My education in geography includes the BS, MS, and PhD in geography, and a PhD minor in rural demography from the University of Wisconsin.   Much of my early research was on rural demographic and economic systems and the dynamics of changing rural society in American small towns, using a large national sample of places.  I have worked with communities in Wisconsin, West Virginia, Idaho and elsewhere on strategies for local economic development and modeling the process of growth and decline.  With funding from the Fulbright Foundation, NSF, and NGS , I extended my economic development research to Europe, including Nordic and ex-Soviet countries.  
Following several funded projects on foreign direct investment into ex-socialist emerging market economies in eastern Europe and Russia, and research on ethnic integration in the new economy of Macedonia, funded by U.S. Dept. of State, I am currently working on research funded by NSF on adaptation to climate change in development planning in high latitude municipalities in Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia.  Two papers are available on this project and are in review for publication.  One is about the cases in Russia, the other on northern vs. southern Norway and effects of development differences and demographic trends.

• Johansen, H.E. and Michele O’Neill, “Ethnicity vs. Citizenship in the Workplace Context: A Case Study of Macedonia.”  Journal of Balkan and Near Eastern Studies.  Vol. 14, No. 1, March 2012, pp. 93-111.
• Dezzani, R. J. and H. E. Johansen, “The Role of Foreign Direct Investment as a Structural Development Indicator of the Hierarchical World Economy.  Environment and Planning A, Vol. 44, 2012,  pp. 1-25. 
• Johansen, H.E. “Automatic for the People: Survival Strategies of Neste OY of Finland.” The Financial Times: FDI Magazine, August, 2009.
• Johansen, H.E. “Private Enterprises Rise from Soviet Ashes.” The Financial Times: FDI Magazine, March, 2008.
• Johansen, H.E. and A. Panova. “Adaptation and Survival of Early FDI firms in Post-Soviet Space: St. Petersburg and Baltic Country Locations.” Chapter in Reponen, T. and K. Liuhto, eds. Future Competitiveness of the EU and its Eastern Neighbors. Turku: Pan European Institute. 2007.
• Johansen, H.E. “Country Risk and Foreign Direct Investment in Russia and other Transition Countries” The Financial Times: FDI Magazine, November, 2006.
• Johansen, H.E. “Ethnic Dimensions and Economic Development in Macedonia’s Municipalities,” Eurasian Geography and Economics, 2004.
• Johansen, H.E., F. Snickars, and I. Steinbuka . “Nordic Investment in the Former Soviet Baltic Frontier: a Survey of Firms and Selected Case Studies” Geografiska Annaler vol. 82 B, March, 2001.