Open Call to History NorDev2025

🌐 Exciting News: NorDev Conference 2025 🚀

Hey NorDev community! 🎉 We’ve got some thrilling news to share – the opportunity to host the NorDev Conference 2025 is knocking on your door!
NFU is looking for partners to host the Conference in Norway!

Event: Book Launch in Oslo

Next week the “Handbook of International Development and the Environment“, which was edited by Benedicte Bull og Mariel Aguilar-Støen, is having its book launch in Oslo in an event open to all.

The event is being co-organized by SUM, NFU and  UHR-Samfunnsfag.

This is great opportunity to participate in a debate about the book and development bureaucrats.

The event will happen on the 28th of September from 18:00-20:00 in the Vinterhagen, Sentralen, Øvre Slottsgate 3 0157 Oslo.

To learn more about the event, click here.

Utsnitt av forsida på boka.

EADI 50 years: Interested in co-organizing events?

EADI (European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes) celebrates its 50 years anniversary next year in 2024 and would like this to be celebrated at different places. The events can be in person, online or hybrid.

EADI is an association that aims to connect researchers from different countries with a common goal to “promote a concerted approach to the gaps and shortcomings in research on development problems as practised in the rich countries” (The EADI Story, 1999, page 71).

This is a great opportunity to contribute with their efforts and promote different events with a focus on development.

For more information, click here.

NFU is also interested in co-organizing events and would be happy to work together on seminars or other activities. If you wish to collaborate with us, please send us an email on: nfucoordinator@gmail.com.

mage by Rochak Shukla on Freepik

NFU on the media: The future of Norpart

This summer, news that the Norpart program, which provides resources for academic cooperation and and exchange programs, is being placed on hold due to uncertainty regarding its budget.

Our chair, Arnhild Leer-Helgensen, alongside with several other academic leaders at University of Agder have talked to Khrono regarding the impacts that this can bring to norwegian students and to development studies, as well as the academic environment in the country.

To read the full article, click here.

NFU meeting at NorDev 2023

Are you joining NorDev2023?

Make sure to book some time to join our informal meeting on the first day of the conference, August 21st.

The meeting will be at 16:30 in Sal XI and it’s a great opportunity to connect with other norwegian researchers and network.

You will also be able to learn more about NFU and provide valuable input into our organization.

We look forward to seeing you there!

For more information on the Conference programme, click here.

Image by Freepik

NFU General Assembly

Earlier this month NFU had its General Assembly of 2022. The assembly took place on the 15th of May, between 15-16:30.

It counted it the participation of several board members as well as the General Secretary from EADI.

The notes from the meeting can be found on the link below and contain what has been happening and what to look forward in the future with NFU.

NFU statement regarding school fees in Norway

The General Assembly of NFU unanimously supports the movement resisting school fees for international students from outside EU/EØS and Switzerland and applauds the strong opposition from the higher education sector and parts of the political parties. As a global development research community, we are deeply worried about the consequences these fees will have on the quality and relevance of education and research in Norway.

In a time when we lift the Sustainable Development Goals as a common global project, we need knowledge, perspectives and cooperation that include all regions of the world. School fees do not only affect individual students, but the entire higher education system in Norway. The quality and relevance of our education will be weakened, as we will miss important critical perspectives and be more narrow-minded. As researchers and educators within the field of global development, we know how teaching a truly international student group challenges all involved and leads to a unique co-creation of knowledge. In addition, relationships between students from different places have lasting effects and create bonds that lead to more cooperation in research and current or future workplaces. If these school fees become a reality, Norway will lose both in terms of quality of education and research, and international networks.

Furthermore, it is important to remember that in a world that is ever more connected, the plurality and diversity brought by students from different parts of the world can help Norway become a more rounded and inclusive country.

The introduction of these school fees for students from outside EU/EØS and Switzerland can be seen as discriminatory and cause students from other parts of the world to not feel welcomed, which in the long run will be detrimental to Norwegian educational environment.

Therefore, we at NFU stand in opposition of these fees.

NFU Chairwomen speaks on Skolepenger

There is an ongoing discussion in Norway regarding a proposition for students outside of the EU/EØS  and Switzerland to start paying tuiton when they chose to study in Norway.

Proposition 68L (2022-2023) has raise a ,ot of opposition with several organizations and universtities, such as SAIH, Universitet i Agder, NTNU and others standing against it. They all fear that this will create a barrier for students to come to Norway as well as being a starting point to start charging tuition to all students in the future.

NFU chairwoman, Arnhild Leer-Helgesen states that “The implementation of school-fees for students outside Europe/EØS and Switzerland is a serious backlash for the quality and relevance of higher education and research in Norway. To face the multiple crisis in the world we need more exchange of perspectives and knowledge, not less. The contribution of students and researchers from the so-called “Global South” to co-creation of knowledge, is heavily underrated. With this cut, adding to cuts in funds for research in the broad field of global development, Norway has less capacity to develop the knowledge we need to contribute towards the Sustainable Development Goals.”

If you wish to join the fight against the introduction of skolepenger, sign the petition started by SAIH:

https://www.change.org/p/do-not-introduce-tuition-fees-for-non-eu-students-in-norway

General Assembly: EADI Participation

It is our pleasure to announce that our general assembly will count with the presence of European Association Development Research and Training Institutes General Secretary: Susanne von Itter.

She will talk about EADI and what the organization does, the relationship with NFU and the benefits of being connected with a broad network. Her participation will enrich our assembly and allow members to have an insight into a bigger organization and their workings. This is a great opportunity to learn more and connect with EADI.

For more information regarding EADI, you can access their website: https://www.eadi.org/

Our General Assembly be held on May 15th from 15:00-16:30 Norwegian time on Zoom.

You can access it through the link below:

https://uiano.zoom.us/j/64606027203?pwd=S1FEWTlGWHE1VmFPSDV4YmNDYmZIQT09

NFU General Assembly 2022

Dear NFU members,

We would like to invite you to our General Assembly that will take place on May 15th of 2023.

The meeting will be held from 15:00-16:30 Norwegian time on Zoom.

You can access it through the link below:

https://uiano.zoom.us/j/64606027203?pwd=S1FEWTlGWHE1VmFPSDV4YmNDYmZIQT09

Below is the agenda for the meeting:

1. Constitute meeting and approve agenda

  • Election of General Assembly Chair and two reporters
  • Approval of agenda

2. Board changes
3. Annual Report 2021-22
4. Annual plan and budget for 2023
5. EADI membership
6. Debate: Future seminars and conferences
7. Incoming business


For a more in-depth look of the report for NFU activites in 2022 and the meeting agenda, please look at the document below: