Norges forskningsråd har bevilget 5 millioner kroner til ARENA for å analysere dagens norske grunnlov i en europeisk kontekst. Prosjektet heter "NORCONE - The Norwegian Constitution in a Changing European context" og skal gå over to år fram mot Grunnlovsjubileet i 2014.
Det skal utgis to bøker som skal foreligge i jubileumsåret, - en om de pågående konstitusjonsprosessser i EU, og en om Norges konstitusjonelle og demokratiske status i forhold til den endrede europeiske konteksten. Her vil en rekke bidragsytere analysere Norges forhold til EU fra ulike vinkler, bl.a. med tanke på Norges evne til å styre seg selv, sammenlignet med EUs medlemsland.
Her er et utdrag fra prosjektbeskrivelsen:
"Constitutions always evolve in their international contexts. There is no such thing as constitutionalism in one state. This was clearly the case in 1814, and no less so today. Legal developments beyond the nation state are profound; in Europe especially as a consequence of the European Union. This is an entity that many analysts and decision-makers understand as a constitutional order.
We examine how Norway’s constitutional development is tied up with and affected by the EU. Formally speaking, Norway is not a member of the EU, but is nevertheless very closely affiliated with it, first and foremost through the European Economic Area (EEA) Agreement, but also through Schengen, and a range of other agreements.
In this project we examine the democratic-constitutional status of Norway by 1) establishing the nature of the EU’s constitutional development, and 2) by analysing Norway’s compound relationship with the EU. Are Norwegian citizens able to govern themselves autonomously through politics and law within the new European context?"