Ministry announces new plan to attract overseas researchers

As the United States administration continues to impose measures widely considered detrimental to higher education and research in that country, Norway has announced a new research council funding scheme – initially worth NOK100 million (US$9.6 million) – that will make it easier to recruit researchers from abroad.

In a press release dated 23 April, Minister of Research and Higher Education Sigrun Aasland said: “We are now giving our leading research environments the opportunity to connect with established researchers from abroad.

“It is important for Norway to be proactive in demanding academic freedom. We can make a difference for outstanding researchers and important knowledge, and we want to do that as quickly as possible.”

A global scheme

Although the statement notes that the programme will be open to all researchers from all over the world and is not reserved only for US researchers or researchers at US universities, Aasland made specific reference to that country.

“Academic freedom is under pressure in the US, and it is an unpredictable position for many researchers in what has been the world's leading knowledge nation for many decades. We have had close dialogue with the Norwegian knowledge communities and my Nordic colleagues about developments.

“It has been important for me to find good measures that we can put in place quickly, and therefore I have tasked the research council with prioritising schemes we can implement within a short time,” she stated.

According to CEO of the Research Council of Norway Mari Sundli Tveit, the first call for the scheme will be made in May and will initially be linked to the research council's centre schemes, including for excellent research and innovation in climate, health, energy and artificial intelligence.

Asked by the Norwegian Broadcasting Company how smart it was to launch the scheme in the same week as Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre and Minister of Finance Jens Stoltenberg met President Donald Trump in the White House, Aasland reiterated that the scheme was not an American arrangement but a global one.

“And one reason why we are concerned with the collaboration with the US in research is that they are an excellent research nation. They are responsible for much of what the world needs in research on health, climate and energy,” Aasland said, adding that Norway already had extensive research collaboration with the US, which the government was keen to see continue.

In the same interview, University of Bergen rector Margareth Hagen said that she was positive about the new scheme.

“The impact for us is great. Approximately 22% of the research at the University of Bergen is in collaboration with American researchers. So it is clear that what is happening in the US will have immediate consequences for us,” Hagen stated.

Race to attract talent

Malcolm Langford, a professor of public law at the University of Oslo, who previously led a Centre of Excellence in Education and co-founded the Forum for International Researchers in Oslo, told University World News that it was “wonderful” that the Norwegian government had put up its hand to support American and other researchers whose academic freedom was under pressure.

“The announcement sends a signal as to how seriously we regard what is emerging as an all-out assault on American universities, whether it is cuts to basic funding, elimination of grants for the use of certain words, arrests of students, and deletion of data,” he said.

“Moreover, research does not stop at borders, and the work by many researchers in Norway has been impacted negatively by Trump’s orders and demands,” he added, stating that the programme would benefit Norway.

“In some areas, such as AI research, there is a global race to attract talent from the US and many other corners of the world.

“The programme is also cleverly designed to permit rapid processes and integration of researchers by focusing on large existing research centres. I can only hope that the government continues to think strategically about how to find good ways to attract ... international researchers and ensure that they can quickly become a part of Norwegian life and society,” said.

Professor Bjørn Stensaker, vice-rector for education at the University of Oslo, told University World News country affiliation should not be a priority in selecting talent.

“The position taken by the University of Oslo is that recruiting international talent is important, but that all recruitment processes need to be based on fair competition, implying that the country affiliation of candidates should not be a priority. We welcome talents from all countries, including the US, to apply for positions at the University of Oslo.

“One could argue that it is the younger generation of researchers that is especially vulnerable in times like these. The established researchers already have their networks, and recruiting young, promising researchers also allows for more long-term thinking concerning the development of specific academic groups and areas,” he said.

Global coalition for academic freedom

Professor Ole Petter Ottersen, professor emeritus at the University of Oslo and former leader of two of the region’s most internationalised universities – the University of Oslo in Norway and the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm – was also positive about the new scheme but warned against seeing the situation merely as an opportunity to boost Norway’s national scientific capacity.

“I think this is a good move. The new US administration will have to realise that trying to silence academics is a futile exercise. They will travel elsewhere to continue their research on climate and other topics that are anathema for Trump and his acolytes,” he stated.

Ottersen said that it was the responsibility of European scientists to welcome US researchers and students who no longer considered the US a safe haven.

“The US embraced leading European scientists and dissidents in the turbulent 1930’s. Now is the time for Europe to welcome researchers and students from the US,” he said.

However, he cautioned against naivety about the differences between the US and European systems.

“It will not be easy to match American working conditions and salaries. When arriving at Princeton, Albert Einstein was asked to choose his salary, and he said that US$3,000 a year would do.

“According to Albert Einstein: Creator & Rebel by Banesh Hoffmann, the administration found this salary to be too low (they could not recruit Americans on such a low salary), and he was offered a salary of US$10,000 instead. How should we deal with the mirror image of this situation?” Ottersen noted.

He said that it was important to remember that the US was not unique in launching attacks on academic freedom and institutional autonomy and called for a global coalition to be formed to protect academic freedom.

“We find ourselves in a time of democratic backsliding with a rise of authoritarian regimes worldwide. We should welcome researchers and students from repressive regimes, irrespective of their geographical location and wealth.

“Let us use this opportunity to form a global university coalition for academic freedom. Any authoritarian leader should know that an attack on one university is an attack on all universities. A coalition would help instill this awareness, which is now more sorely needed than ever before,” he noted.

Ottersen said that Norway should not fall into the trap of using the situation in the US primarily as an opportunity to strengthen the talent flow to its own universities.

“This cannot be our motivation for mobilising resources for welcoming American researchers. Our motivation must be twofold: first, to provide academic freedom for scholars whose freedom is under threat, and second, to uphold research in climate, diversity, equity and other fields that are now under attack in the US and in illiberal countries elsewhere, he cautioned.