Lund Human Rights Research Hub Launch

8 December 2016

Main University Hall

According to Lund University’s international admissions website, ‘critical thinking and academic freedom are the cornerstones of academic life at Lund University’. In this keynote lecture to launch the Lund Human Rights Hub, Anne Orford asked what it means to study human rights as part of an institutional culture committed to critical thinking and academic freedom. How does that academic style of engaging with human rights differ from the activist or official approach to rights? What challenges might this pose for the scholar or student of human rights, and what opportunities might it open up?

This collaborative initiative brought together more than 50 researchers from different departments and research centres at Lund University to stimulate cooperation on research, education and dissemination of human rights issues.

On this day the University celebrated the official launch of the Hub with a key note speech from Anne Orford, the Raoul Wallenberg Visiting Chair, as well as short presentations of ongoing research projects.

Program

14:00-14:15 –  Opening

Jonas Hafström, Chairman of the Board of Lund University
Morten Kjaerum, Raoul Wallenberg Institute

14:15-15.00 –  Short presentations of ongoing research

Lina Sturfelt, Human Rights Studies: “Who has the right to be saved? Save the Children in 1920s war-torn Europe”.
Per Wickenberg, Child Rights Institute: “Implementation of Child Rights in Education in 25 African and Asian countries 2003-2016”
Stefan Brehm, Centre for East and South-East Asian Studies: “Labour Rights in China”
Ted Svensson, Political Science: “Caste, Dalits and Human Rights”
Benedict Oppong Aasmoah, Division of Social Medicine and Global Health: "Restricted access to Sexual and Reproductive Health services among key populations in sub Saharan Africa - The rights perspective”
Thomas Gammeltoft Hansen, Raoul Wallenberg Institute for Human Rights and Humanitarian Law:“Reforming Human Rights Protection”
Eleni Karageorgiou, Faculty of Law: "European asylum policies and the question of solidarity"

Moderator: Lena Halldenius, Human Rights Studies
 
15.00-15.10 – Coffee break

15:10-15.50 – Keynote lecture

Anne Orford: "Critical thinking and human rights"

Abstract: According to Lund University’s international admissions website, ‘critical thinking and academic freedom are the cornerstones of academic life at Lund University’. What does it mean to study human rights as part of an institutional culture committed to critical thinking and academic freedom? How does that academic style of engaging with human rights differ from the activist or official approach to rights? What challenges might this pose for the scholar or student of human rights, and what opportunities might it open up?

15:50-16.20 – Panel discussion on critical thinking and human rights, reflections from different disciplines

Marina Svensson, Centre of Asian Studies
Lena Halldenius, Human Rights Studies
Magdalena Bexell, Political science
Håkan Hydén, Sociology of Law
Amin Parsa, Faculty of Law

Moderator: Thomas Gammeltoft-Hansen, Raoul Wallenberg Institute
 
16:20-17.00– Open discussion