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• 2025-10-20

  Academic Celebration inspired by trust

  The theme of the Academic Celebration 2025 was trust, which was evident in both the morning event at Karlstad CCC and the afternoon ceremony in Aula Magna. The ceremony was recorded and is available on the university’s Youtube channel.

  The Academic Celebration on Friday 17 October started at Karlstad CCC, where nine newly appointed professors presented their research in the hall Lerinsalen, which was nearly full. After the presentations, the moderator, Jan van Stam, professor of physical chemistry, held a talk on this year’s theme, trust, together with the honorary doctors Catriona Kennedy, Brian Hudson and Alan L. Smith.

• 2025-10-20

  Opening of new research centre: “We want to create a knowledge hub”

  Thursday, 16 October, marked the official opening of the National Research Centre for Youth Sports (NCYS).
  – We want to create a knowledge hub for both research and practice, in the form of federations and associations, says Henrik Gustafsson, professor of sports science.

  As the director and head of research of NCYS, he hosted the opening ceremony at lunchtime on Thursday, 16 October. He explains that research into youth sports in Karlstad dates back to the 1980s, that this research has expanded significantly over the past two decades, and that the aim of the activities at NCYS is to create a sustainable and inclusive sports environment for young people. 

  – In close collaboration with the sports movement.

• 2025-10-15

  Meet Markus Lundström – new professor of sociology with a focus on the unseen

  – I want to shed light on the unseen – and the gaze that fails to see, says Markus Lundström, who conducts research on racism, nationalism and political action.

  He is looking forward to contributing his expertise in historical sociology at Karlstad University, and dreams about creating an interdisciplinary forum for critical time studies.

  Before coming to Karlstad University, Markus Lundström held a position at Mid Sweden University. His academic career started with studies in global development and international relations.

  What attracted you to Karlstad University?

  – The university offers an exciting and dynamic research environment with great openness to interdisciplinary approaches to societal issues and challenges.

• 2025-10-15

  Värmland-based companies strengthened through gender and inclusion

  The research project Gennovation at Karlstad University aims to provide small and medium-sized enterprises in Värmland with better conditions for growth and enhanced competitiveness.

  By integrating gender, equality, and inclusion as strategic tools for business development and innovation, the project seeks to contribute to more sustainable regional development.

  Gennovation is a four-year project funded by the Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth (Tillväxtverket), Region Värmland, and Karlstad University. It is a collaboration between the Centre for Gender Studies (CGF) and the Service Research Center (CTF).

• 2025-10-10

  New research shows how traditional industries can transition towards a circular economy

  In the article “Towards High Circularity: Reconfiguring Firm-level Strategy”, researchers Andrey Abadzhiev and Alexandre Sukhov, both from Karlstad Business School and the Service Research Center, want to inspire hope among companies in conservative industries that are seeking to transition towards more circular and sustainable solutions.

  What does circular economy actually mean – and how does it differ from a traditional linear economy?

  – Economics is fundamentally about creating value through the redistribution of resources, says Alexandre Sukhov. In a linear economy, we tend to create value by extracting raw materials, producing and selling products, but we also lose value by considering consumed products as waste once they have been used and fulfilled their purpose. It’s from that perspective that the manufacturing industry has been streamlined.

• 2025-10-10

  Idea development – from idea to reality

  In her doctoral thesis, Jana Huck, who recently completed her PhD in Business Administration, seeks to understand what idea development is really about by observing how people in various contexts work to improve an idea and pave the way to make it a reality.

  Jana Huck got the impression that everyone talked about idea development as a phenomenon, yet without truly explaining or grasping what it actually involves – or even means. This is what inspired her doctoral thesis, Idea Development for Innovation: A Multi-Level Exploration of the Activities and Processes Propelling Ideas Towards Innovation.