Windmills or deepwater drills?: Normative Roles of Technology in Norwegian Resource Extraction Policy

• Main Author: Goins, Elisabeth
• Other Authors: Department of Communication Studies, University of Texas at Austin Austin
• Format: Conference Object
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2012
• Subjects: [SHS.INFO]Humanities and Social Sciences/Library and information sciences; Arctic; Barents Sea; Lofoten; Norway; Senja; Sutcliffe; Vesterålen
• Online Access: https://hal.univ-lille.fr/hal-00825892; https://hal.univ-lille.fr/hal-00825892v2/document; https://hal.univ-lille.fr/hal-00825892v2/file/axe_1_colloque_cmn_goins_v2.pdf

International audience After discovering oil in the North and Norwegian Seas in the late 1960s, Norway is now one of the largest oil exporters and wealthiest nations in the world. Norwegians are some of the healthiest and happiest people on the planet, enjoying cradle-to-grave welfare and a national savings fund well into the billions. Yet despite its transformational power in this society, oil is a complex and highly debated topic among Norwegian policy makers and everyday citizens. In the wake of a global fossil fuel crisis, countries worldwide are racing to stake their claim in the Arctic, a new frontier estimated to hold staggering amounts of the world's usable oil and gas reserves. For Norway, this means increased exploration and drilling efforts in the Barents Sea, but also the challenges of harsh weather, darkness, and ice. It also brings attention to an area steeped in cultural significance; the Lofoten, Vesterålen and Senja coastal regions are known for breathtaking beauty and a historic fishing industry, two staples of Norwegian heritage. Whether offshore in treacherous conditions, or close to the shorelines with thriving ecosystems, oil spills in the Barents Sea could be disastrous. On the other hand, losing competitive ground at this critical time could have longstanding implications for Norway's role in the global economy. Organizational SensemakingAlthough social science research on the past and future of Norwegian oil is plentiful, few studies have focused on the role of organizational sensemaking in constructing and implementing these policies. As a process of organizing, sensemaking involves the retrospective creation of identification and meaning. In other words, sensemaking is the social process by which "situations, organizations, and environments are talked into existence" (Weick, Sutcliffe, & Obstfeld, 2005, p. 409). The central focus is communication - events, organizations, and environment can actually be created by the stories people tell about them. Within the Norwegian policy ...