New honorary doctors at The Faculty of Theology

Professor Emerita Kim Knott

Kim Knott is Professor Emerita in religious studies at Lancaster University, United Kingdom.

Her research has been internationally acclaimed for many years, and spans broad fields such as the relationship between religion and the secular, materiality, migration and diasporas, and radicalisation. Knott has emphasised in particular the importance of spatial perspectives and methods, where specific religious traditions and expressions must always be studied and understood in relation to the spaces they inhabit and in which they are practised. She has also studied the central role of the media in people’s understanding of religion and how religions, like secular values, are represented in the media. Her work has contributed significantly to broadening and renewing our understanding of the role of religion in modern, culturally pluralistic environments.

In addition to her own research, Professor Knott has played a key role as project manager in many large research projects. Knott has also played an important role in collaborations and networks within the field of the history of religion. For example, she was the president of the European Association for the Study of Religion (EASR) until recently.

Professor Hartmut Rosa

Hartmut Rosa is a Professor of General and Theoretical Sociology at Friedrich Schiller University Jena, and Director of the Max Weber Centre for Advanced Cultural and Social Studies at the University of Erfurt, Germany. His theories about how late modern society’s increased demands for growth, technological and social innovation create a state of galloping acceleration have had a major impact internationally, and in Sweden, in a number of different disciplines. His multidisciplinary profile spans questions about modernity, democracy, philosophies of life, ethical values, existential health, and learning as well as sustainability questions. Professor Rosa’s challenge to modern society, namely to focus on quality of life rather than economic growth, has also been significant in social debate, culture and art. His research shows how social theory can be relevant outside of a specific research field by resonating with people’s everyday experiences, and contributing to theory about how a better life and a better world might be designed. The concept of resonance, which describes the importance of dialogue, listening and reflection to counteract the consequences of acceleration, shows how religious and theological perspectives can be relevant in critical debate on civilisation concerning what constitutes the good life and a good society.