Terje Holsen

Terje Holsen is a Full Professor at the Department of Property and Law within the Faculty of Landscape and Society at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU) in Ås, Norway. His academic career centers on the intersection of property rights, land-use planning, and urban development within the Norwegian legal framework.

His research focuses on urban planning, land use policy, spatial planning, and zoning regulations, with particular expertise in property rights theory, urban land readjustment, and densification strategies. Recent work examines Norway's shift from greenfield to brownfield development, analyzing how planning hierarchies function as governance tools in urban transformation and the implications for sustainable development goals.

Holsen's publication trends reveal deep engagement with practical implementation challenges of the Norwegian Planning and Building Act, especially regarding property value distribution (§12-7), developer-authority negotiations, and the tension between area-based planning qualities and efficient project execution. His work spans theoretical legal analysis, empirical case studies of urban land readjustment, and educational innovations in spatial planning.

His academic network includes key collaborators at NMBU such as Elin Børrud, Per Kåre Sky, Helén Elisabeth Elvestad, and Knut Boge, with research frequently addressing Scandinavian urban policy contexts.

As an educator, Holsen has pioneered cross-disciplinary problem-based learning in planning education, investigating how digitalization and institutional pressures impact spatial planning pedagogy. His leadership in the Department of Property and Law drives research connecting property law with sustainable urban development challenges.