In light of recent threats to academic freedom in the USA and Europe, the Nordic Summer University strongly reiterates its commitment to academic freedom in all its forms. We firmly reject political and corporate interference in research and teaching.
Academic freedom includes the right to freely choose research topics and content, to apply appropriate methods without restriction, to access necessary information, and to share findings openly with the public. It also encompasses the freedom to determine the content of teaching and the public’s right to high-quality knowledge.
In the USA, the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have recently faced severe funding cuts. Additionally, the government has introduced a list of banned words for federally-funded research projects, in what must be described as an attempt to exert direct control over academic inquiry. Given the central position of the United States in science and research, this development is particularly worrying. But it is not an isolated case. For instance, in Hungary, the government has cut funding to public universities, while putting newly privatized universities under the control of foundations run by government affiliated representatives. A more indirect form of influence can be seen in cases where research funding is directed towards projects that prioritize collaboration with businesses, often with the goal of producing marketable outcomes. In Denmark, the government has dictated which university courses should be offered, primarily cutting funding for humanities programs — another example of increasing political control over research and education. The status of Swedish universities as state administrative authorities is another example of how academic freedom can be called into question. The Swedish government has for instance stopped an ongoing call, administered by the Research Council, in the field of development research at the very end of the review process. Also, politicians in the Netherlands are accused of interfering with academic freedom. These are just examples, but the path is clear. Academic freedom is under increasing threat world-wide.
Since 1950, the Nordic Summer University has worked to safeguard academic freedom in the Nordic countries through self-organized, international, and multidisciplinary exchanges. We defend researchers’ right to resist political or ideological pressures unrelated to their work, as well as their right to determine the content and structure of their scientific and scholarly inquiries. The Nordic Summer University upholds the principles of institutional autonomy and individual academic freedom, grounded in scientific peer collaboration. Now is not the time for complacency!