Bjarne Ibsen

Since 2023, Bjarne Ibsen has been a Professor Emeritus at the University of Southern Denmark, affiliated with the ‘Centre for Sports, Health and Civil Society’. Until then, for twenty years, he was both the Head of and a Professor at the same research centre. In his research, he has dealt with two forms of ‚movement‘: ‚Physical movements‘ with a focus on sports and exercise habits, the organisation of sports and sports policy. And ’social movements‘ with a focus on volunteer work, association life and civil society in a broad sense. Among other things, dealt with research in the development of associations and their role in society (with special focus on the democratic significance and the importance for local communities in rural areas); voluntary work (including the importance of the societal context for citizens‘ involvement in volunteer work); the relations between the voluntary and the public sector (co-productions, among other things) and civil society policy. He has been the leader of a major European research project, covering 10 countries, on the importance of sports associations for social integration. He has edited several books on civil society, published by international publishers, and collaborated with many researchers internationally.