Jenna Coughlin

September was still a month of beautiful weather, lots of outdoor activities, and adjustments for all of us at work and school. September was the month I got started on my research in earnest. I participated in the conference “Eco-Emotions: On Water” right away during the first week of September. The topic fit in perfectly with my research project, which is on cultural imaginaries of hydropower development as represented in Norwegian literature, film, and other media. Since the audience included…

The fact that I am writing my August blog on December 16th gives some indication of how full our days in Oslo have been. The delay may also be due to the lack of sun that we’ve been experiencing for weeks now. In mid-November, there was a brief window of wintery weather–frost, some light snow, and a few cold, clear days. But for several weeks, it’s been nothing but clouds, drizzle and above-freezing temperatures. Amidst the gloom, it’s comforting (and…

With all the talk about health insurance lately, I wanted to share a few things about the Norwegian public health insurance scheme. I think Americans need a better sense of what we’re missing. I should add the caveat that this post is based on my personal experiences in Norway as an academic on a cultural exchange program, rather than my professional expertise, but the more I learn about the healthcare system in Norway, the more I feel the need to…

I was recently featured on the St. Olaf website for being a recipient of a 2025–2026 Fulbright U.S. Scholar Award to Norway. I first received a Fulbright in 2006–2007 for masters-level study in Norway, an opportunity that changed my life, since it allowed me to develop my Norwegian language skills and knowledge of Scandinavian literary history. The paper I developed during my year there served as my writing sample for graduate school, so it directly facilitated the next step (graduate…

St. Olaf students embrace “irreplaceable opportunity” of summer CURI research A recent article on the St. Olaf website covered the Responses to Thunberg CURI project, along with two other humanities projects directed by my colleagues Tim Rainey and Bridget Draxler. Since many students associate research with the natural and social sciences, it’s great to see these efforts to promote undergraduate research in the humanities. Directing an interdisciplinary project that drew on research in environmental studies, communication, media studies,  gender, and…

During the summer of 2022, I’m directing a project of undergraduate researchers through CURI (Collaborative Undergraduate Research Institute) here at St. Olaf. I was fortunate to be able to put together a passionate and inquisitive team with interests in Gender Studies, Psychology, and Race and Ethnic Studies, among other disciplines, to add more to the Responses to Thunberg database and conduct analyses of Greta’s reception in international media through various lenses chosen by the students. Since we’re working with news…

During the 2021-22 academic year, I received a Magnus the Good Collaborative Fellowship together with Cullen Hauck (’23). Cully wanted to continue the research he had started during a Directed Undergraduate Research course that I was able to run in January of 2021. Through the DUR, Cully had started collecting opinion journalism published in Sweden, but he wasn’t able to get access to many newspapers, and he was only able to get started on the project. Magnus the Good gave…

In January, I had the pleasure of talking with Laura Yuen of the Star Tribune about the Norwegian concept of “friluftsliv.” Although I examine Norwegian views of nature from a scholarly perspective in my research, in my personal life I have genuinely felt the benefits of this pragmatic attitude that emphasizes the benefits of incorporating outdoor experiences into your everyday life. Rather than being a practice for the ultra tough or well-resourced, “friluftsliv” emphasizes the small ways that frequent encounters…