
The KTH Reactor Hall. Photo: Jann Lipka
7th Nordic STS Conference
STS in and out of the Laboratory
June 11-13, 2025, Stockholm
PhD-student pre-conference 10 June: Method labs
STS in and out of the Laboratory
The laboratory refers to a particular site for knowledge production as well as methods for testing and developing new ways of working together. The Nordic STS conference in 2025 takes place at two University campuses that both hosts laboratories with historical legacy – the KTH Reactor Hall, at the Royal Institute for Technology and the laboratory of climate researcher and Nobel prize winner Svante Arrhenius, at Stockholm University. Both these sites will be actively enrolled in conference presentations, discussions and available for site visits. The small forest area between the two campuses KTH and Stockholm University, will be activated as a site for experimental, artistic and rubber-boot-sessions. The Call for artistic sessions is now open, read more here.
This conference invites scholars in and beyond Nordic STS to take part in this conversation and activation of the laboratory as site and method. We are inviting PhD-students to a pre-conference on the 10 June, read more here: Method labs
The Call for abstracts is open between 15 January to 1 March: read more about the open panels and instructions on how to submit your abstract here.
We are looking forward to your contributions!
On behalf of the organizing committee
Linda Soneryd, Score, Stockholm Centre for Organizational Research, Stockholm University and Stockholm School of Economics &
Nina Wormbs, KTH Royal Institute of Technology
Conference Venues
The conference takes place at two campuses in Stockholm: Stockholm University and the Royal Institute for Technology, KTH.
The KTH Reactor Hall
The Reactor Hall at KTH was originally the site of Sweden’s first nuclear reactor, the research reactor R1. The research reactor was in operation between 1954 and 1970.
During the conference the Reactor Hall will be available for study visits and paper sessions and workshops will be organized on nuclear related topics.



Svante Arrhenius Laboratory
In 1909, the Nobel houses were inaugurated, designed by the architect Rudolf Enblom (1861-1945). One of the houses was built as a residence and the other as a laboratory for Professor Svante Arrhenius and his Nobel Institute for Physical Chemistry. In 1903, Svante Arrhenius was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Today, Score (Stockholm Centre for Organizational Research) resides in these buildings.
During the conference the Arrhenius laboratory is open for study visits, and sparks off a session in which we will be trace the progress of climate science – and peer into its future, and the seminar room in the Nobel house will host paper sessions in climate change related panels.
Urban Labs
The Urban Labs track in Nordic STS 2025 aims to explore and develop connections between Science and Technology Studies and urban studies, human geography and planning studies. These fields overlap in many issues and interests yet exchange activity as a common research field or frontier seems relatively downplayed. This track asks what an STS-inspired approach can do for various disciplines exploring urban questions, but also what mainstream STS debates might be missing in terms of engagement with developments in traditional urban disciplines. The Urban Labs track is organized around conventional open and closed panels, desk-and-boot sessions and a semi-plenary bringing together various perspectives from the conference.


Method Labs
Method labs at the conference is organized as a one-day pre-conference for PhD students. The day is organized on the 10 June from 10 to 17 as a method lab and will involve both “training sessions” on particular methods, i.e. practice-oriented document analysis and “therapy sessions”, i.e. give the opportunity to discuss all sorts of problems and traumatic experiences when doing ethnography, including the unpleasant feeling of not experiencing anything much at all.
The method lab is only open for PhD students. Experienced senior scholars will organize the sessions which is primarily based on the PhD students own works and experiences. When the conference registration opens you will be able to register for this day and you will then also have the choice between participating in the training session, the therapy session or both.
The conference will imply a fee (between 2500-4500 SEK, exact costs will be announced when registration opens, it will be a lower cost for PhD students) but the method labs is free of charge for any PhD student who also registers for the conference.
Contact us
Conference Secretariat: Academic Conferences
Phone: +46 18 67 10 34 or +46 18 67 10 03
Conference Secretariat email:
nordic-sts2025@akademikonferens.se
Open Panels and Abstract Secretariat:
nordic-sts2025@score.su.se