The Segerstedt Institute at the University of Gothenburg was inaugurated at a ceremony held today, Friday 14 August. The institute is the result of a special government assignment and will serve as a national resource centre against violent ideologies and movements.
‘Knowledge has always been racism’s greatest enemy. The Segerstedt Institute will make the University of Gothenburg a centre in the struggle against violent extremism and racism,’ says Prime Minister Stefan Löfven.
The new institute is named after Torgny Segerstedt and Ingrid Segerstedt Wiberg – a father and daughter well known for their clear opposition to Nazism, strong engagement in refugee issues and persistent work for human rights and the equal value of all people.
According to the government assignment, ‘The University of Gothenburg is to develop and disseminate knowledge and methods to reduce the recruitment of people to violent ideologies and movements and to racist organisations.’
‘There’s a great need for knowledge, new ideas and perspectives. Violent extremism is a global challenge and there are no obvious solutions. The Segerstedt Institutet will provide a meeting place for academia and practice. It is through interaction between various actors and between the scholarly world and practical experience that the new institute will make a difference,’ says Pam Fredman, Vice-Chancellor at the University of Gothenburg.
The Segerstedt Institute will develop and disseminate reports and analyses to professional groups such as social workers, teacher, youth workers and law enforcement. It will also document, systematise and further develop approaches and models that have proved successful, in terms of both prevention and encouraging people to leave violent ideologies. One model already associated with the Segerstedt Institute is the so-called tolerance project developed by the Municipality of Kungälv in cooperation with the University of Gothenburg.
No special research funding has been set aside for the new institute, yet the Swedish government is planning to begin allocating research grants within the field in 2016. The aim is for the institute to eventually conduct its own research.
Contact:
Pam Fredman, Vice-Chancellor, University of Gothenburg, tel.: +46 (0)766 18 63 90
Christer Mattsson, Acting Director, Segerstedt Institute, tel.: +46 (0)702 57 48 36
Dan Lundqvist Dahlin, Press Secretary to Prime Minister Stefan Löfven, tel.: +46 (0)725 53 66 29
Photos can be downloaded from http://bildbank.gu.se