Peer-reviews conducted for IACS6

I have recently conducted peer-review of two proposed panels (with individual abstracts) for the Sixth Conference of the International Association for Cognitive Semiotics (IACS6), which is to take place in Rome, Italy, June 4-6th 2026, as a member of the conference´s scientific committee.

CCS paper proposal for IAEP rejected

I have been notified by the organisers of the 2026 digital conference of the International Association for Environmental Philosophy (IAEP) that my paper "The ethical case against Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS)" has been rejected.

#25,5

Over the last two days I have had half an article writing day, with meetings held in relation to the articles "Når gode råd er plagsomme", which I co-write with Svein Tuastad, and "The rights and living conditions of unaccompanied minor migrants in the Schengen Area", which I co-write with Maren Sagvaag Retland. This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 25,5, including 17,5 article writing days.

Paper «What Characterizes a More-than-Human Phenomenology Suitable for the Anthropocene?» scheduled for presentation April 23rd at NoSP 2026 in Tampere

I have been notified by the conference organizers of the Annual conference of the Nordic Society for Phenomenology (NoSP 2026), which is to be held at Tampere University, Finland, April 22–24 2026, that my paper «What Characterizes a More-than-Human Phenomenology Suitable for the Anthropocene?» has been scheduled for oral presentation as part of the session «Uexküll’s Environments and Lifeworlds», which will take place in Linna K109 on Thursday April 23rd at 11:30–13:00.

See also the full program and the abstract book of the conference.

Edits performed in six SNL encyclopedia entries

Minor edits I have made previously have now been approved in six encyclopedia articles in Store Norske Leksikon (SNL), namely "antroposentrisk", "dypøkologi", "dyreetikk", "miljøfilosofi", "rettssubjekt" and "økosofi".

#25

Today I have had half a book writing day, with research done concerning industry news and other news related to climate change and particularly carbon capture and storage (CCS) in preparation for my forthcoming book Carbon Capture and the Future of Environmentalism. This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 25, including 8 book writing days.

Essay on longtermism published in Salongen

Earlier this week, my essay "På sporet av en tapt fremtid" (roughly translating to "In search of a lost future"), which deals with longtermism, was published online in Salongen - nettidsskrift for filosofi og idéhistorie. 

Reference:

— Tønnessen, Morten 2026. På sporet av en tapt fremtid. Essay. Salongen – nettidsskrift for filosofi og idéhistorie (Salongen.no). Published March 9th 2026. URL: https://www.salongen.no/essay/pa-sporet-av-en-tapt-fremtid/262022 

5 exam papers graded from continuation exam in Ex.phil.

I have just finished grading five exam papers in Ex.phil., which is part of University of Stavanger´s bachelor in psychology, related to the continuation exam in the course.

#24,5

Today I have had a book writing day, with some 100 words added to my book manuscript in spe Being and Sign. Moreover, I researched industry news and other news related to climate change and particularly carbon capture and storage (CCS) in preparation for my forthcoming book Carbon Capture and the Future of Environmentalism. Finally, I pondered upon writing a Norwegian language philosophy text book. This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 24,5, including 7,5 book writing days.

Joining Scientific Committee of 2026 "Biennial Meeting of the Polish Association for CogSci"

I have accepted to join the Scientific Committe of the conference "Biennial Meeting of the Polish Association for CogSci", with the theme «Making Sense of Meaning-making», which is to be held in Lublin, Poland September 21–23rd.

5,000 reads of chapter "Introduction: The semiotics of animal representations" on ResearchGate

According to ResearchGate our chapter "Introduction: The semiotics of animal representations" (co-written with Kadri Tüür) has reached 5,000 reads on their platform.  Read the chapter here.

#23,5; longtermism essay accepted and revised; Palgrave chapter proposal accepted

Today I have had half a book writing day and half an article writing day. 

For the book writing day, I researched industry news and other news related to climate change and particularly carbon capture and storage (CCS) in preparation for my forthcoming book Carbon Capture and the Future of Environmentalism. 

For the article writing day, I conducted minor revisions of my article "På sporet av en tapt fremtid" (roughly translating to "In search of a lost future") which is now accepted and forthcoming in Salongen - nettidsskrift for filosofi og idéhistorie. Moreover, I did some initial planning concerning my paper "Ecosemiotic questions: Towards a comprehensive description of the complexity and creativity of life", which has now been accepted (as a chapter proposal - cf. previous post) for inclusion in the book Creativity – Complexity – Intelligence, Semiotic Perspectives on the Emergence of Meaning (to appear in the book series "Palgrave Studies in Creativity and Culture") by the book´s editors (Merit Maran, Lauri Linask and Merja Bauters). 

This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 23,5, including 17 article writing days and 6,5 book writing days.

#22,5

Today I have had an article writing day, with some 300 words added to the article "Når gode råd er plagsomme" (When good advice is bothersome) which I co-write with Svein Tuastad. This included composing two tables for the article´s climate policy case study. Moreover, I conducted a literature search on expertise and deliberative democracy theory.

This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 22,5, including 16,5 article writing days.

Google Scholar: 1.554 citations; h-index of 22

According to my Google Scholar profile my research has attracted a total of 1.554 citations (+17 since February 2nd). This includes 168 citations in 2025 (+3 since February 2nd) and 20 citations so far in 2026 (+6). My h-index is now 22 (+1 since February 2nd), while my i10-index remains 46. The h-index implies that 22 of my texts have been cited at least 22 times each.

The latest addition to my h-index list of publications appears to be "Methodology of zoosemiotics: Concepts, categorisations, models", which I co-wrote with Timo Maran, Kadri Tüür, Riin Magnus, Silver Rattasepp and Nelly Mäekivi and which was published in 2016. This chapter has according to Google Scholar´s count been cited 22 times, including two citations in 2025.

Two abstracts submitted to ISQOLS 2026 organizers

I have just composed and submitted the abstracts below to the organizers of the ISQOLS 2026 Annual Conference, "Beyond the Bluegrass: Harnessing Research to Enhance Quality-of-Life", which is to be held in Kentucky, USA, August 11-14.

*

Climate imaginaries and the contested future of economic growth

KEYWORDS: Climate economics; climate imaginaries; degrowth; economic growth; green growth  

Conflicting views on economic growth comprise a controversial issue related to climate economics. While the mainstream of climate economists assert that continued and practically endless economic growth can be taken for granted, critics dispute this and advance alternative economic ideas about a post-growth, degrowth or steady-state economy. Growth of different magnitudes is likewise expected according to most climate scenarios. I assess different ideas about economic growth in the climate discourse by relating them to the notion of climate imaginaries, which can be understood as socio-semiotic systems of shared ideas about issues related to climate change. The powerful influence of climate imaginaries can be decisive with regard to how climate policy and governance is understood and implemented, for instance whether incremental or radical change is pursued. Climate imaginaries range from anticipating apocalypse or radical societal change to relying on business-as-usual scenarios or techno-optimism. Core issues in climate ethics related to equity and intergenerational justice are often framed on the background of the common expectation that future generations will be better off in economic terms. Using climate imaginaries to frame a discussion of conflicting views on the future of economic growth, I will trace the history of green growth and degrowth ideas as applied to the climate issue, with a main focus on the last 30–40 years.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES / TAKEAWAYS  

* Expectations about future economic growth matters for policy discussions 

* Climate scenarios incorporate only one side of the debate (pro-growth) 

* Criticism of mainstream climate economics is required to account for future welfare

*

Alternative HDI thresholds for maximum income demonstrate significance for policy advice  

KEYWORDS: human development; Human Development Index; income; methodology, UNDP

For several years, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) misquoted Kahneman & Deaton´s article “High income improves evaluation of life but not emotional well-being” (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), 2010) in its technical notes, which describes its methodology for computing the Human Development Index (HDI). This article was erroneously used as basis for capping Gross National Income (GNI) per capita at $75,000. Since the HDRO23/24 Technical notes, released in Spring 2024, the reference to Kahneman & Deaton has been removed in the UNDP´s methodological descriptions, but when computing the HDI the UNDP still caps Gross National Income (GNI) per capita at $75,000. On the background of how the HDI is currently computed, the UNDP has been criticized for promoting policies that weaken environmental sustainability by presenting rich yet unsustainable Western countries as role models for economic development. I will describe how the HDI´s income metrics have changed over time, and outline what difference it would make for HDI rankings of various countries if Gross National Income (GNI) per capita were capped at a) a level just above extreme poverty ($1.095); b) the world average ($20.327); c) the OECD average ($52.698), or d) kept but without any maximum. As these alternative HDI computations will show, simply changing the maximum threshold for income per capita radically changes what countries appear as role models for human development.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES / TAKEAWAYS  

* The Human Development Index´ maximum income threshold is not justified by current research 

* With a high maximum threshold for income, rich yet unsustainable Western countries appear as role models for human development 

* Alternative HDI computations, with different thresholds for maximum income, demonstrate what difference these metrics make for policy advice

#21,5

Today I have had an article writing day, with some 200 words atted to the refugee-themed article I am co-writing with Maren Sagvaag Retland, "The rights and living conditions of unaccompanied minor migrants in the Schengen Area", and some key readings done. This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 21,5, including 15,5 article writing days.

This concludes my academic writing in February, which added up to 4.816 words written over 11 writing days (8.002 words so far this year).

Dialogue meeting with Norwegian Food Safety Authority on animal welfare regulations in aquaculture attended

Today I have attended an online "Dialogue meeting" with Mattilsynet (the Norwegian Food Safety Authority) in relation to their ongoing work on regulatory development concerning animal welfare in aquaculture. I attended as one of the representatives of Norway´s Council for Animal Ethics, along with the council´s Secretary, Lina Ahlén and three others. Three animal welfare/rights organizations also took part.

#20,5

Today I have had what ended up as half an article writing day, with some initial work done in relation to my planned book review of Interpreting, Communication and Animal Welfare for Biosemiotics. Moreover, I added some 100 words to my Salongen article on longtermism, "På sporet av en tapt fremtid" (roughly translating to "In search of a lost future"), and finished and submitted the article to Salongen - nettidsskrift for filosofi og idéhistorie. Finally, I pondered about whether or not I had any essential corrections for the forthcoming paperback edition of Bloomsbury semiotics, which includes my chapter "Semiotics in Ethology and Zoology". This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 20,5, including 14,5 article writing days.

#20

Yesterday I had half an article writing day, with some 950 words added to the Salongen article I am writing on longtermism, now titled "På sporet av en tapt fremtid" (which roughly translates to "In search of a lost future"). This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 20, including 14 article writing days.

#19,5

Today I have had half an article writing day, with some 1.100 words added to the Salongen article I am writing on longtermism. This was the most productive writing day so far this year in terms of words written. This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 19,5, including 13,5 article writing days.

#19

Today I have had an article writing day, with some 700 words added to the Salongen article I am writing on longtermism, and preporatory readings completed. This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 19, including 13 article writing days.

#18

Today I have had a book writing day, with research done on industry news and other news on carbon capture and storage and related topics, and the final design of the book cover chosen for my forthcoming scientific monograph Carbon Capture and the Future of Environmentalism (contracted with Bloomsbury Academic). Moreover, I revised writing plans for the next month, considering when the peer-review of the manuscript will likely be in. Finally, I did some reading related to my scientific monograph in spe Being and Sign.

This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 18, including 6 book writing days.

Consultative meeting attended for Council for animal ethics at Norway´s Ministry of Finance

Today I attended a meeting at the Norwegian Ministry of Finance, in Oslo, representing Norway´s Council for animal ethics (along with the council´s secretary Lina Ahlén and chair Knut E. Bøe) in a consultation a committe that is tasked with suggesting changes to the ethics framework of the Norwegian "oil fund" (formally called Government Pension Fund Global, or Statens Pensjonsfond Utland in Norwegian) organized with selected civil society organizations. Lina and I jointly presented "SPU og dyrevelferd" (Government Pension Fund Global and animal welfare), with definitions, information and recommendations addressed to the committee.

#17

Today I have had an article writing day, with some 300 words added to the article "Når gode råd er plagsomme" (When good advice is bothersome) which I co-write with Svein Tuastad. This also included finishing the media search and analysis related to the article´s climate policy case study. 

This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 17, including 12 article writing days.

#16

Today I have had what ended up as half an article writing day, with a few words added to the Salongen article I am writing on longtermism, and some key readings done. This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 16, including 11 article writing days.

#15,5

Today I have had a book writing day, with some 300 words added to the manuscript of my scientific monograph Being and Sign, for which I drafted (parts of?) the preface. Moreover, I researched industry news and other news on carbon capture and storage and related topics. This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 15,5, including 5 book writing days.

Rejected by Œconomia – History / Methodology / Philosophy

I have been notified that my proposed paper "Climate economics imaginaries and the contested future of economic growth" has been rejected and will thus not be included in the journal Œconomia – History / Methodology / Philosophy's forthcoming special issue "History of Climate Economics".

#14,5

Today I have had an article writing day, with some 800 words added to Store Norske Leksikon, primarily the new encyclopedia article "miljøetikk" (environmental ethics), but also links to that article from a number of related articles. This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 14,5, including 10,5 article writing days.

#13,5

Today I have had an article writing day, with some 250 words added to a popular scientific article on longtermism for Salongen. This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 13,5, including 9,5 article writing days.

Abstract for 26th Gathering in biosemiotics: "Life in Earth – a new look at the nature of life"

I have just composed and submitted the abstract below to the organizers of the 26th Gathering in Biosemiotics, which will be held in Sheffield, UK, July July 27-31st.

***

Life in Earth – a new look at the nature of life  

Morten Tønnessen  

The global survey of biomass by Bar-On, Phillips and Milo (2018) has shown that subterranean life occurs at far greater depths, and is more abundant, than previously assumed. Life in the marine deep subsurface, i.e., subterranean life under the oceans, is actually more abundant than life in the oceans (ibid., see also Ruff et al. 2024). The existence of microbial, fungal and animal subterranean lifeforms raises ethical and political questions about the consequences of human activities in the marine deep subsurface and other subterranean environments.

As Dunn (2021) narrates, human beings are biased towards the organisms that look the most like us and inhabit a similar environment, while we habitually ignore the majority of odd and unfamiliar lifeforms. We know relatively little about the life that dwells in deep-sea environments – and even less about life in the deep subsurface. As is well known, photosynthesis is the dominant source of oxygen for most organisms. However, recent research documenting the assembly of ‘dark oxygen’ in deep-sea environments in the Pacific Ocean has revealed that photosynthesis is not the only source of oxygen on Earth (Sweatman et al. 2024). A further source appears to be ‘geo-batteries’ related to seawater electrolysis in seafloor areas covered by polymetallic nodules, i.e. multimetallic lumps. This discovery might change our outlook on how life has developed, and particularly our understanding of life in deep-sea and seafloor environments.

Recent research has further established that subseafloor cavities beneath hydrothermal vents are inhabited not only by microbes and viruses, but also by animals such as tubeworms and mussels (Bright, Gollner et al. 2024). Three tubeworm species included in the study of Bright, Gollner et al. (2024) uniquely rely entirely on a bacterial symbiont, which in turn “live off the chemicals released by the vents” for nutrition (The Economist, 2024). These tubeworms living in a subsurface environment below the seabed do not rely on nutrition originating from the surface – and ultimately photosynthesis drawn from energy from the sun – but rather on nutrients originating from deep inside Earth. This recent discovery of animal habitats in the subseafloor “expands the known macrofaunal biosphere” to new depths that was entirely unknown until a couple of years ago (Bright, Gollner et al. 2024: 2).

Based on these recent scientific findings, I will briefly discuss these core questions: To the best of our current knowledge, what is the full range of liveable environments on Earth, and the full spectrum of lifeforms on Earth? How do these discoveries change our outlook on the lifeworlds and biosemiosis of animals and other organisms, and how can they inform our efforts to develop more representative lifeworld models in biosemiotics?  

REFERENCES 

Bar-On, Y. M., R. Phillips and R. Milo (2018). The biomass distribution on Earth. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), 115 (25): 6506–11. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1711842115. Includes Supplementary Information Appendix, https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.1711842115#supplementary-materials. 

Bright, M., S. Gollner et al. (2024), ‘Animal life in the shallow subseafloor crust at deep-sea hydrothermal vents’, Nature Communications, 15: 8466. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-52631-9 

Dunn, Rob (2021). A Natural History of the Future: What the Laws of Biology Tell Us About the Destiny of the Human Species. Basic Books. 

The Economist (2024), ‘Life finds a way: Tubeworms live beneath the planetary crust around deep-sea vents’. Available online: https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2024/10/16/tubeworms-live-beneath-the-planetary-crust-around-deep-sea-vents 

Ruff, S. E. et al. (2024), ‘A global comparison of surface and subsurface microbiomes reveals large-scale biodiversity gradients, and a marine-terrestrial divide’, Science Advances, 10 (51): eadq0645. 

Sweatman, A. K. et al. (2024), ‘Evidence of dark oxygen production at the abyssal seafloor’, Nature Geoscience, 17: 737–9. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-024-01480-8

Joint abstract for 26th Gathering in Biosemiotics: "Ecosemiotics and Environmental Philosophy"

Jonathan Beever and I have just composed and submitted the abstract below to the organisers of the 26th Gathering in Biosemiotics, which will be held in Sheffield, UK, July July 27-31st.

***

Ecosemiotics and Environmental Philosophy

This presentation examines ecosemiotics´ relation to environmental philosophy: how has it interwoven with other approaches, and how can it support the future of environmental philosophy? We argue that ecosemiotics’ fundamental relationality offers both strong parallels to and novel perspectives on environmental phenomenology, aesthetics, hermeneutics, and ethics, articulating how ecosemiotics can respond to contemporary debates in environmental philosophy. Ecosemiotics’ novel Peircean and Uexküllian representationalism acts as a thread running through environmental philosophical traditions. Researchers have advanced relational perspectives in environmental ethics deeply informed by ecosemiotics, like Beever and Tønnessen, who argue – for example – that accounts of intrinsic value in nature can be strengthened by appeals to biosemiotics accounts of life-worlds. Key figures in environmental philosophy have cited ecosemiotic figures directly, like Merleau-Ponty’s references to Uexküll that anticipate the emergence of ecophenomenology in environmental philosophy. Other contemporary figures have developed ecosemiotic positions in traditional environmental philosophical areas in order to offer novel and more robust articulations, like Tønnessen’s Uexküllian reading of phenomenology, that pursues Merleau-Ponty and the late Husserl along biosemiotic lines. In this presentation, we draw attention to these threads throughout enviornmental philosophy, and anticipate the possibility of a John Deely-esque project of weaving semiotic threads together in environmental philosophy to fundamentally reorient perceptions of the field and to resolve some old tensions (like around disputes on the metaphysics of deep ecology, concerns about deprioritizing human value, and under-evidenced claims about environmental capacities) with the introduction of an empirically-grounded science of signs and meaning-in-environments. Not only does such a project support ongoing research in environmental philosophy, it can furthermore reshape pedagogical approaches to the field, opening space for a re-telling of the history of environmental philosophy that is grounded in the study of signs. Our presentation will conclude with a foray into the possibility of semiosis of artificial agents and its implications for extensions in environmental philosophy beyond mere «natural» environments.

#12,5

Today I have had an article writing day, with work done related to the article "Når gode råd er plagsomme" (When good advice is bothersome) which I co-write with Svein Tuastad. This included continuing conducting the media search and analysis related to the article´s climate policy case study.  This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 12,5, including 8,5 article writing days.

#11,5

Today I have had an article writing day, with work done related to the article "Når gode råd er plagsomme" (When good advice is bothersome) which I co-write with Svein Tuastad. This included continuing conducting the media search and analysis related to the article´s climate policy case study.

This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 11,5, including 7,5 article writing days.

Google Scholar: 1.537 citations; 2025 now fourth best year

According to my Google Scholar profile my research has attracted a total of 1.537 citations (+31 since December 31st 2025). This includes 165 citations in 2025 (+17 since December 31st) and 14 citations so far in 2026 (+14). 2025 now stands as my fourth best year in terms of number of citations, behind 2024 (226), 2022 (197) and 2023 (185) but ahead of 2021 (154). 

My h-index remains 21, and my i10-index 46.

Peer review

I have recently done a peer review for Law and humanities review.

30 posts for 2025 registered in Nasjonalt Vitenarkiv (NVA)

I have now finished registering publications and academic activities in Nasjonalt Vitenarkiv (NVA), which has replaced Current Research Information System in Norway (CRIStin). For 2025 I registered 30 posts, which is a quite normal number of posts for me per year. Altogether, since 2012, I am registered with 417 posts, cf. my profile. Registrations for 2025 include 4 scientific conference presentations, 2 chronicles, 3 journal articles, 3 book chapters, 1 book review, 1 TV interview, and 1 encyclopedia article, among other entries.

Chapter proposal for Palgrave book "Creativity - Complexity - Intelligence"

I have just finished a chapter proposal titled "Ecosemiotic questions: Towards a comprehensive description of the complexity and creativity of life", and submitted it to the editors of the prospective book volume Creativity – Complexity – Intelligence, Semiotic Perspectives on the Emergence of Meaning (Palgrave Studies in Creativity and Culture). 

This concludes my academic writing in January, with a total of 3.186 words written.

Phenomenology paper accepted for 2026 NoSP conference (Tampere, Finland)

I have been informed by the organizers of the 2026 conference of the Nordic Society for Phenomenology (NoSP), to be held at Tampere University, in Tampere, Finland April 22–24, 2026 with the theme “Phenomenology in the Anthropocene”, that my paper “What characterizes a more-than-human phenomenology suitable for the Anthropocene?” has been accepted for oral presentation.

#10,5

Today I have had a book writing day, with CCS industry news and other climate news processed and researched. This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 10,5, including 4 book writing days.

Altogether in January I had 10,5 writing days.

Proposal submitted to 2026 IAEP organizers: "The ethical case against Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS)"

I have just submitted the abstract and proposal below to the organisers of the 2026 digital conference of the International Association for Environmental Philosophy (IAEP).

***

The ethical case against Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS)  

SHORT ABSTRACT  

Based on ethical considerations, this paper argues against the use of Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) as a climate mitigation measure. CCS has become increasingly central as a proposed mitigation measure. However, despite the widespread claim and perception that CCS is a necessity, CCS as practiced to date has been found to be net CO2 additive, and the Net Zero goal has been misappropriated by fossil fuel interests. Key arguments against CCS are derived from the perspective of interspecies justice, and from the perspective of intergenerational justice and fairness. In the latter context, CCS exemplifies unfair intergenerational externalization of costs.  

PROPOSAL 

In the global discourse, CCS has become increasingly central as a proposed mitigation measure, particularly after Net Zero targets were added to the global agenda with full force with the Paris agreement. The Net Zero goal presupposes Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR), which may involve the use of so-called negative emission technologies (NETs), which in turn in some cases involve CCS. The Net Zero goal has arguably been misappropriated by fossil fuel interests and their allies to promote an agenda that seeks to avoid rapidly phasing out fossil fuels. Despite the widespread claim and perception that CCS is a necessity, CCS as practiced to date has been found to be net CO2 additive (Sekera and Lichtenberger 2020). In the big picture emission reductions from CCS are uncertain, whereas research has established that CCS mitigation measures result in mitigation deterrence and climate delay.

Regrettably, CCS has not triggered much debate in climate ethics. On a general note, I find it disappointing that anthropocentric perspectives predominate in climate ethics given that some of the most prominent philosophers engaged with climate ethics, such as Dale Jamieson (2010) and Peter Singer (2009), are well-known for their work in animal ethics. Still, neither of them emphasize interspecies justice in the context of climate ethics (see also Callicott 2011). Interspecies justice is particularly relevant in ethical discussions about CCS in two ways: Firstly, in so far as CCS policies contribute to allowing continued greenhouse gas emissions and an overshoot in emissions, this will contribute to exacerbate the impact of climate change, including for non-humans. Secondly, in so far as non-humans are harmfully affected by the transportation of CO2 and long-term dedicated geological storage of CO2 in subsurface environments, this is a direct consequence of CCS policies. This point is particularly pertinent in light of recent scientific discoveries concerning life dwelling in deep-sea and subsurface environments, which include animal habitats in the subsurface (Bright, Gollner et al. 2024). Lastly, while future generations is a common concern in environmental ethics, this perspective have not received much attention in the context of CCS. With its required time horizon of at least 10,000 years for underground CO2 storages (Lindeberg 2003), CCS is a perfect example of intergenerational externalization of costs in a climate change context. This arguably makes CCS unacceptable from the perspective of intergenerational justice and fairness. In this context, the lacklustre climate effects of CCS to date, the widespread political willingness to rely on unproven technologies, and the lack of consensus among researchers on acceptable CO2 leakage rates, is especially concerning.   

REFERENCES 

Bright, M., S. Gollner et al. (2024), ‘Animal life in the shallow subseafloor crust at deep-sea hydrothermal vents’, Nature Communications, 15: 8466. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-52631-9  

Callicott, J. B. (2011), ‘The temporal and spatial scales of global climate change and the limits of individualistic and rationalistic ethics’, Royal Institute of Philosophy Supplement, 69: 101–16. 

Jamieson, D. (2010), ‘Climate change, responsibility, and justice’, Science and Engineering Ethics, 16: 431–45. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11948-009-9174-x  

Lindeberg, E. (2003), ‘The quality of a CO2 repository: What is the sufficient retention time of CO2 stored underground’, in J. Gale and Y. Kaya (eds), Proceedings of Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies 6th International Conference (GHGT-6), 255–60, Elsevier Science Ltd. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-008044276-1/50041-6  

Sekera, J. and A. Lichtenberger (2020), ‘Assessing carbon capture: Public policy, science, and societal need: Review of the literature on industrial carbon removal’, Biophysical Economics and Sustainability, 5: 14. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41247-020-00080-5  

Singer, P. (2009), ‘Climate change as an ethical issue’, in J. Moss (ed), Climate Change and Social Justice, 39–51, Melbourne: Melbourne University Press.

#9,5

Today I have had half an article writing day, with a work meeting attended in relation to the refugee-themed article I am co-writing with Maren Sagvaag Retland, "The rights and living conditions of unaccompanied minor migrants in the Schengen Area". This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 9,5, including 6,5 article writing days.

#9

Today I have had an article writing day, with some 700 words written in the process of writing most of a chapter proposal, work-titled "Ecosemiotic questions: Towards a general description of the creativity of life". This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 9, including 6 article writing days.

#8

Today I have had what ended up as half an article writing day, with some 350 words including a table added to the refugee-themed article I am co-writing with Maren Sagvaag Retland, which is work-titled "The rights and living conditions of unaccompanied minor migrants in the Schengen Area". This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 8, including 5 article writing days.

#7,5

Today I have had a book writing day, with research done on current industry news and other news related to carbon capture and more generally the climate issue. This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 7,5, including 3 book writing days.

#6,5

Today I have had an article writing day, with some 100 words added to the article "Når gode råd er plagsomme" (When good advice is bothersome) which I co-write with Svein Tuastad. Most importantly, I continued conducting the media search and analysis related to the article´s climate policy case study.

This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 6,5, including 4,5 article writing days.

Umwelt theory and phenomenology article lauded in 2024 semiotics review article

In the article "Technological futures in semiotics: The year 2024 in review", published in Sign Systems Studies, Auli Viidalepp and Alin Olteanu have some kind words about my research related to Umwelt theory and its relevance for phenomenology. The article they refer to is "Applied umwelt theory in the context of phenomenological triangulation and descriptive phenomenology", which is openly available online.

Excerpt:

Drawing on umwelt theory, Morten Tønnessen (2024) takes new steps towards a more-than-human descriptive phenomenology. The value of his contribution as an integral and transdisciplinary framework cannot be overestimated. Tønnessen also indicates potential further applicability of the applied umwelt theory across 17 fields of research that study the perception and behaviour of humans and/or animals. To name a few less common perspectives, this framework could help in behavioural reframing of human ecology, address Anthropocene discourses in environmental humanities, model potential lifeworlds for astrobiology, or enrich psychological lifeworld studies, especially in “socio-ecological contexts and settings that involve human–animal interaction” (Tønnessen 2024: 334). The theory is also relevant for well-established epistemic communities such as the fields of sociology, political science, anthropology, (behavioural) economics, speculative and futures studies, and many others (Tønnessen 2024). In similar lines, we note Anton Markoš and Jana Švorcová’s (2024) theoretical development of the umwelt theory in regard to symbiosis.

#5,5

Today I have had a book writing day, with some 100 words written on my scientific monograph in spe Being and Sign, and - more importantly - some readings done. This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 5,5, including 2 book writing days.

#4,5

Today I have had an article writing day, with some 600 words written in the process of composing an extended abstract for the article now titled "Climate economics imaginaries and the contested future of economic growth", which I have submitted to a special issue on the history of climate economics of the journal Œconomia – History / Methodology / Philosophy. This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 4,5, including 3,5 article writing days.

Program council now featured on Wonderful World festival´s homepage

The program council for Wonderful World - Den nordiske festivalen for filosofi og vitenskap is now featured on the festival´s homepage.

#3,5

Today I have had an article writing day, with some 100 words added to the article "Når gode råd er plagsomme" (When good advice is bothersome) which I co-write with Svein Tuastad. Most importantly, I started conducting the media search and analysis related to the article´s climate policy case study.

I also communicated with Store Norske Leksikon editorial staff on my assignments for 2026, and read and assessed peer-reviews (organised by Residential Treatment for Children & Youth) of the article "Friluftsliv in therapeutic residential care: When staff take youth out to find a way in", which I co-write with Joakim Jiri Haaland.

This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 3,5, including 2,5 article writing days. 

#2,5

Today I have had a book writing day, with some 800 words added to the manuscript of my scientific monograph in spe Being and Sign. This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 2,5, including 1 book writing day.

#1,5

Today I have had half an article writing day, with some 200 words added to the article "Når gode råd er plagsomme" (When good advice is bothersome) which I co-write with Svein Tuastad. Moreover, I looked into a revised version of a Live Better article manuscript. Finally; I prepared and submitted the manuscript "Kan velferd og miljø måles i forlengelsen av BNP?", which I have co-written with Jan Karlstrøm, to Samfunn og økonomi.

This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 1,5.

#1

Today I have had half an article writing day, with some 150 words added to the article "Når gode råd er plagsomme" (When good advice is bothersome) which I co-write with Svein Tuastad. This brings the number of writing days so far this Spring up to 1.

91 exam papers graded

Over the last few weeks I have graded 91 exam papers in Ex.phil. at University of Stavanger´s Department of social studies. The course is tailored for the university´s bachelor in psychology.

Online semiotics workshop for University of Oran1 – Algeria scheduled, then delayed

I was scheduled to present a paper titled «Semiotics, animals, environment – Umwelt theory in the tradition of the Tartu-Copenhagen school of biosemiotics» online for University of Oran1 – Algeria, on Thursday January 8th, but pending formal approval this workshop has now been indeterminately delayed.

Writing plan for Spring 2026 completed

I have now completed my writing plan for Spring 2026. I plan for a total of 59,5 writing days, including 45 article writing days (76%) and 14,5 book writing days (24%). This is somewhat less than last Spring (68,5 writing days initially planned) but more than Spring 2024 (47,5 writing days initially planned).

See also:

#0,5; writing plan for Spring 2025 almost finished

Book review on research methododology now online

My book review "Kritisk realisme for viderekomne samfunnsvitere", which appeared in issue 2, 2025 of Fontene Forskning, is now also available as an online article.

See also:

Book review on critical realism published in Fontene Forskning

#0,5; writing plan for Spring 2025 almost finished

Yesterday, on my way back from New Year festivities with friends in Oslo, I had half an article writing day devoted to making a writing plan for Spring 2026 (January to June). I had previously made plans for January, and now made further plans for February until early June. I have to finish up today. 

This brings the number of writing days this Spring up to 0,5 (thus the title "#0,5").

Summing up the work year 2025

I have just summed up my work year in 2025 based on my log of working hours. 2025 was my second shortest work year in living memory (with my work log going back to 2009), with an average work week of 46,2 hours all weeks in the year included. This amounts to 2409 work hours, which compares to 143% of an ordinary work year. 

This year I also summed up my work/life balance, focused on sleeplessness, karate training and meditation.

Overall, the work year was characterized by making room for finishing the manuscript for my book originally titled Captured: CCS and the fight for the soul of the environmental movement and now titled Carbon Capture and the Future of Environmentalism. I so did, in early August 2025. In my work log, this is reflected in the fact that book projects had the highest share of total work on record, and ended up as the largest category of work for the first time. Moreover, the share of my work time I spent on research plus book projects was the highest ever. Book projects was also the category whose share of all work hours increased the most from 2024. 

See also:

Summing up the work year 2022

2024: Shortest work year in living memory, at "only" 138% of normal work year

Academic readings 2025; most read authors

Over the last year I have logged academic readings amounting to 5.357,5 pages. This is somewhat less than in 2024, but somewhat more than what I read in 2023. Altogether I logged texts written by 350 different authors. On the 40 most read authors, 27 were duty-related (related to teaching, supervision, committee work etc (including 12 of the 20 most read authors). Among the most read authors were Martin Bech Holthe, Krystof Kasprzak and Thomas Hylland Eriksen.