Thor Olav Iversen
Position
Guest Researcher
Affiliation
- thor.iversen@uib.no
- Phone number
- +47 55582983
- Visitor address
-
Parkveien 9
5007 Bergen - Postal address
-
P.O. Box 7805NO-5020 BergenNorway
Thor Olav Iversen
Position
Guest Researcher
Affiliation
Research
Thor Olav Iversen successfully defended his PhD thesis at the Centre for the Study of the Sciences and the Humanities (SVT) in June 2023 and is currently a guest reseacher here. He assists in the teaching in the interfacultary Master's in Sustainability and in the Theory of Science and Ethics course at the Faculty of Psychology.
His doctoral project sought to develop a critical framework for assessing food security quantification. Food insecurity and hunger is still endemic in developing countries. According to the most used food security indicator, 768 million people remain undernourished globally, up 135 million from two decades ago. Such estimates however depend on the methodology used to quantify food security. Measurement methods also impact the form, targeting, scale and timing of an aid response.
You can read more about the project here.
Outreach
Mentions
As one of three researchers, Thor Olav was mentioned by the Dean, Camilla Brautaset, in her presentation of the Faculty of Humanities at the university board meeting 2 February 2022. She highlighted his research as an example of the insights that can be found in humanities-based projects. Thor Olav's research on the methods used in food security quantification is important, since it can impact policies for reducing hunger.
Media
Khrono
Forsket på hvordan verden måler sult (interview about PhD project)
UiB articles
Ethics of Quantification - podcast with Professor Ted Porter
With a critical eye on food security quantification
Rethinking Economics Norway (articles in Norwegian)
Den samfunnsøkonomiske inkvisjonen
Klassekampen (articles in Norwegian)
Svoltkatastrofa i Jemen (behind paywall)
Morgenbladet (articles in Norwegian)
Kritiske fag er demokratiets kanarifuglar (behind paywall)
På marknadsplassen døyr vitskapen
Bergens Tidende (articles in Norwegian)
Norsk våpeneksportkontroll held verken vatn eller kuler
Kvifor gjev UiB sin mest kjente talarstol til ein blodtørst krigshauk? (behind paywall)
Røyst (article in Norwegian)
Samviten (student magazine for the Faculty of Social Science at UiB)
Interviewed in the article Fra "søppel" til kunst (From "garbage" to art)
Universitetsavisa
Mentioned as one of the founders of the new (2023) association for early-career researchers Organisasjonen Ferske Forskere: Vil hindre at norsk akademia forbeholdes friske, hvite menn. 25.05.23
Events
Bergen Global (CMI/UiB)
- Event moderator for Bergen Global events (2021-)
- In conversation with Cecilie Hellestveit (Norwegian Academy of International Law): Hungersnaud anno 2023 (February 2023)
- In conversation with Julia Marinaccio (UiB) and Harald Bøckman (UiO: All that Xi wants: A conversation on China-Taiwan relations
- In conversation with Morten Bøås (Nupi) about DR Kongo's UN problem (August 2022)
- Moderator for Fire konflikter forklart (Four conflicts explained - Ethiopia, Sudan, Mosambique and Afghanistan). Organized by Bergen Global in collaboration with National Science Week (September 2021)
- Podcast conversation with Silvio Funtowicz: On Post-Normal Science (November 2019)
- Chaired lecture with Silvio Funtowicz: On the rhetoric of sustainability (November 2019)
SAIH
Panelist at SAIH Bergen event Decolonization of academia: What, why, how? (October 2022)
Youth Atlantic Treaty Association Norway
Event: Bærekraftskonferansen 2021 (Sustainability Conference 2021) - 23.-24.10.2021. Presentation: Food security and indicators for the sustainability goals. Thor Olav speaks about his doctoral project about quantification of food security.
Centre on Law & Social Transformation
Event: The Quality of Life Agenda in Norway - Master's week 2020 - 10.02.2020
Publications
2023
- Iversen, Thor Olav; Khalifa, Fareeda (2023). Knowledge Gaps in the Nexus of Climate, Peace and Security. (external link)
- Iversen, Thor Olav (2023). Boundary experts: Science and politics in measuring the Sustainable Development Goals. (external link)
- Iversen, Thor Olav; Westengen, Ola Tveitereid; Jerven, Morten (2023). The history of hunger: Counting calories to make global food security legible. (external link)
- Iversen, Thor Olav; Westengen, Ola Tveitereid; Jerven, Morten (2023). Measuring the end of hunger: Knowledge politics in the selection of SDG food security indicators. (external link)