Lone Kørnøv: AAU is not just a workplace for me

By Lea Laursen Pasgaard, AAU Communication and Public Affairs
Foto: Stine Heilmann. Grafik: Søren Emil Søe Degn

Couldn’t doing a PhD be something for you? Lone Kørnøv was asked this question several times by her teachers when she was studying engineering at AAU in the nineties. At first, she said no. She would rather use her education outside the walls of the university. But her deep passion for the subject grew, and her teachers' insistence continued.

"One year I was hired as a teaching and research assistant, and then I finally ended up accepting. So it was very much the encouragement of some of those who later became my colleagues and their faith in me that did it. Combined with the fact that I quickly became very committed to the subject itself," says Lone Kørnøv, who is a professor of environmental assessment in the Department of Sustainability and Planning and head of the Danish Centre for Environmental Assessment at AAU.

It is now 35 years since Lone Kørnøv began her studies at AAU. Thus, she has been part of the university for more than half of its lifetime. This year, AAU celebrates its 50th anniversary, and AAU Update has interviewed a number of staff members about their relationship with the university – and wishes for AAU’s future. One of these staff members is Lone Kørnøv, and she says that it was the group work that made her apply to AAU.

"It's been many years now, but I think it's always been a part of me that I believe very much in the community's ability to make a difference. Far more than the individual's. And that's still how I function, how I work, and how I live my life. I wonder if that was also what it was back then – in some youthful sense," Lone Kørnøv remembers.

The professor is – in her own words – one of those strange people who really loves their job. She has received several attractive job offers over the years, and she has also worked outside the university at various times. Nevertheless, she has remained at AAU.

"For me, there is a pretty deep sense of meaningfulness, attachment and responsibility. AAU is not just a workplace for me. It is also a place where, after 30 years, I have invested an incredible number of hours and a significant amount of energy – both personally and professionally," says Lone Kørnøv.

Over the years, she has helped to create and influence new research environments, educated countless students and created networks and relationships, which means that in her experience there is a lot she can do as a researcher.

Lone Kørnøv herself says that she knows that we live in a time and in a sector where mobility is celebrated, but for her, the continuity and the fact that she has chosen to stay at AAU has been an enormous gift. Among other things, in terms of influence.

Bridging the gap between theory and practice

Lone Kørnøv believes that she has had an amazing and unique opportunity to be able to build bridges between theory and practice – between research and society.

"For me, it has been one of the most satisfying parts of my work – being able to bring research results out into the world where they have been able to make a real difference. It's an amazing feeling that my work and that of my colleagues has a concrete impact and helps to create positive change," she says.

She probably could have created results and positive changes in other workplaces, other universities. But Lone Kørnøv contends that AAU's problem-based approach and close contact with the surrounding community have given her particular prerequisites for building bridges between academia and society.

"The close contact with the surrounding community is part of the university's DNA, and that, I think, is a really positive aspect in making a difference," she explains.

Knowledge obliges

AAU's mission to create knowledge for the world and thus make a concrete, positive difference in the world is one of the things Lone Kørnøv appreciates most about her workplace. Therefore, she also warmly welcomes the fact that AAU has introduced a new research indicator where impact and sustainability are integrated parameters on which research is measured.

"This shows that it’s not only about creating new knowledge, but also about ensuring that the new knowledge makes a real, positive difference for society and the generations that follow. As researchers and universities, we acquire new knowledge and create new insights through research that benefits society. Not just as a personal achievement or intellectual triumph. We must strive for both excellence and relevance," states Lone Kørnøv.

She believes that the research landscape around AAU has changed a lot over the years. While Lone Kørnøv is pleased that there is increased focus on research impacting society, she is more concerned about the consequences of the fierce competition that characterizes academia. Individuality is cultivated, and joint effort has taken a back seat, she believes.

"I may well be worried about our young colleagues who are all being measured by very tough standards. They are really experiencing the downside of competition. If we want talented, motivated researchers with their integrity, ethics and autonomy intact in the future then we must really support them out in the environments," she says.

Here, older researchers, and especially those with managerial responsibility, have a particular obligation, according to Lone Kørnøv:

"With rank comes responsibility. With the trend we see in academia, it requires that we as older academics – and leaders – can set our own interests aside a bit in favour of the community," she adds.

As a research group leader, Lone Kørnøv herself is very conscious of setting a good example for junior researchers. At the same time, she is concerned with creating good communities that junior researchers can be part of and that support their development.

More bureaucracy and control

Another key development that characterizes the university, and that Lone Kørnøv would like to see reversed, is the increased administrative demands that researchers face in their day-to-day lives. Demands that come from both the outside and the university itself.

"We were at a department seminar recently where we were asked to imagine our own department in 25 years. In my group, we came up with the headline 'The Department of Sustainability and Planning, as an autonomous university, has been recognized globally for having restored trust and reduced bureaucratic control'. I tell you, it resonated," says Lone Kørnøv.

She would like to see AAU take a stand against bureaucracy and control mechanisms and let the researchers conduct their research with the time and flexibility they need. Lone Kørnøv believes that this would lead to both even better results and a healthier workplace culture:

"Trust fosters creativity and innovation. Excessive control stifles the initiatives and curiosity that research feeds on," she states.

AAU's new travel rules are a good example of some of the bureaucracy that AAU itself has introduced and that Lone Kørnøv believes are superfluous. The rules require that all trips of more than seven days must be approved by two management layers, and this entails a lot of administrative work for the individual researcher.

"As a staff member, it is difficult not to see the rules as an expression of distrust. There are so many good, dedicated people in this place, and it doesn't make sense to me to roll out such rules across the entire university because of a single case," Lone Kørnøv says.

When asked directly about her wishes for AAU, the professor answers less bureaucracy and more time for contemplation. And she returns to the desire for more community and less focus on individual performance.

"The university is a part of me. In many ways, it’s like a long marriage, and how we develop in the future is very important to me, so that we continue to be a really attractive university for talented staff and great research that makes a difference."