ReNEW university hub: Farewell for now and hope to meet again to build on ReNEW’s legacy!
The world is undoubtedly a very different place from when researchers from six university partners came together to form Reimagining Norden in an Evolving World (ReNEW) seven years ago. In 2018, key faculty within the social sciences and humanities from the universities of Oslo, Arhus, Helsingfors, Iceland, Södertörn and Copenhagen Business School established the research hub to enhance cooperation and develop new and path-breaking research about the Nordic region against the background of a challenging global context. By the time ReNEW’s activities finished at the end of 2024, it was quite clear that world events had only increased in complexity.
The legacy of ReNEW is firmly in place to allow for problem-based research questions concerning the Nordic region to be answered – now and in the future. This legacy includes, but is not limited to:
- A strong network of both emerging and experienced scholars, who will build on ReNEW’s work providing relevant research for society. For example, the firm network created through the successful palette of activities for emerging scholars; new and continuation funding for research projects conceived at ReNEW workshops and conferences; and the ongoing publication of volumes for the Routledge series ’Nordic Studies in a Global Context’.
- The wider recognition of Nordic Studies as a discipline within the social sciences and humanities in the academic community in and outside Norden. ReNEW has served as a meeting point and provided benchmarking standards for bringing together leading scholars engaged in opening new research strands and developing strong research environments studying the Nordic region. 95 different workshops and 133 research mobilities have been funded by ReNEW during its lifetime, which have ignited new collaborations, the exchange of ideas, and the conception of a host of new research topics.
- The promotion of Nordic studies and relevant research topics to a wider public through outreach work with the media, meetings with key stakeholders, and the continuing existence of over 400 articles, podcasts and films produced by researchers and freely accessible on nordics.info.
- The annual Nordic Challenges conference has been a major forum for Nordic Studies-related research, and there is a strong wish among all ReNEW’s partner universities for the conference to continue.
All of these achievements - as well as many others - would not have been possible without everybody who took part in ReNEW’s activities, including the Nordic Challenges Conferences, our workshops and Emerging Scholars’ activities, or the ReNEW Routledge book series Nordic Studies in Global Comparison and nordics.info – a big thank you to all of you!
Peter Stadius
Project Leader of ReNEW 2018-2024