Centre of Anthropocene History at the Division of History of Science, Technology and Environment
We are beyond proud to share the news that Sabine Höhler and the Division has been rewarded nearly 30 million Swedish kronor by VR (the Swedish Research Council) to establish a Centre of Excellence in Anthropocene History. The funds will be distributed over five years, with potential for prolongation after evaluation.
The Centre of Anthropocene History will launch on January 1st, 2024. It is a long-term hub for a novel approach to modern and contemporary history, aiming to reform historical research and develop a new understanding of modern human and Earth history by using the notion of the Anthropocene as both object and mode of study. Sabine Höhler will lead the center together with Division collaborators Susanna Lidström, Kati Lindström, Sverker Sörlin and Adam Wickberg.
In its funding decision, VR states that "this proposal takes an important and potentially highly promising approach to scholarship into the Anthropocene. Organized in large and ambitious research lines, the proposed centre promises to educate a cohort of scholars of the Anthropocene with a comprehensive horizon and the clear capacity to enter into new interdisciplinary configurations. It is driven by a distinguished applicant and an excellent and highly diverse group of participating scholars."
This year, VR decided to support 15 of 124 proposals that demonstrated great potential for innovative research. The purpose of the grant is to offer long-term funding for innovative ideas that can produce ground-breaking research results, something that is made possible by the design of the grant.
Centre of Anthropocen History Abstract
We will establish a Center of Anthropocene History at the KTH Royal Institute of Technology. The Center will be a long-term hub for a novel approach to modern and contemporary history, aiming to reform historical research and develop a new understanding of modern human and Earth history by using the notion of the Anthropocene as both object and mode of study. The Center will do fundamental and mission oriented research, both disciplinary and interdisciplinary. It will teach and host advanced graduate and PhD students from KTH and other universities in Sweden and around the world. It will communicate this new history widely and apply, through societal collaboration, a comprehensive inquiry into some of the central features that have shaped and continue to shape the conditions of our contemporary world. We posit that this is among the most important work that historians can do in the current era – to advance knowledge and to contribute to solving pressing concerns. Through our own faculty and staff and with the help of partner institutions and a set of visiting scholars and scientists, we intend to build a dynamic environment for continuous training and experience. It will integrate an Anthropocene graduate school for PhD students and postdocs and an advanced Anthropocene History stream in our upcoming Environmental Humanities Master Program (expected to start in 2024).
Team
