Every year, around 1,500 people take their own lives in Sweden. Behind every statistic is a human being, a family, a community – and a tragedy that affects far more people than the individual who dies.

Suicide is not only a personal tragedy – it is also a socio-economic concern. Recent studies show that prevention can save lives and significantly reduce costs for society. 

Björn Sund, adjunct teacher in economics at Karlstad Business School and analyst at the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency (MSB), has conducted research on efforts to reduce suicides in the transport sector.

– The gaming industry is enormous today, and we give students a unique insight into game development with a focus on agile projects and the role of the game producer, says course coordinator John Johansson, lecturer in Business Administration at Karlstad Business School.

The course Game Producer Perspectives on Game Development is part of a larger educational package for those who want to become game producers – essentially project managers within the gaming industry – and students get to develop their own game concept.

– Students create a character, design a first level, and then use AI to build a simple prototype, explains John Johansson. We use the Unity game engine, one of the most established in the industry, and graphics are sourced from free resources.

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).

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.

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.

What does it actually mean to be a sustainable consumer? And why is it so hard to live up to the ideals, even when the willingness is there? In her doctoral thesis, Anne-Charlotte Paas, who recently completed her PhD in Business Administration at Karlstad Business School, wanted to know more about why it is so difficult to lead a sustainable life despite the threat of our planet’s collapse.

The doctoral thesis “Of Course I Want to Be Sustainable, but… : A Qualitative Study on Sustainable Consumption and Identity Construction” highlights the challenges of making everyday life as sustainable as possible. Household waste needs to be sorted, cycling or public transport should be the first choice, electronics should be switched off when not in use and food should ideally be organic. There is a lot to stay on top of to keep a clear conscience. These are the challenges that Anne-Charlotte Paas wanted to explore in her doctoral thesis.