The project, The Ethics of Mortality Measurement (ETHME), which examines the theoretical and normative basis for measuring deaths, recently had its first kick-off seminar. The task now is to recruit more talented researchers.
" We are finally getting started. Since the start of April, we have had weekly Monday meetings with anywhere from 4–9 people who work on questions related to the project. The most important thing in this early phase is to get a good project group in place. We are therefore looking for two postdoctoral candidates and one PhD student,” says project manager and associate professor Carl Tollef Solberg.
So far, the project group consists of 9 participants, led by Solberg, with researcher Preben Sørheim as the deputy head and project coordinator. The project group is composed of both experienced researchers and medical students, a combination that Solberg believes is important to ensure innovation that can advance the field of research.
It was in November that it became clear that Solberg received the ERC Starting Grant, a grant given to talented researchers 2-7 years after completing their doctoral degree. Through the ERC program, Solberg receives 1.5 million euros in project support.
An ERC grant provides excellent opportunities to build up one's own research field. This is also the purpose of ETHME.
"With the grant, we will establish our own research group – together with other candidates whom I supervise, to consolidate the research and work together purposefully to publish at a high international level," says Solberg.
Importance of good measurement parameters
The project is about how to construct good, well-thought-out, and theoretically robust mortality measures at the population level. In addition, the ERC project will explore philosophical foundational questions about death and prioritization challenges that arise in the question of bringing new children into the world.
Most societies allocate significant resources to prevent deaths. Therefore, it is crucial to have good measurement parameters in order to prioritize health resources correctly.
"On the one hand, death is the worst thing we can think of. On the other hand, death is nothing to us. How can we evaluate deaths at all? The majority of the global burden of disease today is due to premature deaths, rather than morbidity. Consequently, it has been surprising that so little theoretical work has been done to construct good mortality measures," says Solberg.
Would you like to be part of Solberg’s team as a postdoctoral researcher or a fellow? See here for advertised positions (Application deadline 13 May.)
Colleagues who are interested in learning more about ETHME's work are welcome to contact Carl Tollef Solberg or Preben Sørheim and attend a Monday meeting.
Follow The Ethics of Mortality Measurement on Blueskye @etme.bsky.social
Fact box:
The core objectives of ETHME are to:
(a) develop and refine the understanding of the nature of the harm of death,
(b) reconcile the evaluation of deaths in summary measures of population health with the most promising accounts of the harm of death, and
(c) develop a theoretical grounding for evaluating procreation in future individuals.
Learn more about the project here.