Annual Report 2007 Contents
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Annual Report 2007 Contents Norwegian Institute for Urban and Regional Research 3 Waiting for a New Research Institute Policy… 4 Statement of the Board 2007 7 Annual Accounts 2007 8 Research at NIBR in 2007 10 The Research Departments 12 Strategic Institute Programmes 14 Multidisciplinary Research 16 International Activity 18 Information and Dissemination 20 NIBR Publications 22 External Publications 23 Conferences 26 Projects 31 Edited by: The Resource Department of NIBR Graphic design: Melkeveien designkontor Photos: Paul Sutter Translation: Chris Saunders Oslo 2008 Norwegian Institute for Research activities Urban and Regional Research NIBR’s core competence is in urban and regional research. This is a wide inter- and multidisciplinary Norwegian Institute for Urban and Regional Research field of social science research, encompassing i.a.: (NIBR) is an independent social science research centre • analyses of social conditions and societal changes whose mission is to develop and publish research-based in urban and rural areas, and across regions, sectors insights for the benefit of decision-makers in public and and levels; private institutions as well as for the general public. • analyses of regional development and innovation, housing and city planning and management, and the NIBR’s vision is to further develop urban and regional development of democracy and welfare within and research as an inter- and multidisciplinary field of study across local communities; with a global perspective, thereby strengthening the • territorial analyses of society, coupled with studies institute’s position as one of the foremost Norwegian of sustainable development and leading European environments for urban and regional research. The research activities at NIBR are organised in four departments: Organisation • Department for International Studies in Development, NIBR has sixty-five researchers who span the social Transition and Migration sciences and planning disciplines: sociology, political • Department for Socioeconomic and Territorial Studies science, economy, demography, anthropology, geography, • Department for Housing and Environmental Planning architecture, engineering and land-use planning. 40% Research of NIBR’s researchers have academic qualifications equi- • Department for Welfare, Democracy and Governance valent to PhD-level or higher. Research NIBR is a private foundation. Most of its income is NIBR’s international relations are extensive, and derived from national and international commissions. our international commitments are growing steadily A smaller amount comes in the shape of an annual year on year. NIBR works with partners in each of basic allocation from The Research Council of Norway the Nordic countries and the rest of Europe. NIBR’s and goes to the development of strategic programmes commitment to developmental research and research and competence-building. The institute’s annual partnerships has resulted in institutional and research turnover is approx. NOK 65 million. partnerships with several university and research centres in Asia, Africa, Eastern and Central Europe. Clients NIBR offers action-oriented, decision-support research As one of Norway’s environmental research establish- and analyses for clients in the public and private sectors ments, NIBR uses its expertise in the social sciences to and competes for research contracts in Norway and promote an integrated, knowledge-based approach to abroad. environmental challenges and issues associated with economic growth. NIBR is a member of the Environ- NIBR’s major clients are The Research Council of mental Alliance, a group of leading Norwegian environ- Norway, Ministry of Foreign Affairs / Norwegian mental research establishments. NIBR is also a partner Agency for International Development Co-operation in the Oslo Centre for Interdisciplinary Environmental (Norad), Ministry of the Environment, Ministry of Lo- and Social Research (CIENS), a collaborative research cal Government and Regional Development, Ministry partnership of independent research establishments and of Health and Care Services, Ministry of Children and the University of Oslo. The centre is based on shared Family Affairs and the local government sector. scientific strategies and research programmes; partners work together on research and information and reside in the same environmentally friendly building in the Research Park at Blindern in Oslo. Annual Report 2007 3 Waiting for a New Research Institute Policy... Despite high productivity in 2007, a stable, robust economy continues to prove elusive for NIBR. One of the main reasons lies in the obscurity of the regulatory and policy environment under which independent institutes must operate and an unfair, government-regulated competitive environment. There is an acute need for an integrated, predictable policy for the non-university institute sector. NIBR celebrated its fortieth anniversary in 2007. The of administrative costs, percentage of operating costs Annual Report illustrates the breadth of NIBR’s scien- in terms of premises and fixed assets, and capital costs, tific output in the jubilee year. Our bids for new com- depreciation and amortization costs and capital wear). missions were largely successful, with 190 commissio- And as set out in the rules and directives, we are not ned projects at various stages of completion last year. allowed to take any part of the annual basic allocation The funding from the Research Council of Norway to subsidise commissions. It is largely the basic grant – increased. More than 100 independent scientific about 10 per cent of our turnover – which funds our works were published as articles, monographs, books, purely academic ambitions. In addition, the basic grant working papers and editions of our in-house series. must compensate funding shortfalls from EU projects We published two numbers of Regional Trends in a (like the 7th Framework Programme, ERDF-funded new edition. The results of NIBR’s research were given commitments with national co-funding) and other wider publicity in 150 papers and lectures, and we international commissions (i.a. World Bank) whose collected more than 800 media items featuring NIBR hourly rates are simply too low. We are compelled at during the year. We recruited many new staff in 2007, times to agree rates at about half our normal hourly rate. important to staff renewal. Nevertheless, the end-of- year balance shows a significant operating deficit. Now similar regulatory and financial constraints The most important factor here was the unanticipated provide a level playing field in competitive terms, increase in reported pension liabilities. and here we compete with other institutions and Norwegian and Nordic consultancies in a reasonably The Institute can handle these economic problems in fair marketplace. The funding situation of institutes the short term. But there is cause for concern over the classified as administrative bodies with special powers longer term not for NIBR’s professional standards or is frequently of an entirely different order. In addition academic production, but the wider regulatory envi- to this, certain essential costs are usually not included ronment – constraints we share with most members of in those institutions’ financial reports (office rent, the Norwegian non-university institute sector. Many pension liabilities). autonomous institutes like us are finding it difficult to maintain a robust, stable economy even in a situation We compete with universities and colleges for Research of high productivity levels. The problems stem from Council funding, and increasingly across a wider range two circumstances. of commissions. These bodies often use partial price estimates and seek to offset only supplementary costs • Government policy has skewed competitiveness in – sometimes only wage and social costs – never the the domestic and international contract market – costs of capital wear or depreciation because items like which accounts for 80-90 per cent of our financial these are not required under the accounting principles platform; for the public sector. Competition is further skewed • Neither we, nor the authorities or other funding bo- because the legislation provides for using the annual dies know whether to classify the research institutes basic allocation to subsidise fundamental research if the as players in the private market or as academic insti- university or college considers the project of sufficient tutions with important social responsibilities. interest. Some examples might help to illustrate the situation. Are research institutes social institutions or private We calculate hourly rates in the same way as consultan- firms? Some institutes, selected apparently on a random cies do – all items of expense are included (direct wage, basis, were required last year to file a tax return so that social expenses, pension fund contribution, percentage the authorities could levy a capital tax. NIBR was one 4 NIBR of them, and we duly filed our tax return for the years 2004-6. As yet we have not received a tax bill. Capital taxation of research establishments is being discontinued in 2008, however, under a legislative amendment of December 2007. At the same time, the SINTEF verdict paves the way for the income of establishments designed to make a profit to be taxed; research institutes registered as foundations will consequently be treated as private sector limited companies in respect of taxation. This tax liability was later confirmed by the Minister