Academic freedom

Confidence in research depends on the researchers being free and without ties, and that research results are continuously the subject of critical testing by other researchers. There is a special responsibility on universities and colleges to ensure this, which requires that the research institutions are autonomous, that the researchers are given the opportunity to choose their topic and method, to publish research results, and that research and teaching take place according to established ethical and professional standards.

Several impulses and trends are putting academic freedom under renewed pressure: the increasing emphasis on utility values, strategic specialisation and external funding, the disappearance of collegiate bodies, the growing number of scientific personnel employed in temporary positions, changes in public administration’s use of research and several cases involving distrust in and misuse of research. The undermining of academic freedom not only compromises the quality of research, but also weakens informed and critical societal debate and confidence in research-based knowledge.

Forskerforbundet will strive to ensure that:

• Parliament, the government, and the political parties respect the independence of research, and strive for an enlightened, knowledge-based public debate.
• The legally-mandated academic freedom is observed in practice in the higher education sector.
• Research institutes, health trusts and the archive, library and museum sector incorporate the principle of academic freedom in their regulations and planning documents.
• All research projects are based on contracts that safeguard the academic freedom of researchers and their right and duty to publish their findings.
• Academia is a place with freedom of expression, where discussions take place within the framework of a good and open debate climate for students and staff.
• The researchers' right to choose their publication channel is safeguarded.