International Ideas at UNESCO
INIDUN
2020–2024
This research project uses large-scale digital text analysis to explore thousands of documents produced by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) from its foundation in 1945 to 2015. The purpose of this project is to use the vast quantity of texts produced by this global institution to understand how "international ideas," core concepts that define the terms of international debate, developed and changed over time. Focusing on how concepts related to culture and communication affected and were affected by decolonization, our approach will shed light on the intellectual history of the process by which international society became global.
Project website ▶People @ Humlab
- Roger Mähler
- Fredrik Norén
- Andreas Marklund
- Marita Nilsson
In cooperation with
- Benjamin Martin
- Uppsala University
Financier
Together we will apply cutting-edge methods of digital text analysis, including topic modeling and word embedding models, to a large sample of texts (ca 20 million words) including minutes from UNESCO's General Conference, standard-setting instruments, and UNESCO's magazine Courier.