I am an associate professor (docent) in the history of science and ideas, with a focus on environmental history.
I am an associate professor (universitetslektor) and docent in the history of ideas, with a specialization in environmental history. My teaching and research interests include forest history, sustainability, sustainability transitions, and natural resource development in Arctic contexts, viewed from both historical and cultural perspectives.
I am the PI of the project "Optimized trees: The intersection of scientific knowledge and public discourse in the transition from natural to artificial methods of tree improvement" (2026–2028), together with Jimmy Jönsson from Lund University and Dimitri Coelho Mollo from Umeå University, funded by the Marcus and Amalia Wallenberg Foundation. This project investigates the role of biotechnology in Swedish forestry from historical and philosophical perspectives, with a focus on how trust and legitimacy are formed. Through analyses of historical debates about tree breeding, contemporary arguments about naturalness, and dialogue with forestry actors, the project examines the interplay between science and public discourse.
https://maw.wallenberg.org/projekt/bioteknikens-roll-i-svenskt-skogsbruk
I am also the PI of the project “The Power of the Forest – Energy, dependency and preparedness in northern Sweden’s forests, 1970s until today”, funded by the Kempe Foundations. This project explores how northern Sweden’s forests have shaped—and been shaped by—shifting energy systems, crises, and political priorities from the 1970s to the present.
https://www.umu.se/en/research/projects/the-power-of-the-forest-energy-dependency-and-preparedness-in-northern-swedens-forests-from-the-1970s-to-today/
I also conduct research in two additional research projects: "Route to Paris", funded by Formas (2021–2025/2026), and "Peripheral Visions" (2022–2026), funded by the Society of Swedish Literature in Finland (Svenska litteratursällskapet i Finland).
Between 2022 and 2024, I was Arctic Six Chair in environmental history at Umeå University:
https://www.arcticsix.org/arctic-six/research/chairs-2022/chairs-2022/janina-priebe
I serve as the representative for the Faculty of Arts and Humanities in Umeå University’s internal reference group for MIRAI 2.0, a research collaboration between 19 Swedish and Japanese universities:
https://www.aurora.umu.se/organisation-och-styrning/internationella-samarbeten/mirai/
I have developed and led courses with historical and cultural perspectives on environmental issues, including forests and sustainability:
Environmental Humanities - Human places in environmental contexts
The course aims to give the student a multi- and interdisciplinary introduction to central questions and traditions in the emerging research field of environmental humanities. The central theme of the course is the relation between people and places in the ongoing changes of environment and societies, which is reflected in the course literature and examinations. The course examines how human frameworks of understanding, ways of life, and cultural expressions are shaped through the tensions between global and place-based perspectives on environmental and sustainability issues. The student learns to apply environmental humanities' perspectives on environmental and sustainability challenges, among others, by referring to the history of ideas, discursive analytical, ecocritical and environmental ethical arguments. This includes a critical reflection on how places are constructed, and how this affects different groups in society. In order to analyze these relations, this course builds on theories and approaches in the field of environmental humanities. Thereby, this course provides the students with a multifaceted understanding of how the humanities' perspectives on the environment can contribute to creating sustainable societies.
Rethinking forests: Cultural and historical perspectives on forests (Advanced level, 7.5 ECTS)
With this course, students gain insight into historical and environmental humanities approaches to forests. The course deals with the history of forests as an environmental, social and cultural phenomenon comprising different ideas, scientific disciplines, political ambitions, institutional settings and cultural framings. The course has a comparative perspective, where changes in Sweden from the 19th century to the present are contrasted with examples from other countries and cultural contexts. The overall aim is to help students develop knowledge and analytical tools in order to critically rethink forests in society, past and present, as well as to understand unfolding sustainability challenges.
The History of Environmental Thought (Advanced level, 7.5 ECTS)
(course given in Swedish)
Summer course 2019 "Kiruna, Norrland, and the World"