Date: 21 November 2025
Time: 10:00–11:45 (CET)
Platform: Online

This event marks the official launch of the Childhood, Health, Education, and Research (CHER) Special Interest Group (SIG), a vibrant platform that connects scholars, practitioners, and policymakers across the Global North and South. The initiative aims to foster interdisciplinary dialogue and collaborative research exploring how children’s lives are shaped by, and help shape, today’s rapidly changing world. Addressing issues of inequality, digitalization, and environmental and social transformation, CHER promotes context-sensitive, inclusive approaches to education and research that advance justice and sustainability for children everywhere.

Dr. Eric Kimathi, Associate Professor, Department of Global Development and Planning, University of Agder (UiA), Norway
Keynote Address: Between Local and Global: Towards Epistemic Reimagining of Children and Childhood in a ‘Glocalized’ Society

Dr. Kimathi’s research bridges childhood studies and global development, focusing on migration, integration, culture, and resistance. His recent publication, “Under the Watch of the State? Refugee Parents’ Experiences with Surveillance in Norwegian Early Childhood Education Centers” (Nordic Journal of Migration Research, 2025), offers powerful insights into the intersections of policy, identity, and care in early education. His keynote invites participants to reflect on how children and childhood are continuously reimagined in a “glocalized” world where local realities meet global forces.

Dr. Gjertrud Stordal, Associate Professor at DMMH and Coordinator of the SANORD CHER SIG, will moderate the discussion following the keynote. Dr. Stordal also leads the international collaboration “Learning to Lead – Knowledge and Experience-Based Multicultural Perspectives for Enhancing Leadership for Sustainability in ECEC.” Her work fosters inclusive, sustainability-oriented approaches to early childhood education through cross-cultural collaboration and knowledge exchange.

Following the keynote presentation, participants will be invited to join an open dialogue exploring children’s education, well-being, and development across diverse contexts.

We look forward to your participation in this exciting launch event, an opportunity to engage, collaborate, and co-create knowledge for a more equitable and sustainable future for all children. Refer to the post below for the Zoom link to the webinar.