Document

Building Networks: Cooperation in Research and Higher Education between the Candidate Countries to the EU and Norway

� • BUildiNg NEtwoRks

03 Preface by the Norwegian Minister of Foreign Affairs

04 The programme

06 Presentation of projects

Published by the Norwegian Centre for International Cooperation in Higher Education (SIU) and The Research Council of Norway, December 2006

Editor: Bente GundersenEditorial staff: Ragnhild Solvi Berg, Arne Haugen, Birgit JacobsenCover photo: Eivind Senneset

06 Corruption Studies in East Central and South East Europe – a Multinational Research Project on Conditionality, Informal Relations and Corruption

07 ENLINO Master Programme-Network in Environ-mental Sciences

08 Large Carnivores in Northern Landscapes: between the Baltic and Black Seas

10 Latvijas doktoranti Norvegija (LDN): Doctoral Degree Programme

11 Executive Master Programme in Innovation and Entrepreneurship

12 Sustainable Redevelopment of Building in Poland SURE-BUILD

15 Trends and Reconfiguration in Polish Public Thought

16 Quantification of Pollution Load and Ecological Response in the Kapos Catchments – Towards Improved Knowledge for Research and Management Purposes

18 Poverty, Social Assistance and Social Inclusion: Develop-ments in Estonia and Latvia in a Comparative Perspective

19 Project overview

Contents

Layout: Konvoi asPrinted by: Bryne OffsetCirculation: 500

ISBN-13: 978-82-997480-1-8 ISBN-10: 82-997480-1-1

BUildiNg NEtwoRks • �

The Cooperation Programme with the candidate countries to the European Union, 2002-2005

Education and research are two decisive factors in the development of modern societies. The new EU member coun-tries that were involved in the Cooperation Programme all had strong education and research sectors at the time of the political upheavals of the late 20th century. The fundamentally new direc-tion of social, political and economic development in the 1990s confronted the established education and research institutions in these countries with a formidable challenge. New realities required new knowledge.

To succeed in the 21st century, the states of Central and East-ern Europe had to adjust their education and research sectors to deal with the new demands and requirements facing them as democratic, market-economy societies. Collaboration with other European states has been crucial in this adjustment process.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is pleased to present this over-view of the projects carried out under the Cooperation Pro-gramme for Research and Higher Education. The Programme was an important part of the Plan of Action for the EU candidate countries, which was presented by the Norwegian Government in 2001. The plan’s objectives were to promote security, stabil-ity and sustainable growth and development in Europe, and to create a platform for broader and stronger cooperation between Norway and the candidate countries. The aim was to stimulate contacts at all levels, between authorities, NGOs, businesses and academic circles, as well as in the cultural sphere.

Through the Programme, extensive and valuable networks have been established between institutions and researchers in Nor-way and the ten new EU members. A number of research projects of mutual benefit have been completed. New curricula and study programmes have been developed, and students have gained a broader outlook through exchange programmes.

Although the Programme itself has come to an end, the EEA Finan-cial Mechanisms should provide a means of continuing coopera-tion between the Programme’s partners. It is my hope both that all

parties will find this Programme to be a useful basis for further cooperation, and that the experiences they have gained through it will encourage them to initiate joint projects in future.

Oslo, December 2006

Jonas Gahr StøreMinister of Foreign Affairs

The Alexander Nevsky Cathedral reflected in a window. Tallin. Photo: © Harri Tahvanainen/ Gorilla/ Samfoto


An evaluation by a panel of independent experts in the year 2000 concluded that the programme had been successful. In the following years cooperation developed further, and sepa-rate programmes with a national or regional scope were set up. The Cooperation Programme for Research and Higher Education between Norway and the Candidate Countries to the European Union was established through an agreement between the Nor-wegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, The Research Council of Norway (RCN) and the Norwegian Centre for International Coo-peration in Higher Education (SIU). The programme, which was established for the period 2002-2005, has been administrated by the Norwegian Centre for International Cooperation in Higher Education and the Research Council of Norway. The countries involved in the agreement with Norway have been Estonia, Lat-via, Lithuania, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Malta and Cyprus.

The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs allocated NOK 35 million for the programme period 2002-2005. The programme was set up to initiate and support direct, long-term collaboration between universities and other institutions of higher education, and research institutions. While funding was provided by Nor-way, equal participation by the Norwegian and partner institu-tions was a fundamental principle.

the following subject areas were given priority:• Social science • Economics/market economics • Legal science • Social medicine • Environmental and energy issues

Both in Norway and in the cooperating countries there was considerable interest to take part in the programme. Among a number of good applications the programme board selected

nine long-term projects for support, projects covering most of the prioritised subject areas. In eight of the eligible candidate countries a total of 20 institutions were engaged in project coo-peration. From the Norwegian side, a total of ten universities, university colleges and research institutions took part in the cooperation projects.

From personal initiative to institutional commitmentIn order to disseminate the results from the cooperation pro-jects, concluding conferences have been arranged for research and higher education projects respectively. In November 2005 researchers and participants in the research cooperation pro-jects gathered in Budapest to present results and to discuss possibilities for future cooperation. On 29 May 2006, a similar conference was held at Riga Technical University for the higher education projects. Both the Norwegian side and the partners in Latvia and Lithuania agreed to continue the successful coo-peration. The EEA Financial Mechanisms, where 1.17 billion euros are made available for the beneficiary countries over the period 2004-2009, represent the most obvious opportunity. At the concluding conference in Riga, the Latvian Minister of Edu-cation and Science, Baiba Rivža, expressed satisfaction with the results of the cooperation projects, and hopes that cooperation will continue.

All supported projects were accomplished more or less as plan-ned. This can partly be ascribed to the strong emphasis on institutional commitment in the programme. Certainly, these cooperation projects would hardly have been realised without the personal enthusiasm and initiative of project managers and coordinators. Still, enthusiasm is not enough. The recipe of success includes both enthusiastic individuals and committed institutions. For that reason, institutional commitment has been a pillar of the cooperation programme.

The programme

In 1997, a cooperation programme in higher education and research between Norway and North-West Russia, the Baltic States and Poland was established. The main purpose of the programme was to contribute to economic and political development in the cooperating countries.


important steps toward the implementation of the Bologna ProcessThe concluding conferences gave evidence that the programme and the projects have produced valuable results. In the field of education, new study programmes have been developed in important fields such as economics, business management and environmental studies. In Latvia and Lithuania, a considerable number of students have graduated from jointly developed study programmes, having acquired knowledge of fundamental signi-ficance for their countries in the period of transition.

The programme has been important from the perspective of internationalisation. While Norway is not a member of the European Union, Norway and the cooperating countries are all members of the Bologna-process for the development of a European Higher Education Area. As the conference of European Ministers responsible for higher education in Bergen 2005 con-cluded, Norway is among the countries having gone the furthest in implementing the Bologna-goals. Project cooperation has also represented some important, additional steps towards these common goals.

Through the cooperation projects researchers, teachers and not least students have become acquainted with a different academic tradition, with a different culture and with colleagues in dif-

ferent countries. The result is a broader basis for contact and cooperation between Norway and the cooperating countries.

Research Cooperation of high quality in important fieldsFor the period 2002-2005, the Programme spent NOK 18 million on research cooperation. In November 2005, to mark the end of the programme, a concluding seminar was arranged for the rese-arch projects by the Research Council of Norway and the Nor-wegian Embassy in Budapest, Hungary. Results of the research activities were presented and the EEA Financial Mechanisms were introduced. The arrangement gathered participants from research institutions in the whole region and offered perspec-tives on future cooperation. The participants were encouraged to continue cooperation through the EU Framework Programme for Research and to examine the possibilities within the EEA Financial Mechanisms, of which a Memorandum of Under-standing (MoU) was signed in 2005 with the new EU-member countries. Highlighted was the importance of the opportunity for Norwegian research environments to promote themselves in the Candidate Countries before their entrance into the EU. Research projects were carried out within the disciplines of poli-ticalscience, sociology, architecture, energy, and environmental sciences. Researchers collaborated in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, the Czech Republic,Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary and Slovenia.


This project was conducted by the Norwegian Institute for Urban and Regional Research (NIBR) in collaboration with research institutions in Bul-garia (Vitosha Research), the Czech Republic (Cen-tre for Social and Economic Strategies), Slovenia (University of Ljubljana), and Romania (Romanian Academic Society). The project has identified seve-ral manifestations of informal practice in politics, public procurement and the judiciary in these countries. It also sheds some light on how informal practices may – and often do – cause corruption. The project focused on the use of contacts and informal networks, and data was collected by undertaking elite in-depth interviews (90 interviews per coun-try), elite round-table discussions (one per country) and quota-based quantitative elite surveys (N=600 per country).

widespread use of informal networksThe data collected demonstrates that the use of con-tacts and informal networks is widespread in all these countries regardless of their EU member/EU applicant status. The impact of informal practice, however, is more serious in Bulgaria and Romania than in the Czech Republic and Slovenia. In the court system, for instance, contacts and informal networks are used to speed up or slow down cases (Czech Republic), to gain employment (Czech Republic and Slovenia), to find one’s way in a structure perceived as rather complex,

or to influence the outcome of court cases (Bulgaria and Romania). What is more, the court system in Romania appears to be under some political pressure. These findings were largely confirmed by those of our respondents who were themselves working in the court system, even though they – to a larger extent than other elites – claimed that it is difficult to influ-ence court decisions. Still, they confirmed that court staff is under considerable external pressure. Bulga-rian and Romanian respondents, for instance, said they occasionally received threats – some of which were rather serious.

Response to changes in post-communist statesInformal practice is to some extent historically and culturally conditioned and, to a certain degree, a response to the extensive political, institutional and economic changes that have taken place in post-communist states during transition. EU makes strict formal requirements to applicant states. Informal practice, however, is only addressed to a limited extent, by these requirements. This, in part, explains why measures implemented in these countries, to combat corruption, have so far only been partly successful.

Corruption Studies in East Central and South East Europe Multi-National Research Project on Conditionality, informal Relations and Corruption

ACAdEMiC disCiPliNEs: Political Sciences, Justice

CANdidAtE CoUNtRiEs iNstitUtioNs: Centre for Social and Economic Changes, Charles University, Czech Republic; University of Ljubljana, Slovenia; Vitosha Research, Bulgaria; Romanian Academic Society, Romania

NoRwEgiAN iNstitUtioN: Norwegian Institute for Urban and Regional Research (NIBR)

PRojECt CooRdiNAtoRs: Research Director Pavol Fric (Czech Republic), Senior Lecturer Bojan Dobovsek (Slovenia), Director of Research Alexander Stoyanov (Bulgaria), Associate Professor Alina MungiuPippidi (Romania), Researcher Alexandru Toth (Romania), Senior Researcher Åse Berit Grødeland (Norway)

totAl FUNdiNg: 200305: NOK 3 000 000


The ENLINO-project (short for Environment Lithua-nia Norway) has been a three-year cooperation pro-ject between Lithuania and Norway in environmental studies. Vilnius University and Vytautas Magnus University have been cooperating with Telemark University College and the Norwegian University of Science and Technology. The cooperation between the involved universities can be dated back to 1999 and the Annual Meeting of Nordic Environmental Muta-gen Society in Vilnius. In the year 2000, the first cooperation project saw the light of day, and in 2001 the institutional contacts began to develop. In 2003 ENLINO received a grant for a three-year period.

Network for exchange of master students and lecturesThese four universities developed their master programme-network in order to form knowledge exchange, and on the background of the Bologna process for the development of a common European Area of higher education. The cooperating institu-tions defined their project as a contribution to the transparency and convergence of higher education systems, to student and staff mobility, to the inter-national employability of graduates and ultimately to the international character of higher education.

Through ENLINO the cooperating institutions estab-lished a network for exchange of master students and lecturers connected to research-based courses in the following subjects: Genetic and evolutionary toxicology, biodiversity and environmental manage-ment, and molecular methods in ecology. All partner universities had long-lasting tradition in education and research within these fields. Moreover, expertise in these areas is vitally important for Norway and Lithuania as well as on a global scale. Master degree students from all of the cooperating institutions have been taking courses and doing fieldwork and labora-tory work in both Lithuania and Norway. Lecturers have been exchanged as well, making all the courses offered true cooperative ventures.

Extensive scientific resultsThe master degree courses have represented the heart of the ENLINO cooperation. A total of 49 students attended the whole study programme during the three year period. By the end of 2005, 26 master thesis had been completed, while another 19 were ongoing, the majority of which were expected to be completed in 2006. Six Ph.D. students have been sup-ported through the cooperation; by the end of 2005 three had completed their dissertation.

ENLINOMaster Programme - Network in Environmental sciences

ACAdEMiC disCiPliNEs: Environmental Sciences

CANdidAtE CoUNtRiEs iNstitUtioNs: Vilnius University, Lithuania; Vytautas Magnus University, Lithuania

NoRwEgiAN iNsti-tUtioNs: Telemark University College and Norwegian University of Science and Technology

PRojECt wEB PAgE: www2.hit.no/af/nv/enlino

PRojECt CooRdiNA-toRs: Professor Juozas Lazutka; Professor Dag Bjerketvedt

totAl FUNdiNg: NOK 3 450 000

(left) Exchange of sci-entists to do laboratory or field work has been part of the ENLINO project.

(right) Forty-nine students attended the whole programme Photos: © ENLINO

Harri Waldmann with the first radio-collated lynx in the Baltic States, Central Estonia. Photo: © Harri Waldmann


Conserving carnivore species, like bears, lynx and wolves in the crowded landscapes of modern Europe is challenging and requires knowledge from a range of disciplines. The relevant disciplines range from ecology (of the species and their habitat), economics (interests and interference) and sociology (these species trigger emotions ranging from fascination to fear and hate). Furthermore, these species need vast amounts of space, which requires planning for their conservation. From 2003-2005 the Norwegian Institute for Nature Research coordinated a project with their partner institutions in Poland, Estonia and Latvia, with participating researchers from other institutions in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, Poland, Belarus and the Ukraine.

Protecting bears, wolves and lynxThe aim of the project has been to conduct research needed to ensure the conservation of these species

in the vast (one million square kilometres) expanse of the north-eastern European lowlands that are framed by the Baltic and Black Seas, the Carpat-hian Mountains, and the vast forests of Russia. This region of north-eastern Europe consists of lowlands that were once forested, but where much land has been cleared for agricultural purposes, especially in central Poland, Lithuania and Ukraine. The project has looked into both ecological and social issues con-cerning the conservation of bears, wolves and lynx within the region. Findings are as follows:

The three species have very different patterns of distribution. Bears are confined to the southern (Carpathian Mountains of south Poland and western Ukraine) and northern parts (Estonia) of the study area separated by almost 800 kilometres. Wolves are widely distributed throughout the region and have a more or less continuous distribution from south Poland to northern Estonia. Lynx are more intermedi-ate animals – being found in all countries, but have a very fragmented distribution in northeast Poland and Lithuania.

The distribution of forest cover explains much of the observed distribution pattern of the carnivores – a greater area of forest implies a greater probability of the species occurring. Bears are most sensitive to fragmentation, followed by lynx, with wolves being least sensitive.

Large Carnivores in Northern Landscapes:between the Baltic and Black Seas

ACAdEMiC disCiPliNEs: Ecology, Economics, Sociology

CANdidAtE CoUNtRiEs iNstitUtioNs: Institute of Nature Conservation, Poland; University of Tartu, Estonia; State Forest Research Institute and Kemeri National Park, Latvia

NoRwEgiAN iNstitUtioN: Norwegian Institute for Nature Research

PRojECt CooRdiNAtoRs: Associate Professor Henryk Okarma; Senior Researcher John D. C. Linnell



Wolves cause the greatest conflicts with human interests, killing both livestock and dogs. These con-flicts are most common in the fragmented habitats of northeast Poland and Lithuania and are relatively minor in south Poland, Latvia and Estonia. Bears cause some limited damage – mainly to beehives – and lynx appear to cause almost no damage at all.

Our analysis of attitudes among the public shows quite complex results which seem to indicate that the large “carnivore debate” in the region is not very strong – and has therefore not caused people to develop strong views, or to see these species as being symbolic of wider social and political issues. For example, when compared to Norway where views tend to be rather polarised, the views in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland tend to be more intermediate. The question of love and hate towards these species is not very rele-vant in the public debate; people seem rather tolerant with regard to their presence.

In terms of future conservation the three most pres-sing issues seem to be: • The status of lynx in northeast Poland and

Lithuania. These populations are very frag-mented, and if they disappear it will break the connection between the continental European populations and the larger Russian populations.

• Bear populations in both Estonia and Poland seem to depend on contact with their neighbou-ring countries, Russia and Slovakia/Ukraine, respectively. However, cooperation between the countries concerned is required for the wellbe-

ing of all species. Carnivore populations can not be maintained without this sort of cooperation, neither in shorter nor longer perspective.

• In the countries where the different species are subject to hunting, it is crucial to maintain and improve upon existing monitoring systems to ensure that quotas are set at sustainable levels. The project team is optimistic in its conclusion on the development of the selected species in the region, although it embarks on an era of drama-tic social and economic change associated with a lot of infrastructure development (motorways, resorts) and land-use changes.

Harri Valdmann with the first bear to be radio-collared in Estonia, northeast Estonia. Photo: © Harri Valdmann

Wolf Photo: © John Linnell

10 • BUildiNg NEtwoRks

Academic institutions in the former Eastern Block countries were faced with a number of serious chal-lenges in the 1990s. In many areas academic thinking had to be reconfigured. Obviously, the subject of econ-omy was at heart of the transition. The recruitment and education of a new generation of academics was essential. The cooperation project between the Univer-sity of Latvia and Agder University College, Latvijas doktoranti Norvegija (LDN) addressed this problem.

Result of educational reformsFollowing the political changes of the early 1990s the Faculty of Economics and the management at the Uni-versity of Latvia were working hard in cooperation with the Euro Faculty (an education reform initiative of the Council of the Baltic Sea States) to reform its educational programmes at all levels. However, the institutional basis for reform was not the best. A considerable proportion of the staff was close to retirement, and the pool of doctoral candidates was decreasing. In order to meet this challenge a working group was established with representatives from the School of Management, Agder University College, the Norwegian School of Economics and Business Admi-nistration, and the Faculty of Economics and Manage-ment at the University of Latvia. In cooperation they developed a programme intended to improve recru-itment at the Faculty of Economics and Management at the University of Latvia through a new doctoral degree programme. After a successful application to the Norwegian Centre for International Cooperation in higher education (SIU) in 2002, the enthusiasts behind LDN could begin their important reform and cooperation project. In December 2002 scholarships were announced within the University of Latvia. Candidates for the scholarship programme should be graduates from the Faculty's Master programmes with a strong inclination for research and an acade-mic career. Among 13 qualified candidates six were selected and each granted a Ph.D. scholarship for up to three years. The six candidates were provided with a Latvian and a Norwegian advisor. Moreover, the can-didates were supposed to spend six to eight months at a university or a university college in Norway.

lasting impact on the development of knowledgeActive participation in the international scholarly community is a requirement for academic activity at a high level. The candidates of the LDN-programme have presented their work at a number of international seminars and conferences. The candidates’ subjects of study cover a wide range of topics of great impor-tance for Latvia as a country in transition. Through the various research projects expertise has been developed in fields such as monetary policy, under-ground economy, human capital development and the economy of tourism as well as in general economic theory. Practically all candidates will defend their dissertations in the course of 2006. However, some of the research has already been made known for the scholarly community through a number of publica-tions.

The concluding conference for the programme in Riga in May 2006, demonstrated the success of the LDN on various levels. Several of the Ph.D.-candidates pre-sented the results of their research, and the Univer-sity of Latvia and Agder University College presented their cooperation from the institutions’ point of view. In the administration of the Cooperation Programme with the New EU-Member Countries, long term coo-peration between committed institutions was a goal. The programme administration is therefore pleased to note that the University of Latvia and Agder Univer-sity College have been developing their cooperation further since the LDN was completed. The EEA/Norwe-gian Financial Mechanisms provide a possible source of funding for continued cooperation. However, the main criterion for the success of the project must be connected to the main goal: to contribute to the recruitment of new and highly qualified staff at the Faculty of Economics at the University of Latvia. At the end of the programme period the project leaders conclude that all participants in the programme will continue as members of the staff at the Faculty. As a result, the LDN will have a lasting impact on the development of knowledge and human capital in a field of major importance for contemporary Latvia.

Latvijas doktoranti Norvegija (LDN): Doctoral Degree Programme

ACAdEMiC disCiPliNEs: Economics and Business Management

CANdidAtE CoUNtRiEs institutions: University of Latvia

NoRwEgiAN iNstitUtioNs: Agder University College, Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration

PRojECt CooRdiNAtoRs: Professor Ismena Revina; Professor Arild Sæther


BUildiNg NEtwoRks • 11

A cooperation between Faculty of Engineering Econo-mics, Riga Technical University (RTU) and Department of Business Administration and Political Science, Bus-kerud University College (BUC), Kongsberg, Norway. The relationship between BUC and RTU began as early as 1996, when RTU students and staff visited Kongs-berg and BUC. With Latvia developing market economy RTU took interest in BUC’s study programme in Busi-ness Administration, and representatives from the two institutions began to discuss the possibility of transfer-ring experience and competence in this field. A plan for cooperation emerged, and following the successful joint project application in 1998 the long-term insti-tutional cooperation began with the main ambition to transfer study programmes from BUC to RTU.

A leading environment in innovation and EntrepreneurshipIn the first phase of the cooperation (1998-2001), study programme elements in management and economics were introduced on bachelor level. In addition, the stu-dent visiting programme between RTU master degree students and Kongsberg Rotary club was continued. In the year 2000 the project was subject to external eva-luation. Conclusions were largely very positive, which provided a good background for the application made, to take the collaboration onto master degree level. In 2003 the successful application opened for a new three year cooperation period between Riga Technical University and the Buskerud University College. The Norwegian-Latvian Executive Master Programme in Innovation and Entrepreneurship was established. The project set out with an ambitious mission: “To establish and develop the leading learning environment in Lat-via for innovation and entrepreneurship based on pro-ven international concepts and Scandinavian practice”. The programme was designed to recruit managers and entrepreneurs with at least three years of managerial working experience, with knowledge of English on a business level, and with a bachelor’s degree. As previ-ously, the new cooperation programme received a very positive feedback from the outside. In May, 2005, the study programme got six years unconditional accre-

ditation, and it was very positively regarded by the international accreditation experts.

New perspectives on businessThe cooperation has introduced new teaching methods to the Riga Technical University, with combined lec-turing and project related work. In addition, students’ visits to Norway have been an important element in the project. A main purpose with the visits has been to acquaint the students with Norwegian/Scandinavian business environments. Buskerud University College has made use of their connections with the developed industrial community in Kongsberg. However, students have not only become familiar with the Norwegian or Scandinavian perspective but through personal con-tacts, the project has succeeded in attracting leading academic expertise also from the Washington State University, providing an additional dimension to the cooperation programme.

During the three year-period, close to 130 students were admitted. In 2005 RTU took over the full respon-sibility for the programme, and at the same time, it was possible to follow Latvian-speaking classes. At the end of the programme period the project leaders registered that several of the graduates have been promoted to leading positions in Latvian enterprises.

Executive Master Programme in Innovation and Entrepreneurship

ACAdEMiC disCiPliNEs: Economics

CANdidAtE CoUNtRiEs iNstitUtioNs: Riga Technical University

NoRwEgiAN iNstitUtioN: Buskerud University College

PRojECt CooRdiNAtoRs: Director/Associate Professor Modris Ozolins; Associate Professor Kjell Gunnar Hoff


The graduation cere-mony in June 2006.Photo: © RTU

1� • BUildiNg NEtwoRks

SURE-BUILD is a cooperation project between The Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Warsaw University of Technology, and SINTEF Archi-tecture and Building Technology. The project carried out a state of the art analysis regarding the sustai-nable development in Norway and Poland. It focused on Millennium school buildings that were all con-structed in the 1960s, built in similar technologies and hardly renovated during the last 40-50 years. A SWOT (strength-weakness-opportunities-threats) analysis clarified cost-efficiency, energy-saving potential, technical compatibility, skill and know-ledge requirements. One of the Millenium schools, the primary school in Zgierz, was evaluated with both the Norwegian EcoProfile and Polish environmental assessment tools. The results created a valuable basis for development of sustainable solutions.

sustainable redevelopmentThe most interesting results of the SURE-BUILD pro-ject are the new solutions, methods, and strategies for sustainable redevelopment of the primary school no.1 in Zgierz, the selected case building:

• A well-functioning hybrid system combining natural and mechanic ventilation

• A sustainable lighting system combining natural light and electrical light

• A new heating system minimising energy con-sumption for heating by optimal thermal insu-lation of the building envelope, implementing adequate heating solutions, hybrid and mecha-nical ventilation, using the energy-effective components and effectively utilising daylight

The SURE-BUILD project concludes that it is possible to significantly improve a low-energy standard build-ing from the 1960s by combining and integrating cle-ver solutions for all systems. These are findings that will be communicated to relevant decision makers in Poland and Norway.

ACAdEMiC disCiPliNEs: Energy, Environmental Sciences, Architecture

CANdidAtE CoUNtRiEs iNstitUtioN: Warsaw University of Technology, Poland

NoRwEgiAN iNstitU-tioNs: The Norwegian University of Science and Technology; SINTEF Architecture and Building Technology

PRojECt wEB PAgE: www.ab.ntnu.no/surebuild/

PRojECt CooRdiNAtoRs: Adjunct Professor Aleksander D. Panek; Associate Professor Barbara Matusiak


The school’s electrical system has hardly been renovated since the 1960s. Photo: © Eivind Senneset

sustainable Redevelopment of Buildings in Poland

SURE-BUILD

Modernization is our only hope for the future.(Hanna Kaptur, principal of primary ScHool no. 1 in ZgierZ), global Knowledge, # 3, 2005”

BUildiNg NEtwoRks • 1�

Boy playing soccer in the gym at Primary School No. 1Photo: © Eivind Senneset


Fence painted for 1990 Polish Presidential Election in support of Lech Walesa and the Solidarity labour union. Photo: © Bernard Bisson/CORBIS SYGMA


The project “Trends and Reconfigurations in Polish Public Thought,” has produced and analysed a data-base of national social surveys concerned with long-term changes in Polish attitudes. Particular emphasis has been placed on attitudes toward democracy, poli-tical ideology, socialism, and equality. The project has been directed by sociologists who are specialists in survey research and statistical analysis at the Uni-versity of Tromsø and the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) in Norway, and the Institute of Philosophy and Sociology of the Polish Academy of Science (PAN), the Institute for Political Studies of the Polish Academy of Science, and The Polish Public Opinion Research Center (CBOS).

Measuring attitudes since 1988A key aspect of the project has involved interviewing a large national panel of approximately 2000 adults, who have been interviewed every five years since 1988. It is unique to have such data from a large national sample in which the same people have been regularly interviewed beginning with the period immediately before the political and economic trans-formations from state socialism to market capitalism. The funding for continuing this panel was co-fun-ded by both the Research Council of Norway and the Polish government. Another part of the project stu-died the consistency of people’s answers to attitude scales across short periods of one month to one year. Various attitude scales were developed and tested for reliability, and finally used in a large national sample of over 4000 adults. In addition, project partners in CBOS analysed trends taken from large databases of the time-series of CBOS public opinion polls from 1992 through 2006.

losses and gains with social changesIn general, the Polish people have maintained a rela-

tively stable majority support for the principles of democracy and system transformation throughout the post-socialist period. However, at the same time, satisfaction with the actual functioning of democracy, and with the social and economic system, has not been very high, and has changed significantly over time. The proportion of people who believed that the social changes since 1989 brought “more losses than gains” was relatively high in the very first years of the transition, but this opinion weakened by 1996 – 1998. Nonetheless, the proportion seeing “mostly losses” rose after 1998, to becoming a clear majority by 2001. This opinion has become less prevalent since 2001, but remains quite popular. While most Poles do not consider themselves as beneficiaries of the transformation, only one in five (19 per cent) would like the socialist system to return. Two-thirds (65 per cent) do not miss the past system and only 16 per cent have no opinion. Roughly equal percentages of Poles have positive (35 per cent) and negative (34 per cent) assessments of the period of socialism. The main change since 1988 is that the percentage having a neutral assessment has decreased, from 49 per cent to 31 per cent, whereas the percentages having positive and negative views have both increased.

When asked to place themselves on a scale of having either “left” or “right” political views, the largest group of Poles place themselves in the centre (36 per cent). A full 26 per cent say they “don’t know;” and many are uncertain of the meaning of these terms today. Somewhat more identify with the right (23 per cent) than with the left (15 per cent). Nevertheless, regarding special issues, opinion is very critical of perceived social inequality. There has been a steady increase since 1993 in the perceived conflict between rich and poor. Public support for virtually every kind of policy to reduce inequalities, is very strong.

Trends and Reconfigurations in Polish Public Thought

ACAdEMiC disCiPliNEs: Sociology

CANdidAtE CoUNtRiEs iNstitUtioNs: Institute of Philosophy and Sociology of the Polish Academy of Science (PAN); Institute for Political Studies of the Polish Academy of Science; The Polish Public Opinion Research Center (CBOS)

NoRwEgiAN iNstitUtioNs: The Norwegian University of Science and Technology; The University of Tromsø

PRojECt CooRdiNAtoRs: Professor Kazimierz Slomczynski; Professor Krzysztof Zagorski; Professor Bogdan Mach; Professor Albert Andrew Simkus



The AQUAPOL project was a three-year joint research project (2003-2005) between the Norwegian Institute for Water Research (NIVA) and VITUKI CONSULT Rt. in Hungary, funded by the Norwegian Council of Research. The overall project aim was to develop tools to assist the implementation of the Water Framework

Directive (WFD) in Hungary. Norway was one of the first European countries to have launched pilot-projects on the implementation of the WFD and the experiences gained in Norway have been shared with Hungarian fellow researchers. The AQUAPOL project has enhanced a closer cooperation between Hunga-

Quantification of Pollution Load and Eco-logical Response in the Kapos Catchments towards improved knowledge for Research and Management Purposes

View of the Kapos River Basin. Photo: ©NIVA/VITUKI CONSULT Rt


ACAdEMiC disCiPliNEs: Environmental Sciences

CANdidAtE CoUNtRiEs institution: VITUKI CONSULT Rt., Hungary

NoRwEgiAN iNstitUtioN: Norwegian Institute for Water Research (NIVA)

PRojECt wEB PAgE: www.aquapol.no/pp/hoved.htm

PRojECt CooRdiNAtoRs: General Director Jànos Fehèr; Research Director Stig A. Borgvang


rian and Norwegian water scientists and facilitated to further develop quantification tools to assess pol-lution loads to surface and subsurface waters, and to elaborate methods for surface water ecological status assessment.

Polluted watersThe Kapos River Basin was selected as the study site. The river basin is situated completely within Hungary and covers 3170 square kilometres. Kapos is highly affected by pollution from agriculture and sewage, causing nutrient enrichment and algae growth (eut-rophication). For the quantification of nutrient load, four different tools were applied. These tools were; Source Apportionment, TEOTIL, INCA-P and SWAT, ranging from simple data-based screening tools to highly sophisticated process-based models. The tools were applied both in order to simulate histo-rical figures on pollution load and to investigate the effects of alternative pollution reduction measures. The ‘what-if’-analysis (scenarios) are important in order to select the optimum set of measures to miti-gate the degradation of the water bodies in the river basin.

Bringing science and policy togetherThe AQUAPOL project has contributed towards brid-ging the gap between science and policy by develo-ping and demonstrating tools and methods that facilitate the future implementation of the WFD in Hungary. The AQUAPOL project has:• Demonstrated alternative modelling approaches

for assessing nutrient loads in Hungarian catch-ments.

• Demonstrated approaches to define reference conditions for regions were all water bodies presently are impacted by human activities.

• Produced results that can be used in the further work in Hungary to achieve good ecological status for water bodies.

• Exchanged knowledge and experience.• Demonstrated sharing of environmental infor-

mation.

Algae growth, Kapos River. Photo: © NIVA/VITUKI CONSULT Rt


The project Poverty, Social Assistance and Social Inclusion: Developments in Estonia and Latvia in a Comparative Perspective went on for more than three years from 2003 to 2006, and is based on a long lasting cooperation in the field of living conditions and social policy between three institutions; Tartu University, University of Latvia and Fafo Institute for Labour and Social Research.

Perceptions on inequalityThe project focuses on four questions: (1) Poverty trends and structures of social exclusion; (2) Policy responses – understandings of poverty alleviation and social inclusion; (3) Social practice – the imple-mentation and impact of policies; (4) Policy learning and possibilities for policy transfer. The reporting from the project focuses on the following aspects: (1) Policy and poverty developments; (2) Percep-tions of inequality; (3) Social work in changing environments; (4) User’s perception of poverty and social policy measures. The issues, methods, data and results are manifold. National surveys in the three countries focus on perceptions on inequality: A division of the population into more or less ‘deser-ving poor’ seems to be more widespread in the Baltic countries than in Norway. There is less social polari-sation in Baltic countries than in Norway regarding perception of one’s own and others’ level of social security. Compared to Norway, Estonia and Latvia are clearly perceived more as ‘risk societies’, regardless of socio-economic status. The main conclusion from the project can be summarised in the concept “quadruple pressure” – from above, from below, from the inside and from the outside. Pressure from above includes

political discussions, organisational reforms, and the need for qualified manpower. Pressure from below includes trust in the systems, the ability to meet the needs of the population, and the question about expectations to the state in contrast to private solutions. The sustainability of the welfare state is the main aspect of the pressure from the inside. The ability to promote fair distribution and to establish a balance between care and incentives for work is a main aspect. We have not found that the involved countries present a process characterised by “race to the bottom”, but there are important changes due to these pressures. There are significant influences from globalisation, migration and pressure from the outside, in all the three countries.

Adoption of EU policiesThe social policy development in Estonia and Latvia has to a large extent during the last years been for-med by the adoption of EU policies. There are strong public attitudes saying that income differences should be smaller. During the last years the system has been stabilising. Despite rapid economic growth, the level of social expenditure in relative terms is still below the EU average.

Poverty, Social Assistance and Social Inclusiondevelopments in Estonia and latvia in a Comparative Perspective

ACAdEMiC disCiPliNEs: Social Sciences, Poverty Studies

CANdidAtE CoUNtRiEs iNstitUtioNs: University of Tartu, Estonia; University of Latvia, Latvia

NoRwEgiAN iNstitU-tioN: Fafo Institute for Labour and Social Research

PRojECt wEB PAgE: www.fafo.no/BalticWelfare/index.htm

PRojECt CooRdiNAtoRs: Associate Professor Feliciana Rajevska (Latvia); Professor Dagmar Kutsar, (Estonia); Senior Executive Officer Arne Grønningsæter (Norway)


The ability to promote fair distribution and to establish a balance between care and incentives for work is a main aspect.

”


Project overview

PRojECt titlE

Latvijas doktoranti Norvegija (LDN): Doctoral Degree Programme

ENLINO Master Programme-Network in Environmental Sciences

Executive Master Programme in Inno-vation and Entrepreneurship

Poverty, Social Assistance and Social Inclusion: Developments in Estonia and Latvia in a Comparative Perspective

SURE-BUILD – Sustainable Redevelop-ment of Building in Poland

Trends and Reconfiguration in Polish Public Thought

Large Carnivores in Northern Landscapes: between the Baltic and Black Seas

Corruption Studies in East Central and South East Europe – a Multinational Research Project on Conditionality, Informal Relations and Corruption

Quantification of Pollution Load and Ecological Response in the Kapos Catch-ments – Towards Improved Knowledge for Research and Management Purposes

NoRwEgiAN iNstitUtioN

Agder University College and Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration

Telemark University College, Faculty of Arts and Sciences and Norwegian University of Science and Technology

Buskerud College

Fafo Institute for Labour and Social Research

Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Faculty of Architechture

University of Tromsø, Faculty of Social Sciences

Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA)

Norwegian Institute for Urban and Regional Research (NIBR)

Norwegian Institute for Water Research (NIVA)

CooPERAtiNg CoUNtRy/ iNstitUtioN

Latvia/ University of Latvia

Lithuania/ Vilnius University and Vytautas Magnus University

Latvia/ Riga Technical University

Latvia/ University of Latvia, Estland/ University of Tartu

Poland/ Warsaw University of Techno-logy

Poland/ Polish Academy of Sciences and Polish Public Opinion Research Center, Warshaw

Poland/ Institute of Nature Conser-vation, Polish Academy of Sciences

Czech Republic/ Charles University, Prague Slovenia/ College of Police and Security Studies, Ljubljana Bulgaria/ CSD, Sofia Romania/ University of Bucharest

Hungary / VITUKI Consult Envi-ronmental and Water Management Consultants

Total allocation NOK

FUNdiNg (Nok)

4 209 000

3 450 000

3 577 354

3 000 000

3 000 000

3 000 000

3 000 000

3 000 000

2 890 000

29 126 354

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