The Fridtjof Nansen Institute (FNI) is an independent research foundation specializing in research on international

environmental A biophysical environment is a biotic and abiotic surrounding of an organism or population, and consequently includes the factors that have an influence in their survival, development, and evolution. A biophysical environment can vary in scale f ...

energy In physics, energy (from Ancient Greek: ἐνέργεια, ''enérgeia'', “activity”) is the quantitative property that is transferred to a body or to a physical system, recognizable in the performance of work and in the form of heat a ...

and

resource management In organizational studies, resource management is the efficient and effective development of an organization's resources when they are needed. Such resources may include the financial resources, inventory, human skills, production resources, or i ...

issues, including political and legal aspects. The institute is named after the Norwegian

Arctic The Arctic ( or ) is a polar regions of Earth, polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenla ...

explorer, scientist, diplomat and

Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments (military weapons and equipment) manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Chemi ...

laureate

Fridtjof Nansen Fridtjof Wedel-Jarlsberg Nansen (; 10 October 186113 May 1930) was a Norwegian polymath and Nobel Peace Prize laureate. He gained prominence at various points in his life as an explorer, scientist, diplomat, and humanitarian. He led the team t ...

. It is situated in Nansen's old mansion,

Polhøgda Polhøgda is the home of the Fridtjof Nansen Institute. It was originally built as the private home of Norwegian explorer Fridtjof Nansen. The manor home’s architecture is Roman Revival, and the former estate lies between Lysaker and Fornebu in ...

, in

Bærum Bærum () is a municipality in the Greater Oslo Region in Norway that forms an affluent suburb of Oslo on the west coast of the city. Bærum is Norway's fifth largest municipality with a population of 128,760 (2021). It is part of the electoral ...

municipality outside

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

Organisation

The Fridtjof Nansen Institute has 30-40 scholarly employees. Most of them come from the fields of

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

and

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

, but historians, economists and anthropologists are also represented among the research staff. Iver B. Neumann has served as FNI Director since December 2019.

Main focus

FNI activities include academic studies as well as contract work for research, investigations and evaluations. Current FNI research has seven focal points: * Global

environmental governance Environmental governance (EG) consist of a system of laws, norms, rules, policies and practices that dictate how the board members of an environment related regulatory body should manage and oversee the affairs of any environment related regu ...

and

Climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...

* Law of the Sea and marine affairs *

Biodiversity Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') l ...

and genetic resources * Polar and

Russian politics The politics of Russia take place in the framework of the federation, federal semi-presidential system, semi-presidential republic of Russia. According to the Constitution of Russia, the President of Russia is head of state, and of a multi-par ...

European European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to: In general * ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe ** Ethnic groups in Europe ** Demographics of Europe ** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe ...

energy and environment *

Chinese Chinese can refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people of Chinese nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **''Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic concept of the Chinese nation ** List of ethnic groups in China, people of va ...

energy and environment

History

The institute was established in 1958, under the name of 'the Fridtjof Nansen Foundation'. This foundation was set up to take care of the buildings and grounds at

, where Nansen lived and worked until his death in 1930, and to ensure that Polhøgda would be used to uphold the legacy and promote the focal points of Nansen's life and activities. In line with Nansen's own scientific interests, the institute began by focusing mainly on

polar Polar may refer to: Geography Polar may refer to: * Geographical pole, either of two fixed points on the surface of a rotating body or planet, at 90 degrees from the equator, based on the axis around which a body rotates * Polar climate, the c ...

marine Marine is an adjective meaning of or pertaining to the sea or ocean. Marine or marines may refer to: Ocean * Maritime (disambiguation) * Marine art * Marine biology * Marine debris * Marine habitats * Marine life * Marine pollution Military * ...

issues as well as the law of the sea. Over the years, FNI has gradually broadened its scope, in terms of academic disciplines, geographical spread and thematic issues.

Recent accomplishments

In recent years, FNI has gained considerable scientific recognition, especially for its research work connected to the

Anthropocene The Anthropocene ( ) is a proposed geological epoch dating from the commencement of significant human impact on Earth's geology and ecosystems, including, but not limited to, anthropogenic climate change. , neither the International Commissi ...

, the

and

Antarctic The Antarctic ( or , American English also or ; commonly ) is a polar region around Earth's South Pole, opposite the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antarctic comprises the continent of Antarctica, the Kerguelen Plateau and other ...

regions,

climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...

and

climate policy The politics of climate change results from different perspectives on how to respond to climate change. Global warming is driven largely by the emissions of greenhouse gases due to human economic activity, especially the burning of fossil fuels, ...

, the law of the sea, and the management of

bio-diversity Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') le ...

and genetic resources. FNI is ranked as

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

's most productive (most actively publishing) independent

research institute A research institute, research centre, research center or research organization, is an establishment founded for doing research. Research institutes may specialize in basic research or may be oriented to applied research. Although the term often i ...

– a position it has been accorded every year since 2013. In 2017 FNI was named 'best European think tank on energy and environment' by

Prospect Magazine ''Prospect'' is a monthly British general-interest magazine, specialising in politics, economics and current affairs. Topics covered include British and other European, and US politics, social issues, art, literature, cinema, science, the medi ...

in its annual Think Tank Awards. This was the first time a Norwegian research institute was awarded the prestigious prize, which is presented to 'give credit to the most original and rigorous work on the most pressing challenges facing people, governments and businesses today', according to the organizers. The institute has since been awarded the prize also in 2018 and in 2019. Previous winners of the Think Tank Awards include such renowned establishments as the

Brookings Institution The Brookings Institution, often stylized as simply Brookings, is an American research group founded in 1916. Located on Think Tank Row in Washington, D.C., the organization conducts research and education in the social sciences, primarily in ec ...

, the

RAND Corporation The RAND Corporation (from the phrase "research and development") is an American nonprofit global policy think tank created in 1948 by Douglas Aircraft Company to offer research and analysis to the United States Armed Forces. It is financed ...

and the

Centre for European Policy Studies The Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS) is a think tank based in Brussels, Belgium that undertakes research "leading to solutions to the challenges facing Europe today". It was established in 1983. Organisation CEPS is a leading think tan ...

(CEPS).

Directors

Several highly acclaimed scholars have been associated with and held leading positions at FNI, including social scientist

Stein Rokkan Stein Rokkan (July 4, 1921 – July 22, 1979) was a Norwegian political scientist and sociologist. He was the first professor of sociology at the University of Bergen and a principal founder of the discipline of comparative politics. He founded ...

, philosopher

Arne Næss Arne Dekke Eide Næss (; 27 January 1912 – 12 January 2009) was a Norwegian philosopher who coined the term " deep ecology", an important intellectual and inspirational figure within the environmental movement of the late twentieth centur ...

as well as sociologist and peace and conflict researcher

Johan Galtung Johan Vincent Galtung (born 24 October 1930) is a Norwegian sociologist who is the principal founder of the discipline of peace and conflict studies. He was the main founder of the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) in 1959 and served as its ...

. Recent directors: * Finn Sollie (1965–1978) * Willy Østreng (1978–1999) *

Kåre Willoch Kåre Isaachsen Willoch (; 3 October 1928 – 6 December 2021) was a Norwegian politician who served as the 30th prime minister of Norway from 1981 to 1986 and as leader of the Conservative Party from 1970 to 1974. He previously served as the M ...

(1999–2001) * Willy Østreng (2001–2002) * Arild Moe (2002–2004) *

Peter Johan Schei Peter Johan Schei (5 January 1945 - 7 April 2022) was a Norwegian biologist and civil servant. He was cand.real. by education. From 1989 to 1995 he served as director of the Norwegian Directorate for Nature Management after four years as assisting ...

(2004–2012) * Leiv Lunde (2012–2014) * Arild Moe (2014–2015) * Geir Hønneland (2015–2019) * Iver B. Neumann (2020-)

References

External links

* {{authority control Bærum

Institute An institute is an organisational body created for a certain purpose. They are often research organisations (research institutes) created to do research on specific topics, or can also be a professional body. In some countries, institutes can ...

Multidisciplinary research institutes Research institutes in Norway 1948 establishments in Norway