Hugo Ragnar Parr (born 23 April 1947) is a Norwegian physicist, civil servant and politician for the Labour Party. He was born in

Asker Asker ( no, Asker), properly called Askerbygda in Norwegian, is a district and former Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Akershus, Norway. From 2020 it is part of the larger administrative municipality Asker, Viken (also known as Greate ...

. He took the B.Sc. degree in physics in 1968 and the M.Sc. degree in 1969, at the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattle a ...

. He was a

research assistant A research assistant (RA) is a researcher employed, often on a temporary contract, by a university, a research institute or a privately held organization, for the purpose of assisting in academic or private research. Research assistants are not in ...

and

research fellow A research fellow is an academic research position at a university or a similar research institution, usually for academic staff or faculty members. A research fellow may act either as an independent investigator or under the supervision of a pr ...

from 1970 to 1976, including a spell at the

Norwegian Defence Research Establishment The Norwegian Defence Research Establishment (''Forsvarets forskningsinstitutt'' – ''FFI'') is a research institute that conducts research and development on behalf of the Norwegian Armed Forces and provides expert advice to political and mi ...

in 1972. He took the dr.philos. degree at the

University of Oslo The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...

in 1976. From 1977 to 1978 he worked as a researcher under the

NTNF The Royal Norwegian Council for Scientific and Industrial Research ( no, Norges Teknisk-Naturvitenskapelige Forskningsråd) or NTNF was the first of five research councils established in Norway. It existed from 1946 until the end of 1992, when the f ...

programme. In 1978 he was appointed as assistant secretary in the

Ministry of Petroleum and Energy The Royal Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy ( no, Olje- og energidepartementet) is a Norwegian ministry responsible for energy, including petroleum and natural gas production in the North Sea. It is led by Minister of Petroleum and Energy ...

, and went on to

Det Norske Veritas DNV (formerly DNV GL) is an international accredited registrar and classification society headquartered in Høvik, Norway. The company currently has about 12,000 employees and 350 offices operating in more than 100 countries, and provides ser ...

in 1984. From 1986 to 1987 he was a head of department in the

National Institute of Technology The National Institutes of Technology (NITs) are the central government-owned-public technical institutes under the ownership of Ministry of Education, Government of India. They are governed by the National Institutes of Technology, Science ...

, then deputy under-secretary of state in the

Ministry of Trade and Industry A Ministry of Trade and Industry, Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry or variations is a ministry that is concerned with a nation's trade, industry and commerce. Notable examples are: List *Algeria: Ministry of Industry and M ...

. In 1992 he applied unsuccessfully for the position as director of the

Research Council of Norway The Research Council (also the Research Council of Norway; no, Norges forskningsråd) is a Norwegian government agency that funds research and innovation projects. On behalf of the Government, the Research Council invests NOK 11,9 billion (2021) ...

. He instead continued in the Ministry of Trade, until moving to the Ministry of Modernization in 2004. From 2005 it was named the Ministry of Government Administration and Reform. Parr was a member of the

International Energy Agency The International Energy Agency (IEA) is a Paris-based autonomous intergovernmental organisation, established in 1974, that provides policy recommendations, analysis and data on the entire global energy sector, with a recent focus on curbing carb ...

research committee from 1978 til 1984, of the

EUREKA Eureka (often abbreviated as E!, or Σ!) is an intergovernmental organisation for research and development funding and coordination. Eureka is an open platform for international cooperation in innovation. Organisations and companies applying th ...

high-level group from 1988 to 1989 and 1993 to 1995 (chairman 1993 to 1994) and the

EFTA The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) is a regional trade organization and free trade area consisting of four European states: Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. The organization operates in parallel with the European Uni ...

research committee from 1988 to 1991 (chairman from 1990). He also chaired the council of the

European Space Agency , owners = , headquarters = Paris, Île-de-France, France , coordinates = , spaceport = Guiana Space Centre , seal = File:ESA emblem seal.png , seal_size = 130px , image = Views in the Main Control Room (1205 ...

from 1996 to 1999. From 2001 to 2004 he chaired the

Norwegian Chess Federation The Norwegian Chess Federation ( no, Norges Sjakkforbund, often abbreviated as ''NSF'') is the national federation of chess in Norway. It was founded in 1914. On 10 July 2022, Joachim Nilsen was elected new chairman.Nittedal Nittedal is a municipality and city in Akershus in Viken county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Romerike. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Rotnes. The parish of ''Nitedal'' was established as a m ...

, and was a member of the

municipal council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counci ...

from 1995 to 1999. He has also been a board member of Nittedal Energiverk and Development Fund, and a council member of the environmental organization Future in Our Hands. He is a fellow of the

Norwegian Academy of Technological Sciences The Norwegian Academy of Technological Sciences ( no, Norges Tekniske Vitenskapsakademi, NTVA) is a learned society based in Trondheim, Norway. Founded in 1955, the academy has about 500 members. It is a member of the International Council of Aca ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Parr, Hugo 1947 births Living people Asker politicians People from Nittedal University of Washington College of Arts and Sciences alumni University of Oslo alumni Norwegian expatriates in the United States Norwegian physicists Norwegian civil servants Akershus politicians Labour Party (Norway) politicians Norwegian chess players Members of the Norwegian Academy of Technological Sciences