Sector Committee for Research on Civil Society

Ever since the birth of social and political interest groups and the classic popular movements in the 19th Century, the non-profit sector has played an important role in creating and promoting social change in Swedish society. During the 20th Century, this sector was crucial in the creation of the welfare state and still constitutes an essential part of what international research and debate commonly refers to as civil society – that is to say, the area between public social institutions (governments, county councils, municipalities etc.) and trade and industry.

Although Swedish research on civil society is increasing, it is still limited to a handful of active institutes. There also exists a relatively theoretical basis, primarily regarding the scope, extent and direction of civil society. Much of this knowledge is descriptive, only infrequently being based on theory and only linked to international theoretical formulation to a limited degree.

In autumn 2003, Riksbankens Jubileumsfond (RJ) appointed a new sector committee to stimulate increased and more extensive research on civil society. This was intended both to improve the quality of research and also to contribute to the creation of a new theoretical basis enabling developments beyond the current international theories. Among other things, this would be concerned with finding paths of development contributing to increasing understanding of the genuinely Swedish or Nordic. Aspirations going beyond traditional research, with its emphasis on the state and markets, are considered to be essential.

The sector committee has published three books: Civilsamhället - Några forskningsfrågor, editor Erik Amnå (RJ in collaboration with Gidlunds förlag, 2004) and Det civila samhället som forskningsfält - Nya avhandlingar i ett nytt sekel, edited by Lars Svedberg & Lars Trägårdh (RJ in collaboration with Gidlunds förlag, 2006). The anthology Global Civil Society – More or Less Democracy?, edited by Mikael Löfgren & Håkan Thörn, was published in autumn 2007. This book, the result of the sector committee’s seminar connected with the World Social Forum in Nairobi 2007, will be published in collaboration with the Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation as a special issue of RJ’s series Development Dialogue.

In addition, the sector committee has made research grants available to research related to civil society. This effort was initiated in 2007 and has continued with the distribution of additional research grants in 2008.

Board Members

Research Director, RJ, Senior Lecturer Mats Rolén, Chairperson
Professor Erik Amnå
Professor Christina Garsten
Former Minister of Education Bengt Göransson
Former Secretary General Marianne af Malmborg
Master of Business Administration, former Vice Governor of the Swedish Central Bank,

Kristina Persson
Professor Lars Svedberg
Professor Håkan Thörn
Professor Hans Westlund
Senior Lecturer Filip Wijkström
Malin Gawell, PhD, ESBRI (Secretary)