Conference Sessions

All three of Saturday’s sessions are inspired by the ongoing dialog between Norway and the United States throughout the past, present and future.

10:30 a.m. to noon
Session 1: Society and Community

Topics include:

• Contemporary Norway as a changing society
• How Norway today compares with the United States in terms of Norway’s increasing pluralism, religious diversity and modifications of the welfare state
• How these new developments are affecting families, communities, politics, values and social structures such as education and health care

1:30 to 3 p.m.
Session 2: Business and Industry

Topics include:

• The common, competitive and conflicting interests of business and industry in Norway and the United States
• Global interdependence, including Atlantic connections between countries (e.g. fishing and oil)
• Attitudes toward work and life in the two cultures
• Attitudes toward resources and priorities concerning the environment

3:30 to 5 p.m.
Session 3: Science and Technology

Topics include:

• Attitudes in Norway and the United States toward the uses of science and technology (e.g. genetic material research and information technology)
• How the values and challenges of science and technology are perceived in the two societies
• The implications of technology on communities
• How scientific and technological innovations affect our use of time
• The different ways of carrying out research
• The ethics of scientific research