Excursion BSRS 2016

Participants of this year's Bergen Summer Research School will be taken on a guided excursion into the waterscape of western Norway to explore how the many forms of water shaped society and created this unique landscape.

The waterscape of western Norway combines the water of the North Atlantic and the fjords that reach very deep inland, but also the stored water of many glaciers and the ever-running waterfalls fed by melting ice and generous precipitation.  

Some of the deepest fjords and the highest water falls in the world are found in Western Norway, as well as the biggest glaciers in Norway. 

We will take you on a one-day excursion into this waterscape to see how the abundance of water formed landscapes and impacted and challenged human adaptations and activities for thousands of years. We will explore how people tamed the power of water, and how it shaped society and inspired innovation, and how people have exploited their waters.

Deep in the valley at the end of the Hardanger fjord, situated between the alpine plateau of Hardangervidda and Folgefonna glacier, the small town of Odda was one of the first tourist destinations in Norway welcome the brave and wealthy. What attracted international explorers also put it on the map as a driving force for Norway’s industrialisation – its proximity to stable falling water.

At the hydroelectric power station in Tyssedal we will take a close look at the engineering feat that laid the foundation for economic development in Norway: the harvesting of water’s energy.

We will also visit Folgefonna to experience the effect climate change has on one of Norway’s biggest glaciers. Along the way we will stop at communities that not long ago relied on the waterway provided by the fjords for contact with the outside world.