Asbjørn Karlsen

Asbjørn Karlsen is a Professor in the Department of Geography and Social Anthropology at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Faculty of Social and Educational Sciences. He specializes in economic geography with research focusing on industrial restructuring, regional innovation, cluster formation, and sustainability transitions in natural resource-based regions.

His current research examines global production networks and sustainability transitions, particularly the shift from oil and gas to renewable energy in offshore regions. He collaborates with researchers at Newcastle University (UK) and Universitas Gadjah Mada (Indonesia), and supervises three PhD students working on technology and environmental upgrading in manufacturing industries.

Karlsen's publications focus on regional development dynamics, industrial transitions, and the governance of sustainable transformations. His recent work analyzes the role of institutions in facilitating sustainable transitions, technological legitimation processes, and policy frameworks for just transitions in carbon-intensive regions. Articles frequently appear in economic geography, regional studies, and energy policy journals.

He has received significant recognition including an ARC Future Fellowship and ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Award supporting his investigations into regional innovation systems. His grant-supported research examines policy mechanisms for sustainable development in specialized industrial regions.

Karlsen leads research projects on renewable energy transitions and manufacturing upgrading, coordinating international teams examining path creation in industrial systems. He maintains active research partnerships examining the socio-economic dimensions of energy transitions across different geographical contexts.