RISC) Frankfurt location at Goethe University's Research Centre Normative Orders ), examines why this is the case and how we can do better.

more information ›
Publication
23.06.2025 | Working Paper

Untrustworthy Authorities and Complicit Bankers: Unraveling Monetary Distrust in Argentina

Moreno, Guadalupe (2025): “Untrustworthy Authorities and Complicit Bankers: Unraveling Monetary Distrust in Argentina”. Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies Discussion Paper 25/3.

more information ›
News
22.05.2025

Does deliberative democracy have a future in the age of oligarchs, autocrats and patriarchs?

On June 3, Prof. Simone Chambers will give a lecture on the value of democracies and the future of the form of government.

more information ›
Publication
19.05.2025 | Anthology

Klimaethik. Ein Reader

Sparenborg, Lukas; Moellendorf, Darrel (Hrsg.) (2025) : Klimaethik. Ein Reader. Suhrkamp.

more information ›
News
19.05.2025

What can a baroque tapestry tell us about colonial iconography?

Lecture by Cécile Fromone on May 21. The professor at the Department of the History of Art and Architecture at Harvard University, director of the Cooper Gallery at the Hutchins Center and author will talk about the long-forgotten African origins of iconography and its colonial dimension.

more information ›