Henrik Urdal

Henrik Urdal (born 19 October 1972) is a Norwegian political scientist and the current director of the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO). Before his appointment as director in 2017 he was a research professor and research director at the institute. He was editor-in-chief of the Journal of Peace Research, the premier journal in the field, from 2010 to 2017. Research interests Urdal's research interests include the relationship between demography, environment, and politics, particularly focusing on how population growth, "youth bulges", and climate change affect violent conflict. Education and work experience Since 2000, Urdal has been affiliated with PRIO, first as a student, then moving on to positions as researcher, senior researcher, Research Professor and Research Director. Urdal received his Research Professor competence in 2013. He obtained his PhD in political science from the University of Oslo in 2007, entitled Demography and Internal Armed Conflict. Urdal was a PRIO board member 2013-15. Urdal is the Research Director at the Department on Conditions of Violence and Peace where he heads the Conflict Trend project. PRIO’s Conflict Trends project collaborates with the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to answer questions relating to the causes, consequences and trends in conflict. 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.