INSTITUTT FOR SAMFUNNSFORSKNING

Their core work

The Institute for Social Research (ISF) is Norway's leading independent social science institute, conducting empirical research on migration, asylum policy, social inequality, and democratic governance. In H2020, they contributed expertise on refugee vulnerabilities, legal protection frameworks, and the social dynamics of asylum systems across Europe. Their applied research bridges academic analysis and policy practice — they study how laws, narratives, and institutions shape the lived experiences of migrants and vulnerable groups. Beyond academic output, ISF produces findings designed to inform public debate and policy decisions at national and EU level.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

In their earlier H2020 engagement (VULNER, 2020), ISF focused on the legal and structural dimensions of refugee protection — examining vulnerability categories, the Common European Asylum System, refugee camps, resettlement processes, and the specific situations of minors and women. Their more recent project (BRIDGES, 2021) shifted attention from legal frameworks to communication and influence: how migration narratives are constructed and what impact they have on policymaking and public discourse. This trajectory suggests ISF is moving from documenting legal realities to understanding and shaping how those realities are perceived and acted upon — a move from diagnosis toward influence.

ISF appears to be expanding from structural legal analysis toward narrative research and science-policy co-production, making them a strong candidate for projects that need both empirical rigor and policy communication expertise.

How they like to work

ISF has participated exclusively as a consortium partner across both projects — they have not coordinated any H2020 work, which is consistent with their profile as a specialist contributor bringing deep thematic expertise rather than project management capacity. Their 19 unique partners across 9 countries across just 2 projects suggests they work within medium-to-large international consortia, likely selected for their Norwegian perspective and social science depth rather than as generalist partners.

ISF has built a network of 19 distinct consortium partners across 9 countries through only two projects — a relatively broad geographic spread for a small portfolio, suggesting they operate in well-connected European research consortia. Their Norwegian base provides value in projects seeking Nordic policy perspectives or Scandinavian case studies.

What sets them apart

ISF sits at a rare intersection: rigorous empirical social science combined with direct policy relevance, based in Norway — a country with significant experience in refugee resettlement and asylum policy outside the EU but deeply embedded in European research networks. For consortia building projects on migration, asylum, or social vulnerability, ISF offers both the academic credibility of an established research institute and the practical policy connection of an organization whose work informs Norwegian and EU governance. Their growing focus on narrative research and co-production makes them particularly useful in projects that need to go beyond data to affect how issues are framed publicly.

Highlights from their portfolio

• VULNER
  The largest-funded project in ISF's H2020 portfolio (EUR 400,754), examining how EU and international law defines and responds to vulnerability across refugee camps, resettlement programs, and gendered and minor-specific protection categories.
• BRIDGES
  Represents ISF's emerging focus on narrative impact and co-production — studying how migration stories are constructed and used to influence EU policymaking, bridging social science research with communication and advocacy practice.