Arve Hansen began working at the Norwegian Helsinki Committee in January 2022.
He has a PhD in area studies from the University of Tromsø, and he has thoroughly researched urbanism, mass protest and culture of opposition in Ukraine, Belarus and Russia, as well as the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian conflict.
Previously, Arve has lived in the East Slavic region for ten years. He has, among other things, studied at two Belarusian universities in Minsk, worked for the Norwegian MFA in Kyiv and Murmansk, and done field work in Ukraine over a period of several years.
“The Helsinki Committee is a place where I can use my knowledge and experience to contribute to a region I am very fond of.”
Arve speaks Russian, Ukrainian, Belarusian, Norwegian and English. He also tries (with varying luck) to speak Spanish, Polish and Persian.