News

Little is known about how governments put together and put to use policy advisory commissions. In her dissertation, Stine Hesstvedt seeks to find out if and how politics play a role in the Norwegian policy advisory commission system.

Decision-makers are often trusting of scientific and technical expertise. But could expertise replace democratic control?

The United Kingdom will become the EU's first ex-member state. Can the relationship between the non-member Norway and the EU be used as a model for the UK after Brexit?

ARENA celebrated its 25th anniversary with a half-day public conference at the House of Literature on 18 November 2019. 

Sir Ivan Rogers, former UK ambassador to the EU held the first EU3D Future of Europe Lecture at the University of Oslo on 18 September 2019. 

What does it mean to be a European citizen? 25 years after the Treaty of Maastricht, ARENA researchers Espen D. H. Olsen and Agustín José Menéndez argue that provisions intended to create a European community may create more friction than harmony.

What can we learn from Brexit? What can we expect from the newly elected European Parliament and the new leaders of the Commission, and what does it mean for Norway? These were some of the main questions ARENA asked at Arendalsuka. 

Helene Sjursen organized a NORTIA research workshop on 5-7 June 2019 in Poznan. 

ARENA researchers were well represented at the 16th biennial EUSA conference, which took place on 9-11 May in Denver, Colorado. 

The European Union is engaged in a large-scale debate on its future nature and direction. The role and importanec of theoretically informed and empirically grounded research in that process is essential, as was made very clear at EU3D's opening conference in Rome. 

Prof. Christopher Lord met with the European Parliament's Subcommittee on Security and Defence (SEDE) to provide insights from his research in a public hearing on parliamentary scrutiny of defence affairs. 

ARENA's Jarle Trondal has been awarded 'Best article of 2018' by the 'Norwegian Journal of Political Science' for his article about Norwegian civil servants' work on EU and EEA affairs. 

Members of the European Parliament have gained great influence in trade policy, thereby challenging the national monopolies of power. Often, they are perceived as a disturbing element in international negotiations.  

European decision-makers point to flexible relationships with the EU as a way to maintain their countries’ independence and autonomy. New research from ARENA suggests that political differentiation might in fact lead to the opposite, which does not bode well for the UK after Brexit.

James G. March was for 50 years a research collaborator and close friend of ARENA founder Johan P. Olsen. Their research on institutions and organizations have inspired countless researchers within numerous fields of study, such as European Studies. 

Could the 'Norway model' work for the UK post-Brexit? Do EU agencies threaten the EEA agreement? These were topics of discussion when policy-makers and ARENA researchers met during Arendalsuka 2018.

Since 2008, the European Union faces a range of existential threats between populism, technocracy, and mediatisation. How can the EU address the rise of populist parties, the expanding role of the EU’s depoliticized bodies, and the world of social media?

Johan P. Olsen’s ‘The Reforming Organization’ has been published in a new edition by Routledge. The book is increasingly relevant, following a revived interest in formal reform and their impact on practical organizational outcomes.

During the euro crisis, the European Central Bank carved out a new and more significant role for itself. While many agree that this saved the euro in the short term, new research by Jørgen Bølstad at ARENA suggests that the ECB’s new role as a lender of last resort may also prevent future crises.

If the EU admits that it is a federation, the Union might be better able to strike the right balance between the supranational and national levels. Professor John Erik Fossum wants to revive the controversial concept.

Modern democracies depend on expert knowledge. Yet giving more and more power to expert bodies that are not democratically elected may pose a threat to democracy. How can we avoid the illegitimate rule of experts?

The EU's legitimacy in the wake of the financial crisis was discussed by an international group of researchers in Oslo last month. PLATO has relevance written all over it, Vice-Rector Åse Gornitzka said at the project's kick-off Conference.

Fifteen young researchers from all over Europe are starting their PhDs this fall, all with the same question: Did the financial crisis lead to a crisis that now calls into question the very existence of the European Union? 

European integration was long seen as unproblematic. Then Brexit came as a shock. ‘The world is changing, and it's both exciting and frightening,’ Professor Johan P. Olsen says.