Head of Department is the new Dean of SCIENCE

The new Dean of the Faculty of Science is an internationally recognised researcher and experienced leader. In 2006, Bo Jellesmark Thorsen was appointed Professor of Applied Economics. His main research focus is environmental and natural resource economics, and he has published over 100 peer-reviewed articles. As head of the Department of Food and Resource Economics for eight years, he has been heading 160 staff members.

Research brought into play

Bo Jellesmark Thorsen knows how to bring research-based knowledge into play in debates and as an advisor to ministers, the government and foundations. He is a member of the Danish Council on Climate Change and a board member of the Climate Forest Foundation and the Danish Nature Fund.

"It’s with great pleasure that I welcome Bo Jellesmark Thorsen as Dean of the Faculty of Science – and as a member of the University Leadership. The faculty is a key player in educating talented science graduates for Denmark and the international society, finding scientific answers and developing technological solutions to the world's major challenges, including climate change and the biodiversity crisis. As a department head, Bo has convincingly shown that he has the right qualifications to lead and develop SCIENCE through collaboration with businesses and organisations – and across disciplines at the University,” Rector Henrik C. Wegener says.

Focus on the outside world and communities

During his tenure as head of department, Bo Jellesmark Thorsen has raised the level of research and researchers' engagement in the outside world, for example, through an advisory committee of top people from the business community, organisations and authorities. He has encouraged top researchers to engage in key committees, councils and boards in Denmark and the EU. This has resulted in a close interaction between research and society that benefits UCPH in a broad sense.

“The academic environments at SCIENCE are among the best in the world. I look forward to bringing them further into play to enhance the faculty's – and the University's – contribution to the sustainable development of society. For example, in relation to the new technologies and the planetary challenges we must deal with. We should give our students better access to interdisciplinary skills in sustainability, new technologies and much more. We should become even better at understanding and using our ability to make a difference – whether through market-oriented innovation or other forms of engagement in the world around us,” Bo Jellesmark Thorsen says.

Across SCIENCE, the future dean has been involved in the work on, among other things, the faculty's budget model and degree programmes. As head of department, he has ensured a robust economy at the department through a focus on shared responsibility and reciprocity.

Bo Jellesmark Thorsen has been appointed for a five-year term until 31 December 2029. The same year that the University turns 550. An acting head of the IFRO department will be appointed in December.