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– The new initative UiO:Democracy was approved by the University Board in June 2023. It feels great to finally get started with the first research groups, says Tore Rem, director of the initiative.
A new year is coming, bringing with it a new interdisciplinary initiative at the University of Oslo. Starting from 2023, four research groups have been granted 22 million NOK in total.
– There was stiff competition for funding in this first call, and the means were limited, Rem notes.
– We would of course have been pleased to fund even more projects, but I am content with the thematic spread in this first round.
Members of the first UiO:Democracy projects are pleased to have been selected.
– We are very happy for the grant and look forward to a collaboration between historians and political scientists, Professor Carl Henrik Knutsen tells Uniforum.
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Science and Democracy
The research group ?Science and Democracy? will study the relationship between science and democracy in a modern context. Among other things, they raise the questions of what position science has in well-functioning democracies, the role of values in research, disagreements in scientific questions, and of research in times of crisis.
The group includes researchers from the Faculty of Humanities, the Faculty of Social Sciences, and the Faculty of Law. The project leader is Professor Cathrine Holst.
Voicing Democracy
The research group ?Voicing Democracy? will investigate how democracy manifests itself in texts and text-cultures. This involves a broad understanding of “text”, from fiction to bureaucratic files. The project has an historical dimension, spanning from 1750 to the present time.
The group members come from the Faculty of Humanities, the Faculty of Social Sciences, and the Faculty of Law. Associate Professor Eirik Vatn?y is the project leader.
Democratic rights and debates about abortion
The group “The Medicalisation of Democratic Rights in the Debate about Abortion (MEDRA): The US, Ireland and Argentina” will focus on the tensions between knowledge production and democratic governance. The project will analyze ongoing debates about the curtailing or extension of rights to abortion, with a focuse on Ireland, the US, and Argentina. The group will study how medical knowledge is utilized by states to control the people and restrict their freedom – but also on how different grassroot movements use the same medical knowledge for a wide variety of purposes.
The group includes members from the Faculty of Medicine, the Faculty of Social Sciences, and the Faculty of Humanities. The project leader is Professor Eivind Engebretsen.
Objections to democracy
What objections have been raised against democracy, both throughout history and today? Such questions will be explored by the group “Objections to democracy”. They will shed light on how fit (or unfit) the democratic system is for handling crises, for making quick decisions, and for creating national cohesion.
The group consists of members from the Faculty of Social Sciences and the Faculty of Humanities. The project leader is Professor Tore Wig.
In an earlier version, Professor ?ystein Linnebo was presented as project leader for ?Science and Democracy?. This has been edited, as there has been changes within the research group.