As of July 1, Henrik Urdal is PRIO's new Director.
Urdal (44) is a highly respected peace researcher with political demography as his key field of expertise. He holds a PhD in political science from the University of Oslo, and has been working at PRIO in various capacities since he came to PRIO as an MA student in 2000. He assumed the position of Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Peace Research in 2010, and became Research Professor at PRIO in 2013. He was a researcher with the Centre for the Study of Civil War (CSCW) – one of the 13 original Norwegian Centres of Excellence – from the beginning in 2003 and throughout its 10 years of existence. Urdal comes from the position as Research Director for the Conditions of Violence and Peace department at PRIO, where he was also heading the Conflict Trends project.
Urdal was appointed in February as former incumbent Kristian Berg Harpviken's second term as Director was coming to a close. Harpviken served two full four-year terms as Director of PRIO, the maximum allowed according to the institute's statutes. Urdal will now serve a four-year term, with the possibility of a second term.
