Responsible Business and Governance in the Faroese Oil Industry (co-finance for PhD project)

Abstract:

The objective of my research project is to explore how future expectations affect present action. The way we imagine our future and how we narrate the expected future plays a significant role in our present where the most powerful narratives might shape our opportunities in the future. Narratives about the future are projections based on storytelling mechanisms and the most convincing stories have the ability to shape the future. I use the expectation to find oil in the Faroe Islands as a case study, where no commercial oil fund is found - yet. Nevertheless, an oil industry has emerged and the Faroese are working in the industry, mainly elsewhere. In 2013 two per cent of the population was working in the oil industry - compared with only a handful in the early 1990´s when the adventure started. The project pursues the research question: “How does future expectation of wealth deriving from the oil affect the Faroese society and the potential outcomes in the future in the Faroe Islands?" The research features an in-depth case study of the Faroese Oil Industry, including interviews, observations, and local newspaper articles about the oil industry.