Several new projects affiliated with the History of Knowledge@Lund have received funding. We congratulate Björn Lundberg, David Larsson Heidenblad and Anna Nilsson Hammar!

Björn Lundberg: Dealing with affluence: growth critique and knowledge circulation in Scandinavia 1958–1972

GDP growth became the hegemonic measurement of macroeconomic success during the 20th century. However, the fixation on productivity has also raised questions and critique, most notably from the perspective of ecology and sustainability. This research project will investigate growth critique in postwar Scandinavia prior to the breakthrough of environmentalism around 1970, from the perspective of knowledge circulation. By analyzing public discussion on economic theory in relation to “anxieties of affluence”, following the publication of J K Galbraith’s The Affluent Society (1958), the aim of this project is to provide new perspectives on the Scandinavian history of growth critique, affluence and public circulation of economic knowledge during the 1960s. The project is financed by Wahlgrenska stiftelsen.

David Larsson Heidenblad: Financial Independence in a Digital World

This project will explore the transformation of the Swedish saving- and investment culture, from the late 1970s up to the present. At the core of the project is the societal circulation of financial knowledge and its increasing importance in the everyday life of the many. The empirical focus is on actors and organizations who have sought to promote and embrace stock investments. Special emphasis will be given to personal finance blogs and the pursuit of achieving financial independence through living frugally and investing in the stock market. The project is supported by Erik Philip-Sörensen foundation, Wahlgrenska foundation, Åke Wiberg foundation, and Karl Staaff foundation.

Anna Nilsson Hammar: The Household as Academy

The purpose of this project is to shed light upon the role of aristocratic households as catalysts for careers and social mobility in 17th century Sweden. Viewing the household as an arena for knowledge production and transmission the project seeks to investigate the conditions for careers and social mobility among primarily servants. Close attention is paid to power relations, the gendering of knowledge practices and skills, and the use and evaluation of these competencies in relation to careers and social mobility. The project has received funding from Erik Philip-Sörensen foundation and from Ebbe Kock foundation.