Key Staff

Helene Sjursen

The ARENA Centre for European Studies is a research centre at the Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Oslo, which is Norway’s largest and oldest university. ARENA is a leading research centre engaged in the exploration of processes of political change in Europe, conducting interdisciplinary and innovative research. ARENA has received international recognition for its theoretical and empirical contributions to knowledge. ARENA’s research group on European foreign policy covers inter alia the EU’s global role, transatlantic relations, diplomacy, the role of norms in EU foreign policy, and institutional developments in EU foreign and security policy. Other key research areas at ARENA include democratic theory, institutional theory, organizational and institutional developments in the EU, constitutionalism, media, civil society, and the public sphere.

ARENA coordinates and participates in a number of large scale EU and nationally funded research projects. Among current projects are the GLOBUS project (‘Reconsidering European Contributions to Global Justice’) coordinated by Helene Sjursen, and the PLATO project (Post-Crisis Legitimacy of the European Union), both funded by the EU’s Horizon 2020 programme.

Offering a stimulating intellectual environment, ARENA attracts highly qualified researchers internationally. ARENA has its own wide-ranging working paper and report series. ARENA hosts MA and PhD students, and staff is involved in teaching activities at the University of Oslo and beyond, as well as in supervising students.

Learn more about the ARENA Centre for European Studies staff involved in RENPET: Helene Sjursen, Johanne Døhlie Saltnes, Tine E. Johnsen Brøgger, Anke Stefanie Schwarzkopf.