No Norwegian-Baltic funding

I have been notified that our research application to the Baltic research programme (Estonian call) scheme was not funded.

See also:

baltic-Norwegian research application submitted (February 1st)

EMP151 presented at UiS EEA funding info day

I have just presented experience as Norwegian project leader for the Norwegian-Estonian research project "Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis" at University of Stavanger´s EEA funding info day, organised by UiS´ Research and Innovation Department and International office. Some 35-40 people are attending.

See also EMP151 project summery at EEA Grants.

Final Steering Committee meeting attended, at UiS

On Friday December 16th I attended the final Steering Committee meeting of the Norwegian-Estonian research project "Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis", chaired by Timo Maran, in person at University of Stavanger, with some more involved researchers sitting in.

Estonian guests; 4th EMP151 research seminar

Yesterday five Estonian researchers arrived for the 4th and final Norwegian research seminar of the Estonian-Norwegian research project "Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis", which takes place today and tomorrow at University of Stavanger.

Steering Committee meeting attended

I have just attended the Steering Committee meeting (via Skype) of the Norwegian-Estonian research project "Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis" (EMP151).

Project documentation control for EMP151

The last week or so I have contributed to a project documentation control for the Norwegian-Estonian research project "Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis" (EMP151), for which I am the Norwegian project leader, by providing requested documents and information.

Another chapter by Sigmund Kvaløy Setreng selected for Estonian Norwegian ecophilosophy volume

The last few days I have selected an additional text by Norwegian eco-philosopher Sigmund Kvaløy Setreng for inclusion in a forthcoming book in the series Avatud Eesti Raamat with Norwegian ecophilosophy in Estonian translation (to be published by Tartu University Press). The essay is entitled "Kraft-rom mot elve-tid: To kulturer på norsk jord" [Power-space vs. river-time: Two cultures on Norwegian soil]" and was first published in 1984.

See also:

Chapters selected for Avatud Eesti Raamat volume on Norwegian ecophilosophy

Norwegian EMP151 budget informally revised

Today I have (informally) finished revising the budget of the Norwegian research group in the Estonian-Norwegian research project "Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis" (EMP151). The revision includes some planned reallocations for 2015 and 2016, and also takes into consideration the actual accounts so far (2013 and 2014).

Another round of contributions to 2014 grant report

Yesterday I contributed, in a second round, to the annual grant report for 2014 for the Estonian-Norwegian research project "Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis" (EMP151), for which I am the Norwegian project leader. The report of activities stands at around 18 pp, plus appendices.

Pilot study conducted at UiA

Today Paul Thibault and I conducted the pilot study of the subproject "Representations of Large Mammals, especially Wolves" partaking in the Estonian-Norwegian research project "Animals in Changing Environments: Cultural Mediation and Semiotic Analysis" (EMP151), at University of Agder, with 4 respondents/interviewees.

Steering Committee meeting attended

Today I have taken part in a Steering Committee meeting for the Estonian-Norwegian research project "Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis", for which I am the Norwegian Project Leader.

Abstract: "Animal agency in politics and eco-existentialism"

Today I have composed the abstract rendered below, for the 2nd research seminar of the Norwegian-Estonian research project "Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis", which will take place at University of Stavanger Friday October 24th.

***

Animal agency in politics and eco-existentialism 

Morten Tønnessen 

Associate professor in philosophy at Department of social studies & Department of health studies, University of Stavanger, Norway  

What is animal agency? And how are various notions of animal agency explicitly or implicitly presented in different kinds of texts? 

In this presentation I will start out by summarizing a survey conducted in the biosemiotic community on the notions of ‘agent’ and ‘agency’ (Tønnessen, forthcoming), with regard to animal agency. I will also briefly outline the semiotics of animal representations as a field of study (Tønnessen and Tüür 2014). 

Next I will share observations made in my analysis of mentions of animals in Norwegian political party programs for the parliamentary period 2013–2017 (Tønnessen 2013). One of the findings is that animals are in these documents predominantly described in terms of economic resources, not as sentient beings endowed with subjective experience. Even though animal welfare is now addressed by several (particularly small) parties, even most of the parties that are the most positive to improving animal welfare speak of animals in very anthropocentric, reductionistic manners whenever animal welfare is not the topic. 

I will furthermore analyse the essay “The Last Messiah” (1993 [1933]), written by the Norwegian eco-existentialist and mountaineer Peter Wessel Zapffe (1899–1990), with the notion of animal and animal agency in mind. For Zapffe, human compassion with suffering animals is central. But unlike in the case of human beings, he claims, the suffering of animals is limited to their own, more or less immediate, suffering. Likewise animals too feel anxiety, but only human beings can “fear life itself”, or fear their own being. Even though human beings are unique in some respects, including when it comes to relating to death, I will argue that many animals too are in some situations aware that they are mortals. 

Acknowledgement 

This work has been carried out thanks to the support of the research project Animals in Changing Environments: Cultural Mediation and Semiotic Analysis (EEA Norway Grants/Norway Financial Mechanism 2009-2014 under project contract no. EMP151).  

References 

Tønnessen, Morten 2013. Analyse av partiprogrammer for 2013–2017 – utført for Dyreetikkonferansen 2013 [Analysis of political party programs for 2013–2017 – conducted for the Norwegian Animal Ethics Conference 2013]. Oslo 2013: Dyreetikkonferansen. Available online via Dyreetikkonferansen.no, ResearchGate (DOI: 10.13140/2.1.3693.1203), Academia.edu, Scribd. 21 pp. 

Tønnessen, Morten, forthcoming. The biosemiotic glossary project: Agent, agency. Forthcoming in Biosemiotics 8(1) (April 2014). 

Tønnessen, Morten and Kadri Tüür 2014. The semiotics of animal representations: Introduction. In Kadri Tüür and Morten Tønnessen (eds), The Semiotics of Animal Representations (Nature, Culture and Literature 10), Amsterdam/New York: Rodopi, p. 7–30.  

Zappfe, Peter Wessel 1993 [1933]. The last Messiah [Den sidste Messias, 1933]. Translated by Sigmund Kvaløy and Peter Reed. In Peter Reed and David Rothenberg (eds): Wisdom in the Open Air: The Nor­wegian Roots of Deep Ecology, Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, p. 40–52.

Animals in changing environments homepages updated

I have updated the Norwegian homepage of the research project "Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis", in both its English and Norwegian language versions. Sections updated include Researchers and Publications.

Animals in changing environments conference to be co-arranged by Minding Animals Norway

Upon the invitation of the local organising committee of the September 2015 conference to be arranged by the research project "Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis", the board of Minding Animals Norway (MAN) has decided that MAN will be a co-organiser of the conference.

See also:

Animals in changing environments conference scheduled for September 2015

Animals in changing environments conference rescheduled by one day

Chair of local organising committee of 2015 UiS conference

At today's meeting in the local organising committee of the 2015 conference which is to be organised in Stavanger by the Norwegian research group of the Estonian-Norwegian research project "Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis", it was decided that I am the chair of this local organising committee. I will thus be the main responsible for convening the conference, which will be held September 17-19th 2015.

Animals in changing environments conference rescheduled by one day

The 2015 conference which is to be organised by the Norwegian research group of the Estonian-Norwegian research project "Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis" has been rescheduled from September 16-18th (Wednesday to Friday) to September 17-19th (Thursday to Saturday) 2015. This is done to facilitate cheaper accommodation for the participants.

See also:

Animals in changing environments conference scheduled for September 2015

Annual report of EMP151 2013 submitted

At the end of April the annual report for the research project "Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis" (EMP151) (see previous posts) for 2013 was submitted to Estonian Research Agency (ETAG), after having been compiled by Timo Maran, who heads this Norwegian-Estonian research project, with contributions from me, the Norwegian Project leader. The report is 15 pp. plus two annexes - one listing publications, another presenting financial accounts.

Second steering committee meeting

Today I have participated in the second meeting of the steering committee of the Norwegian-Estonian research project Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis. These meetings take place twice a year, and I take part as the Norwegian Project leader.

4th Animals in changing environments research seminar scheduled for April 2016

The 4th research seminar of the Norwegian-Estonian research project “Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis” (EEA Norway Grants EMP151) has been scheduled for Friday April 29th 2016. The research seminar, which will likely be the last event to be held within the framework of this project (which expires April 30th 2016), will take place at the University of Stavanger.

3rd Animals in changing environments research seminar scheduled for May 2015

The 3rd research seminar of the Norwegian-Estonian research project “Animals in changing environments: Cultural mediation and semiotic analysis” (EEA Norway Grants EMP151) has been scheduled for Friday May 15th 2015. The research seminar will take place at the University of Stavanger.