Honorary Doctors 2024

Mian Lodalen works as an author, freelance journalist, columnist, and is a frequently sought-after speaker. Born in Jönköping, she has been residing in Stockholm for many years. Since the 1980s, Mian Lodalen has been involved in feminism, LGBTQIA+ and animal rights issues, which is also reflected in several of her books, columns, and lectures. She is a person who dares to stand out, addressing challenging issues and always advocating for vulnerable groups in society.

Both pain and humour

In her novels, Mian Lodalen depicts challenging childhood conditions from the perspective of children and youth. In her historical novel series about forbidden love, based on real cases, she portrays the life conditions of homosexuals over half a century in Sweden. Her works are often characterized by both pain and humour.

Mian Lodalen's work for equality strongly aligns with the global sustainability goal of reducing inequality and fits well with Jönköping University's preventive efforts to counteract discrimination and promote equal opportunities. Her work is important and resonates with and inspires the work of the School of Health and Welfare to contribute to equal health in both education and research.

Several awards and honours

Mian Lodalen has been awarded several awards and honours, including, alongside Anna-Klara Bratt the Radio Q Scholarship in 1999, and the Vilhelm Moberg Scholarship in 2003. She was also named Jönköping Ambassador of the Year in 2008, received the Cultural Scholarship of Jönköping County in 2011, and the Cultural Scholarship of Jönköping Municipality in 2013. In 2023, she was awarded the June Medal by Jönköping Municipality and received the QX honorary award at the Gay Gala.

“In a time when human rights are being pushed back in large parts of the world, and when forces in Sweden also seek to limit the freedom we have achieved through years of struggle, it is particularly gratifying that JU chooses to appoint me as honorary doctor. It is a great honour that gives me the strength to continue telling stories about love, the value of equality, and every person's right to live openly and authentically,“ says Mian Lodalen.

Creating a better understanding of global urban development

José Lobo is an Associate Clinical Professor at the School of Sustainability, College of Global Futures, Arizona State University (Tempe, Arizona, United States). He has also been involved with the Santa Fe Institute, a leading research centre dedicated to the multidisciplinary study of the fundamental principles of complex adaptive systems, since the mid-1990s.

Among Lobo’s work are significant contributions to our understanding of urban development in an era of global warming, as well as the study of slums in large cities, particularly in developing countries. He has collected data and formulated theories that have created a better understanding of the development of the world’s cities, leading to improved planning conditions. Lobo has also played a role in the development of theories related to cities, scale effects, and sustainability, through the analysis of social and economic interactions, thereby increasing our understanding of our urban systems.

In his work, Dr. Lobo has collaborated with economists, economic geographers, physicists, biologists, ecologists, and archaeologists and other colleagues from all over the world. He is most proud of his collaboration with Slum Dwellers International, a global federation of slum dwellers organizations from Africa, Latin America and Asia seeking to better understand the role of informal settlements in urban development.

Contributed to the overall research environment

José Lobo has made significant contributions to Jönköping International Business School's (JIBS) research in various ways. He has co-written numerous papers with researchers at JIBS, contributed to the overall research environment through his frequent visits, and is highly regarded as a valued ‘colleague’ by both faculty and doctoral students. Furthermore, he has generously shared his extensive international networks with researchers at JIBS.

“I am very proud, and yes, very surprised, to be appointed an honorary doctor at JU. I do not feel deserving of such an honour. But it is very gratifying, given how much I have learned collaborating with faculty at JIBS and how much I have benefited from the generosity of the institution, to learn that my colleagues at JIBS think that I have contributed to JIBS,” says José Lobo.