Not to grade another UiO master thesis

I have been asked to serve as external examiner for a Master thesis in criminology at the University of Oslo this summer, but due to some relational issues that could raise bias issues, we concluded it was best to forego this.

Guest lecture on Anthropocene theme given at University of Oslo

On Thursday February 23rd I gave a guest-lecture at University of Oslo´s Department of criminology and sociology of low, in the eco-criminology master course KRIM2920. I spoke about the human empire, man´s global ecological hierarchy in the Anthropocene. There were around 7 students present.

To give guest lecture at University of Oslo February 23rd

I have agreed to give a guest lecture, again, on the Anthropocene and such,  at University of Oslo´s Department of criminology and sociology of law, in the course on green criminology, "Grønn (øko-global) kriminologi" [Green [eco-global] criminology]). The title of my lecture remains «Menneskeveldet – menneskets globale økologiske hierarki» [The human empire - humankind´s global ecological hierarchy].

PhD defense - Erica von Essen, Uppsala

Today I have been in Uppsala, Sweden, as part of the three-person Examination Board (evaluation committee) for Erica von Essen´s doctoral thesis "In the Gap between Legality and Legitimacy - Illegal Hunting in Sweden as a Crime of Dissent". We unanimously approved Erica´s PhD. She has taken her PhD, in the field of environmental communication, at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, at Department of Urban and Rural Development.

William Smith was opponent, and in the Examination Board I was joined by Stellan Vinthagen (chosen as chair) and Mari Pohjs-Mykrä. Hans Peter Hansen, assistant supervisor, served as our host. Some 50 people attended the doctors defence.

PPT of Oslo guest lecture on the human empire

At the end of October last year I guest-lectured in a eco-criminology seminar at University of Oslo. The lecture, Menneskeveldet - menneskets globale økologiske hierarki [The human empire - man's glocal ecological hierarchi] was shortly thereafter made available in form of PPT at the webpage of UiO.

See also:

Guest lecture in University of Oslo criminology seminar

Guest lecture in University of Oslo criminology seminar

This Wednesday I gave the guest lecture "Menneskeveldet - menneskets globale økologiske hierarki" in the course in eco-global criminology offered by University of Oslo's Department of criminology and sociology of law. Some 15 people were present.

Guest lecture in criminology seminar at UiO; book chapter "Menneskeveldet" compulsory reading

For the third year in a row, I have been invited to give a guest lecture in a seminar in eco-global criminology offered by University of Oslo. Professor Guri Larsen is responsible for the course.

The title of my talk is "Menneskeveldet - menneskets globale økologiske hierarki" [The human empire - Man's global ecological hierarchy], and it has been scheduled for Wednesday October 23rd, at 12pm-2pm.

This year a text written by me - the book chapter "Menneskeveldet" from the Norwegian Human-Animal Studies anthology Hvem er villest i landet her? Råskap mot dyr og natur i antropocen, menneskets tidsalder [Who is wildest in this country here? Brutality towards animals and nature in the Anthropocene, the age of Man] - is compulsory reading in the course.

HAS anthology: Announcement link; high-res cover image

The upcoming book launch May 15th of the Norwegian Human-Animal Studies anthology I have co-edited has been announced on the website of Department of Criminology and Sociology of Law (University of Oslo), which will host the event - see here.

Also, here's a version of the cover image in somewhat higher resolution:

Lecture on global species to be repeated autumn 2012

Last autumn I lectured about "Det menneskeskapte økologiske hierarki" [The human-made ecological hierarchy] in Guri Larsen's seminar Eco-global criminology at the University of Oslo, and today I was asked to give it again this autumn. 

The lecture, which will take place at UiO's Department of Criminology and Sociology of Law, is now scheduled for October 31st (12-14).

Article on formal/informal predator management to be submitted to Materialisten

While in Oslo in mid-October I was invited by the editor of Norwegian journal Materialisten, an interdisciplinary journal devoted to scholarly and social critique, to submit an article in early 2012. I later scheduled with editor Cecilie Høigård (a criminologist) that my contribution, worktitled "Formell og uformell rovviltforvaltning [eventuelt ulveforvaltning] i Norge [eventuelt Skandinavia] [Formal and informal predator management [possibly: wolf management] in Norway [possibly: Scandinavia]], should be submitted by February 15th 2012.

Oslo lecture on the global species: Title announced

As mentioned earlier I will give a lecture in Oslo October 19th, on the topic of the global species. The title has now been announced as "Det menneskeskapte økologiske hierarki" [The human-made ecological hierarchy - in Norwegian]. The lecture is part of the Master-level seminar "Økologisk kriminalitet, miljøskade og spesiesisme" [Ecological crime, environmental harm and speciesism] at Department of Criminology and Sociology of Law, University of Oslo.

For more info, see my Academia.edu page or the seminar website.

Lecture at University of Oslo in October

I have been invited by professor in criminology Guri Larsen to give a lecture this autumn as part of her seminar in "økologisk-global kriminologi" (eco-global criminology). We have scheduled that I will talk October 19th. I will probably choose the global species as my topic.

Oslo II - belated report

November 11th I gave my talk 'Ulovlig jakt på ulv' (Illegal wolf hunting) in Kriminalpolitisk seminar in Oslo (University of Oslo), cf. preliminary posts. About an hour - followed by remarks by professor emeritus Nils Christie, and general discussion. There were perhaps 30 people in the audience, and the discussion was engaged and lively, not least since Christie positioned himself - at least initially - as somewhat 'anti-wolf'. He interpreted the 'wolf wars' as a social (i.e. human-human) conflict, and sided with the weak part, which he took to be rural wolf antagonists. Interestingly, Christie accepted my portrayal of the wolf as a symbol for other rural and agricultural hardships - but we disagree on whether or not it makes any sense to 'give the wolf antagonists this victory' (getting rid of the wolf). In my analysis, it wouldn't change the underlying frustration with current developments, and so would be a shallow solution in the sense of Arne Næss' deep ecology; in Christies, "they deserve it". We agreed, however, on the topic of illegal wolf hunting, that it would be a good sign, and further the public debate on wolf management, if those who partake in poaching of wolves could step forward and admit to, and defend, what they do.

In addition to giving the abovementioned presentation, I
* met with eco-criminologists Ragnhild Sollund and Guri Larsen concerning our human-animal relations anthology in-progress
* spent some time at Gentle Actions, meeting with David Rothenberg, David Abram and Per Ingvar Haukeland
* met my colleague in edutainment François Sibbald (our conference concept ARC (Authority - role - communication) - is in progress and scheduled for release early next summer).

I was, that time around, in Oslo Nov. 10-12.

References, green criminology

My article The legality and ethical legitimacy of wolf hunting in Scandinavia is mentioned as one out of six articles in 'øko-global kriminologi' (eco-global criminology) from a NsFK research seminar report on the Nordic eco-global criminology site.

The latest Nordic green criminology newsletter, administered by Rune Ellefsen, mentions these six articles indirectly and also the Oslo Minding Animals event to take place October 14th, 2011.

Criminology publication - wolf hunting

I have just found out that my article "The legality and ethical legitimacy of wolf hunting in Scandinavia" has just been published in the Research seminar report 52 (pp 65-72) of the Scandinavian Council for Criminology. Publication date is (approximately) October.

The paper is the revised outcome of my presentation at Hønefoss in May.

It is one of six papers in the section "Økologisk kriminalitet" (Ecological crime), along with papers by Guri Larsen, Sigurd S. Dybing, Rune Ellefsen, Nicolay B. Johansen ("The problem with green criminology") and Per-Anders Svärd.

Contents:
* Intro
* From extermination campaigns to coservation policies
* Perception and symbolism
* Hunting ethics
* Concluding observations

Presentation at criminology seminar

I have agreed to give a talk in an open criminology seminar, "Kriminalpolitisk seminar", arranged by Department of Criminology and Sociology of Law (University of Oslo), November 11th (14.15-16.00). The topic is "Illegal wolf hunting" ("Ulovlig jakt på ulv").

Wolf criminology

My abstract "The legality and ethical legitimacy of wolf hunting in Scandinavia" has been accepted for presentation at the 52nd research seminar of the Scandinavian Research Council for Criminology (SCRfC), to be arranged at Hønefoss, Norway, May 10-12.

Abstract: The legality and ethical legitimacy of wolf hunting in Scandinavia

I have just submitted an abstract to the 52nd research seminar of the Scandinavian Research Council for Criminology (SCRfC), to take place at Hønefoss, Norway, May 10-12.

The legality and ethical legitimacy of wolf hunting in Scandinavia

This presentation will partake in the session May 11th, “Globalisering i kriminologien og økologisk kriminologi”.

First, I will briefly examine laws and rules regulating wolves in Norway and Sweden since “Lov om Utryddelse af Rovdyr og Fredning af andet Vildt” (Law on Extinction of Carnivores and Protection of other Wildlife) was enforced in Norway in 1845. This section will include comparisons of Norwegian and Swedish management regulations. In Norway, wolves have had the status of a protected species since 1972, but conservation policies remain controversial – and are regularly sabotaged by means of illegal hunting. The same goes for Sweden, which in January orchestrated the first legal wolf hunt for more than a generation.

Second, I will discuss the ethical legitimacy of legal and illegal wolf hunting respectively. How do they compare, in terms of what is justifiable in light of sustainable development etc.? The centrality of this question is evidenced by the fact that a majority of Scandinavian wolves today die in the encounter with a bullet. Even though the motivation of the various shooters varies greatly, the outcome for the wolf is systematically similar. Unlike illegal hunting, legal hunts have the sanction of the law. From a pragmatic standpoint, however, the attempts to negotiate agreement with opponents of conservation policies by allowing or conducting wolf hunts do not seem to have much effect on the level of illegal hunting. Rather than working so as to combat illegal hunting, one could claim that current management strategies rather legitimize wolf hunting as a phenomenon in general.