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Nordic Humanities Center

Nordic Humanities Center

Welcome to Nordic Humanities Center

Nordic Humanities Center is a research center at the University of Southern Denmark and the University of Copenhagen that brings humanistic perspectives to major societal challenges. Each year, the steering group behind the center appoints a group of researchers from both universities who collaborate for a year on a specific theme.

On this page, we bring news about the research work and about workshops, presentations and conferences organized by the centre.

The Nordic Humanities Center (NHC) is funded by The A.P. Moller Relief Foundation.


Event calendar

Sølvgade 48-50, København K

11.03.2026

17:00 - 20:00

RES PUBLICA: A Conversation with artist Claus Carstensen

11 Mar

Visual artist Claus Carstensen gives a lecture about the exhibition "Res Publica" at the Danish National Gallery. The focus is on art as "a public matter".

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Amfipladsen 7, Odense c

23.04.2026

17:00 - 21:00

Visual narratives from Kalaallit Nunaat/Greenland: About and around the photographic work of Inuuteq Storch

23 Apr

Conversations at "Kunstmuseum Brandts": Visual narratives from Kalaallit Nunaat/Greenland: About and around the photographic work of Inuuteq Storch

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Nordic Humanities Center

Anders Engberg-Pedersen and Simon Moeberg Torp, Nordic Humanities Center

About the center

Hear about the center from Center Director Anders Engberg-Pedersen and Dean Simon Møberg Torp.

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Malene Breunig and Kristian Handberg at Brandts Kunstmuseum in Odense

Cultural preparedness

On October 6, the Nordic Humanities Center will host a seminar on cultural preparedness.

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Latest news from Nordic Humanities Center

Conference

22.01.2026

Nordic Humanities Center's conference at Christiansborg: Topical topic filled the hall

On Thursday 15 January, the Nordic Humanities Center hosted a well-attended conference entitled "In the Shadow of War: Denmark, the Nordics and the return of geopolitics". It took place in the Parliament Hall at Christiansborg and gathered 170 people.

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Call

10.12.2025

New call: Humanities researchers on workload reduction for a year to work on society's grand challenges

The Nordic Humanities Center is now accepting applications for the third call covering the period 1 February 2027 to 31 January 2028. Six humanities researchers from the University of Southern Denmark and the University of Copenhagen will have the opportunity to immerse themselves in a joint project for one year and - in close collaboration with the centre's permanent team - reach out to society to create new knowledge and perspectives.

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Research

11.11.2025

The Baltic Sea is one of the keys to Russia's great-power self-image

There are plenty of news angles to pursue when describing Russia’s actions in Ukraine, but to understand President Putin’s view of Russia as a great power with great-power interests in the Baltic Sea region, history offers important clues. According to Russia expert and postdoctoral researcher at the Nordic Humanities Center, Jon Reinhardt-Larsen, many of the answers can be found there.

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Research

09.09.2025

Cultural preparedness in a time of uncertainty

From the Culture Meeting on Mors to defense plans in the Nordic countries. The debate on strengthening the cultural front has risen high on the agenda. Researchers, cultural leaders, and politicians are discussing the role that a strong awareness of our shared culture plays in Denmark’s resilience in uncertain times.

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Book release

15.08.2025

New collaborative Nordic book on refugees wins award

Welcome to the history books! With this book—co-written by, among others, former fellow at the Nordic Humanities Center, Heidi Vad Jønsson—clear attention is drawn to overlooked stories of forced migrants and refugees in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden.

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Practice Fellow

28.05.2025

Expertise in diplomacy paired with research in the humanities

The former Danish ambassador to Moscow and NATO is part of a research team at the Nordic Humanities Centre examining the impact of the Ukraine war on the Nordic region. He is a new so-called practice fellow and in this interaction, deep knowledge of negotiation tactics and realpolitik is combined with knowledge of history, important theoretical concepts and precise cultural understanding.

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Defense cooperation

23.04.2025

Historian: The Nordic region must now unite on security and defense

There is much to learn from history about how, in an uncertain world, we can secure a strong security alliance in the Nordic region. We have, after all, tried it before—without success and with fatal consequences for Denmark.

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Book publishing

07.04.2025

Excluded from a life as an equal citizen

A new book written by a former fellow at the Nordic Humanities Center describes a wave of young writers giving voice to socially marginalised groups in the welfare state. The book is called "Fælles liv" and is written by literary scholar Tue Andersen Nexø.

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Research project

29.01.2025

Researchers examine the consequences of the Ukraine war for the Nordic Region

The war in Ukraine has challenged the idea of Denmark and the Nordic countries as a peaceful corner of the world where war is confined to history books. The conflict has come close to home and has already reshaped security policies. But what can we learn from history as we navigate a new world order, and what impact does it have on our sense of identity? These are the key questions in this year’s research project at the Nordic Humanities Centre.

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Call

07.11.2024

Call for researchers to work in the Nordic Humanities Center

The Nordic Humanities Center is now accepting applications for the third call, which runs from 1 February 2026 to 31 January 2027. Six researchers in the humanities from the University of Southern Denmark and the University of Copenhagen will have the opportunity to work on a specific project for one year and, in collaboration with the centre's permanent staff, reach out to the outside world to create new knowledge and insights.

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Meet our fellows

Portrait of Tanya Karoli Christensen

Tanya Karoli

Tanya Karoli is a professor at the Department of Nordic Studies and Linguistics at the University of Copenhagen.

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Portrait of Kathrin Maurer

Kathrin Maurer

Kathrin Maurer is a professor at the Department of Culture and Language Studies at the University of Southern Denmark.

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Portrait of Kim Ebensgaard Jensen

Kim Ebensgaard Jensen

Kim Ebensgaard Jensen is an Associate Professor at the Department of English, Germanic and Romance Studies at the University of Copenhagen.

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Partners

The Nordic Humanities Center has been established in a collaboration between the faculties of the Humanities at the University of Copenhagen and the University of Southern Denmark with the generous support of the A.P. Moller Relief Foundation