Ole Wæver

Ole Wæver

MA and Ph.D. in Political Science (1985, 1997)

 https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9053-5855
19952019

Research activity per year

Personal profile

CV

Ole Wæver is a Professor of International Relations at the Department of Political Science, University of Copenhagen, founder of CAST, Centre for Advanced Security Theory, and Director of CRIC, Centre for Resolution of International Conflicts.

Internationally he is mostly known for coining within security theory the concept of 'securitization' and as one of the main figures in developing what is often referred to as the 'Copenhagen School' in security studies. His most recent writings in relation to securitization theory have applied the theory to religion and to climate change. The second most influential sub-set of his work is probably writings on the sociology of the discipline of International Relations. His research interests include international relations and security theory, sociology of science, religion in international relations, climate change, conflict analysis, and the role of national identity in foreign policy. Current research projects are updating the foundations in philosophy of language for securitization theory - and take research towards a new focus on technology.

He has published in International Organization, Journal of Peace Research, International Affairs, Cooperation and Conflict, Journal of International Affairs, Journal of Common Market Studies, Review of International Studies, Millennium, International Relations and Security Dialogue. Among his main books are Introduktion til Studiet af International Politik (1992), Security: A New Framework for Analysis (with Barry Buzan and Jaap de Wilde 1998, Chinese 2002, Czech 2006); Regions and Powers: The Structure of International Security (with Barry Buzan, 2003; Chinese translation 2009; Persian translation 2009) and International Relations Scholarship Around the World (ed with Arlene B. Tickner, 2009). He is member of the team of authors for Katherine Richardson et al, Climate change: Global Risks, Challenges & Decisions, Cambridge University Press 2011.

Ole Wæver was elected to the Royal Danish Academy of Sciences and Letters in 2007; and he was the 2012 humanities/social science recipient of the research prize of the Carlsberg foundation. He became Knight of the Order of the Dannebrog in 2014, was the first recipient of the Hesbjerg Foundation Peace Prize in 2015; and received an honorary doctorate from University of Turku in 2015.

Short presentation

Ole Wæver er Professor i International Politik ved Institut for Statskundskab på Københavns Universitet, grundlægger af forskningscentrene CAST (Centre for Advanced Security Theory, leder 2008-2013) og CRIC (Forskningscenter for løsning af internationale konflikter, centerleder 2013-). Internationalt er han især kendt for at skabe det sikkerhedsteoretiske begreb ”sikkerhedsliggørelse” (securitization) og som en af ophavsmændene til den såkaldte ”Københavnerskole” inden for forskningen i international politik. Ud over sikkerhedspolitik og konfliktløsning har han i de seneste år arbejdet mest med religion, klimaforandringer og videnskabssociologi. Ole Wæver har deltaget i udredninger og policyrådgivning indenfor sikkerheds- og forsvarspolitik, forskningspolitik og klimapolitik. Han har skrevet og redigeret omkring 25 bøger og udgivet artikler i de førende internationale tidsskrifter. Hovedværkerne er oversat til flere sprog, bl.a. kinesisk. Ole Wæver blev valgt ind i Videnskabernes Selskab i 2007

Primary fields of research

International Relations

  • Theories of International Relations

  • History of the Discipline

  • Sociology of Science inspired analysis of the discipline

  • The Possibilities for Non-Western Theories

  • IR in Scandinavia – results from the TRIP survey

  • Theories about theories: philosophy of science and tools for understanding international relations

 

Security Studies

  • Continued development of the so-called Copenhagen School / theory of securitization

  • The history and sociology of security studies

  • Empirical analysis of the global patterns of regional security (the theory of 'regional security complexes')

  • Religion, secularism and security

  • Climate change as security issue

  • Interdisciplinary comparison of methods for the characterisation of danger, risk, threat, catastrophe and insecurity

  • Ontological security – and other new attempts to connect emotions and politics in security studies

  • Identity/Security in the Post-Western World Order

 

Conceptual History for International Relations

  • History of the concept of security

  • Theory and methodology for the study of concepts in International Relations

 

Conflict Theory

  • Classics from sociology and the need today for understanding conflict as conflict

  • De-securitization and ontological security as tools for conflict resolution

  • Sociology of Knowledge: Conflict Expertise as a Field

 

Sociology of Social Sciences

  • Revising theories from sociology of science and STS for the study of social sciences

  • Comparative analysis of Social Sciences

  • The International Relations discipline

  • Security Studies between University Disciplines and Policy Research

  • Conflict Expertise as a heterogeneous field

  • Institutions Internationally for Aggregation, Negotiation and Communication of Scientefic Advice: Climate Change, Planetary Boundaries and Emerging Scientific Breakthroughs

 

Speech Act Theory

  • Politics in different speech act theories

  • Deepening Securitization Theory with Austin and Sbisa

  • Social Ontologies of Security

 

Scientific Revolutions and Political Re-orientation - Niels Bohr, an Open World and 21st Century Challenges

 

Continued Interests without short-term publication plans

  • The mutually constitutive relationship between European integration, identity and security

  • Nation and State concepts as key to foreign policies - discourse analysis as theory for this; empirically applied to Germany

  • The status and prospects for international law and different forms of world order

  • Missile defense, weaponization of space and deterrence theory

  • Danish security and defense policy

  • Identity, cooperation and transregionalism in the Nordic and Baltic areas

  • The English School as IR Research Programme

 

 

Teaching

I teach and supervise primarily within the same domains that I research.

Expertise related to UN Sustainable Development Goals

In 2015, UN member states agreed to 17 global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure prosperity for all. This person’s work contributes towards the following SDG(s):

  • SDG 13 - Climate Action
  • SDG 16 - Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

Education/Academic qualification

Concepts of Security, University of Copenhagen

Award Date: 2 Oct 1997

University of Copenhagen

1 Sept 1985 → 1 Aug 1980

Award Date: 1 Aug 1985

Keywords

  • Faculty of Social Sciences
  • Security politics
  • concept of security
  • securitization
  • Philosophy of Technology
  • STS - (Science, Technology & Society)
  • Climate Change
  • Religion and Politics
  • Sociology of Science
  • Risk analysis
  • Philosophy of Science
  • History of Science
  • Speech Act Theory
  • Philosophy of Language
  • Regional Security
  • Conflict escalation, conflict resolution, violence, nonviolence, peace, new media, digital method, emotions, micro-sociology, Big Data
  • Peace & Conflict
  • International Relations
  • international relations theory

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