What kind of support do people with acquired brain injury and their kin receive from healthcare social workers? And how do they experience that support? These are the main questions in doctoral student Monika Högsnes’ licentiate thesis at the CRS Research School in Sustainable Societal Transformation.

Monika Högsnes is a social worker with a Master’s degree in Social Work. She began her doctoral studies at Karlstad University in spring 2022. Alongside her research, she works as a healthcare social worker at the neurology and rehabilitation clinic at Central Hospital in Karlstad. Her licentiate studies have been funded through a joint initiative by Region Värmland and Karlstad University, and the programme is now close to completion.

How is gender equality work experienced in the workplace – as a shared exploratory journey or as a top‑down verdict? This is what Maja Herstad, doctoral student in sociology at Karlstad University, has investigated. The results show that emotions play a far greater role in this change process than many might assume.

“Emotions are central to gender equality work because they are linked to how we understand our position in a hierarchy and how we make sense of experiences. They influence whether we take action or withdraw,” says Maja Herstad. “Issues related to gender, status and resource distribution can trigger feelings such as irritation, guilt or shame – and these emotions can both drive and hinder change.”

Our society has to change. This will require reducing emissions and energy consumption, but also tools to address challenges such as an ageing population and population decline. The conditions for this transition vary from place to place. The importance of place and the question of justice were at the centre of the CRS symposium Everyday Life and Social and Spatial Planning in Transition.

– Transition affects both what everyday life looks like for those living in places particularly impacted by these challenges, and how local authorities plan for future services, welfare and sustainable development, says Moa Tunström, senior lecturer in human geography and director of the Centre for Research on Sustainable Societal Transformation (CRS). 

How can social services ensure that children who have been subjected to violence receive the support they need and are entitled to? This is the central question in a recently presented licentiate thesis in social work at Karlstad University.

In her thesis, Leigh Ann Loebs, former doctoral student in social work at Karlstad University and now working in Kils municipality, examines how children suspected of having been exposed to violence gain access to interventions from social services, and how team leaders support social workers in identifying and counteracting biases and inequalities in assessments—particularly in relation to children’s gender and family background.

What happens when global and national sustainable development policies are managed in different local conditions? What agency and tools do municipalities and small local communities have in order to manage transition challenges and societal risks? These were questions on the agenda at a symposium organised by the Centre for Research on Sustainable Societal Transformation (CRS).

– This year’s CRS symposium was about how to handle big issues in a small context, says Moa Tunström, senior lecturer in human geography and director of CRS. Big issues of sustainability, justice, gender equality and risk manifest differently in the local context. 

The role of civil society in a democracy 

Keynote speaker was Susanne Wallman Lundåsen, docent in political science at Linköping University. She spoke about the role of civil society in building sustainable local communities and about resilience and resistance to change.

Research on justice in connection with disasters and sustainable development is becoming increasingly important in a world where climate change and social inequalities create new challenges. Mathilde de Goër de Herve, a researcher at the Center for Societal Risk Research, CSR, has explored these critical areas through her work, contributing new knowledge on how crisis management can support a fairer and more sustainable development.

Mathilde's academic journey began in 2012 with studies in economics at Université Lumière Lyon II in France. She came to karlstad university, Kau, during her bachelor (as an exchange student). Her interest in global issues and disaster risks led her to further her education in sustainable territorial development through an international master’s degree.