Hi, I'm Martin.
I help shape Arctic futures

Political and social researcher. PhD in sustainability-oriented innovation in the Arctic. Futurist and proponent of post-sustainability.

I navel-gaze and sometimes dislodge articles

I occationally write and post short-form articles with a focus on the Arctic. Here are some of my latest posts:

Part I: Contemporary Arctic music that will knock your socks off! - Russia and Sápmi [13 min read]

Part II: Contemporary Arctic music that will peel your banana! - Norway, the Faroe Islands and Iceland [11 min read]

Part III: Contemporary Arctic music that will knock your socks off! - Greenland, Canada and Alaska [14 min read]


By now I have racked up some experience

Doctorate from DTU Entrepreneurship, and former project manager, educator and course coordinator at the University of the Faroe Islands. Project Manager (for the Nordic Council and Nordic Council of Ministers) at the Confederation of Norden Associations.

YearExperiencePlace
2024Project DeveloperNORA
2023PhdTechnical Uni. of Denmark
2018Course CoordinatorUni. of the Faroe Islands
2016CertifiedPRINCE2® Project Mgmt
2015ManagerFNF Norden
2013MAUni. of Aberdeen

Lived and worked in Tórshavn, Sisimiut, Aasiaat, Tokyo, Seoul, Aberdeen and Copenhagen. Official mentor to local incubator Hugskotið and official ambassador to Visit Faroe Islands. Coordinator of conferences and workshops on the SDGs, innovation and entrepreneurship. Large network within the Arctic.


Were you looking for my academic publications?

Olsen, MM. (2023) "Sustainability is having enough midwives and teachers”: A Survey of the Sustainability Practices of the Smallest Institutions of Higher Learning in the Arctic. Arctic Yearbook 2023, Akureyri: Northern Research Forum and UArctic Thematic Network on Geopolitics and Security.

Olsen, MM. (2021) An Academic Lead in Developing Sustainable Arctic Communities: Co-Creation, Quintuple Helix, and Open Social Innovation. Chapter 7 in: Natcher, D. and Jokela, T. (eds) (2021) Renewable Economies in the Arctic. Routledge.

Olsen, MM. (2020) Færøernes Universitet: Fra nationsbygning til nationsbranding. Økonomi & Samfund 93(4); Special issue on the Faroe Islands, Blaxekjær, LØ (ed). Djøf Forlag: Copenhagen.

Lauritsen; Olsen et al (2019) Educating Arctic Entrepreneurs: The next generation of sustainable pioneers. Nordregio report on student entrepreneurship in the Arctic. Published by NordRegio.

Blaxekjær; Olsen et al (2018) The Sustainable Development Goals and Student Entrepreneurship in the Arctic. Arctic Yearbook 2018, Akureyri: Northern Research Forum and UArctic Thematic Network on Geopolitics and Security.

Sometimes I'm on the news or make things that are

(2023) Martin Mohr Olsen defends his PhD. News bit on my thesis defense in Copenhagen.

(2022) Arktisk strategi på plads: Færøerne overhaler Grønland. Interview in Greenlandic newspaper Atuagagdliutit on the Faroese Arctic strategy.

(2019) Stinger from one of our Green Growth Digalogue conferences. This was a conference on Smart Cities in the Arctic.

(2017) Growing greens with fish-refuse. Interview on Faroese national television on student-led aquaponics experiments.

(2016) A house for green research. Interview on Faroese national television on the launch of our Green Student-House.