Geir Lundestad (17 January 1945 – 22 September 2023) was a Norwegian historian, who until 2014 served as the director of the
Norwegian Nobel Institute
The Norwegian Nobel Institute () is located in Oslo, Norway. The institute is located at Henrik Ibsen Street 51 in the center of the city. It is situated just by the side of the Royal Palace.
History
The institute was established in 1904 in Kr ...
when
Olav Njølstad
Olav Njølstad (born 1 March 1957) is a Norwegian historian, biographer and novelist. He served as director of the Norwegian Nobel Institute from 2015 to 2025.Norwegian Nobel Committee. However, he was not a member of the committee itself.
Personal life
Born in Sulitjelma on 17 January 1945, Lundestad was a son of rector Bjarne Lundestad and Anny Elvine Nilsen-Nygaard. He married Aase Synnøve Liland in 1967.
Career
Lundestad studied history at the
University of Oslo
The University of Oslo (; ) is a public university, public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation#Europe, oldest university in Norway. Originally named the Royal Frederick Univ ...
and University of Tromsø, graduating in 1970 with a cand.philol. degree and in 1976 with a doctorate respectively. From 1974 to 1990, he held various positions as Lecturer and Professor at the University of Tromsø before beginning his positions with the Norwegian Nobel Institute and Committee. Subsequently, he was associated with the University of Oslo as an
Adjunct Professor
An adjunct professor is a type of academic appointment in higher education who does not work at the establishment full-time. The terms of this appointment and the job security of the tenure vary in different parts of the world, but the term is gen ...
of International History. Lundestad spent several years in the United States as a
research fellow
A research fellow is an academic research position at a university or a similar research institution, usually for academic staff or faculty members. A research fellow may act either as an independent investigator or under the supervision of a p ...
, at
Harvard University
Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...
, from 1978 to 1979 and again in 1983, and at the
Woodrow Wilson Center
The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars (WWICS) or Wilson Center is a Washington, D.C.–based think tank dedicated to research and policy discussions on global issues. Established by an act of Congress in 1968, it serves as both ...
in
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
, between 1988 and 1989.
From 1990 to 2014 he served as the director of the
Norwegian Nobel Institute
The Norwegian Nobel Institute () is located in Oslo, Norway. The institute is located at Henrik Ibsen Street 51 in the center of the city. It is situated just by the side of the Royal Palace.
History
The institute was established in 1904 in Kr ...
, as well as being secretary of the Norwegian Nobel Committee. During this period the Nobel Institute became a significant institution for research on
contemporary history
Contemporary history, in English-language historiography, is a subset of modern history that describes the historical period from about 1945 to the present. In the social sciences, contemporary history is also continuous with, and related t ...
, where Lundestad contributed in his capacity as expert on American history and the
Cold War
The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...
. He was also a proponent for establishing the Nobel Peace Center, which opened in 2005.
Lundestad was a member of the
Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters
The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters (, DNVA) is a learned society based in Oslo, Norway. Its purpose is to support the advancement of science and scholarship in Norway.
History
The Royal Frederick University in Christiania was establis ...
. He was decorated Commander of the Order of St. Olav in 2008.
Geir Lundestad died on 22 September 2023, at the age of 78.
Select bibliography
* ''The American Non-Policy Towards Eastern Europe 1943–1947''. (Oslo, New York City, 1975, reprinted 1978)
* ''America, Scandinavia, and the Cold War 1945–1949''. (New York City, Oslo, 1980)
* East, West, North, South: Major Developments in International Politics Since 1945 '. (Oslo - Oxford, 1987, updated in 1991, 1996, 1999, 2004, 2010 and 2014) English, Norwegian, Swedish, Russian, Chinese and Turkish editions.
* ''The American "Empire" and Other Studies of US Foreign Policy in Comparative Perspective''. (Oxford - Oslo, 1990)
*''Beyond the Cold War: New Dimensions in International Relations''. (edited with Odd Arne Westad, Oslo - Oxford, 1993)
* The Fall of Great Powers, Peace, Stability, and Legitimacy '. (edited by Lundestad, Oxford - Oslo, 1994)
*''"Empire " by Integration: The United States and European Integration 1945–1997''. (Oxford, 1998.) Japanese edition 2005.
*''No End to Alliance. The United States and Western Europe: Past, Present, and Future''. (edited by Lundestad, Macmillan 1998.)
*'Imperial Overstretch', Mikhail Gorbachev, and the End of the Cold War (edited by Lundestad, 2000)
*“The Nobel Peace Prize” in Agneta Wallin Levinovitz and Nils Ringertz, eds., ''The Nobel Prize. The First 100 Years''. (London – Singapore, 2001).
*''War and Peace in the 20th Century and Beyond ''. (edited with Olav Njølstad, Singapore, 2002)
*''The United States and Western Europe Since 1945: From “Empire” by Invitation to Transatlantic Drift''. (Oxford, 2003, paperback 2005), Norwegian edition 2004.
*''Just Another Major Crisis? The United States and Europe Since 2000''. (edited by Lundestad, Oxford 2008)
* ''The Rise and Decline of the American "Empire". Power and its Limits in Comparative Perspective.'' (Oxford, 2012)
* ''International Relations Since the end of the Cold War. New & Old Dimensions in International Relations.'' (edited by Lundestad, Oxford, 2013)