Background
Vibeke Blaker Strand is a professor of law.
Strand is a leading expert in equality and non-discrimination law and an expert in international human rights. She has worked extensively on issues related to religious freedom and protection against discrimination on national, European and UN levels. Strand is highly interested in how different supranational legal systems in the field of human rights relate to each other (including the European Convention on Human Rights, EU/EEA law, and various UN human rights conventions), as well as the significance of these systems in Norway. In her work, she seeks to connect international law to Norwegian law, while addressing current societal issues. She is concerned with how law relates to the principle of equality, in a society that is becoming more diverse.
Strand is the author of numerous books, articles, and book chapters. These include «Likestillings- og diskrimineringsrett» [“Equality and Discrimination Law"], Gyldendal 2022, co-authored with Anne Hellum), «Menneskerettigheter i et nøtteskall» ["Human Rights in a Nutshell"], Gyldendal 2nd ed. 2021, co-authored with Kjetil Mujezinovic Larsen, and «Diskrimineringsvern og religionsutøvelse» ["Protection against Discrimination and Freedom of Religion"], Gyldendal 2012. She is the editor of "Nordic Equality and Anti-Discrimination Laws in the Throes of Change" (Routledge 2024, together with Anne Hellum, Ingunn Ikdahl, and Eva-Maria Svensson) and «Rettigheter i velferdsstaten» ["Rights in the Welfare State"], (Gyldendal 2016, together with Ingunn Ikdahl).
In 2024, she wrote the report «Algoritmer, kunstig intelligens og diskriminering. En analyse av likestillings- og diskrimineringslovens muligheter og begrensninger» ["Algorithms, Artificial Intelligence, and Discrimination: An Analysis of the Possibilities and Limitations of the Norwegian Equality and Discrimination Act."]
Strand's research, teaching, and supervision primarily relate to international human rights, discrimination and equality law, constitutional law, welfare law, and methodology.
Experience as leader
From 2020-2023, Strand was elected as the faculty's pro-dean for research, which involves being part of the faculty leadership. During this period, she was the leader of the faculty's Programme Committee for Research Training.
In 2022 and 2023, she was the leader of the faculty's committee for equality, diversity, and inclusion (LIMU).
She has been the leader of the faculty's research group on welfare, rights, and discrimination (VERDI).
A selection of positions, tasks, etc.
She is the responsible expert for the topic of Equality and Non-discrimination on Store norske leksikon [Great Norwegian Encyclopedia].
From 2014-2019, she was one of the editors of the Oslo Law Review, a law journal published by Universitetsforlaget [Scandinavian University Press].
From 2012-2015, she was a substitute member in the Equality and Anti-Discrimination Tribunal [repealed and replaced by the Discrimination Tribunal].
As a newly graduated lawyer, she was involved in writing the legal preparatory works relating to the incorporation the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) into Norwegian law.
