2020

Doctoral Dissertation: Emotional skills for service designers in co-creation practices

28.12.2020 11:00

Service designers often act as facilitators in co-creation workshops, and they need specific skills to ensure a positive participant experience. The facilitator needs to be capable of creating a sense of togetherness and optimizing interaction in order to allow the flow of collective creation. The study by Mariluz Soto, MA, aims to broaden our understanding of emotions in service design processes and presents three essential skills that help facilitators in their work.

Arctic Centre has a new director: Johanna Ikävalko

18.12.2020 13:25

The Rector of the University of Lapland has, following the proposal of the Arctic Centre board, appointed PhD Johanna Ikävalko as the Director of the Arctic Centre for the next five-year period, 2021-2025. She will start in her new position in February.

Declining Arctic sea ice drives divergent arctic shrub growth

15.12.2020 14:10

Arctic shrubs are the most widespread woody plants in the Far North and, like trees in lower latitudes, they form annual growth rings. These rings can be measured under a microscope to reveal the history of the past climates but also growth responses to the recent climate change that is vividly present in the Arctic. A new study shows how currently ongoing sea ice decline interacts with Arctic shrubs.

Research Professor Rauna Kuokkanen selected for the Fullbright Arctic Initiative III

15.12.2020 13:00

Research Professor Rauna Kuokkanen was selected for the Fullbright Arctic Initiative III -program for 2021–2022. 18 outstanding scholars and practitioners from Arctic Council’s member countries were selected to participate in the program, of whom two are from Finland.

The online course Arctic Inclusive Education will be piloted in Spring Term 2021 - registration is now open!

7.12.2020 11:00

This 10-ECTS course has been developed in collaboration with the Arctic Five universities, and it will be held for the first time in Spring Term 2021.

Doctoral Dissertation: Connecting Couples in Long-Distance Relationships – Towards Unconventional Computer-Mediated Emotional Communication Systems

1.12.2020 11:00

The number of couples who find themselves in a long-distance relationship is increasing for a wide range of reasons. For example, the current outbreak of COVID-19 has kept numerous loved ones apart. M.Des. Hong Li argues that there is a gap between research-based knowledge of the needs of long-distance relationship couples and the practical solutions actually available for them. Her study contributes to bridging this gap by mediating emotional communication through unconventional user interfaces that use interaction solutions outside of the scope of their conventional use.

Finnish universities publish 12 ambitious theses and intend to become leaders in sustainable development

24.11.2020 14:47

Carbon neutrality by 2030, sustainable development at the heart of strategies, and strong support for the Finnish Government's climate and biodiversity goals. All of the above is included in the plans of Finnish universities through mutual theses on sustainable development and responsibility, which have been published today.

Doctoral Dissertation: Drones Challenge Aviation Safety Rules

20.11.2020 9:00

Unmanned aircrafts – drones – have brought about a significant change in civil aviation. They present a number of problems, in particular when viewed from the perspective of aviation safety and security law. In his doctoral dissertation, LL.M. Mikko T. Huttunen examines the problematic of drones and the legislative approaches addressing it.

Doctoral Dissertation: Constructing child and family social work’s discursive practices in Lithuania

18.11.2020 14:00

MSW Roberta Motiečienė’s dissertation is based on the stories of child and family social workers in Lithuania. The country has been independent for only thirty years, which has significantly influenced the development of social work practices. Lithuanian society, following a neoliberal model and stressing individualism and efficiency, has high expectations of family social workers while advocating the rights of children and families. Family social workers are facing difficulties caused by structural problems in society and they are expected to abide by work ethics while lacking external resources.

Arctic Centre joining a Horizon 2020 project on sustainable management in extractive industries

5.11.2020 10:05

The Arctic Centre of the University of Lapland will lead Work Package 2 (Clustering and meta-analysis) of the EU Horizon 2020 project SUMEX.

COVID-19: Teaching arrangements as of 1 January 2021

2.11.2020 12:00

Teaching remotely continues to be recommended from 1 January 2021 on.

New book: Ethics and Politics of Space for the Anthropocene

28.10.2020 17:00

Featuring an international, multidisciplinary set of contributors – including six researchers from the University of Lapland – this thought-provoking book reimagines established narratives of the Anthropocene to allow differences in regions and contexts to be taken seriously, emphasising the importance of localised and situated knowledge.

Finland and India to develop indigenous and tribal peoples' studies

23.10.2020 14:10

The Northern Institute for Environment and Minority Law (NIEM) at the Arctic Centre has received 35,500 euro from the Finnish National Agency for Education (EDUFI). The funding is granted to implement the project entitled "Interdisciplinary curricula on indigenous and tribal peoples' studies."

Exhibition addresses the environmental distress of the Polar Regions

19.10.2020 14:16

In her Arktikum Science Centre exhibition The Call of Things, artist Jessica Houston draws attention to the environmental distress of the North and South Poles with ‘talking objects’ and photographs that Houston took during her travels.

Doctoral defense: Addiction within families – The impact of substance use disorder on the family system

12.10.2020 8:30

Jóna Margrét Ólafsdóttir´s doctoral thesis points out that the family members of a person with a substance use disorder (SUD) experience its effect in different ways in terms of their mental health, psychosocial state, and the family system as a whole. Family members living with an individual afflicted with SUD can experience increased depression, anxiety, and stress. Furthermore, they experience decreased family cohesion and communication between family members compared to members of families not affected by SUD.

University of Lapland updated COVID-19 -guidelines: Face masks strongly recommended and limitations to face-to-face teaching

12.10.2020 8:00

The University of Lapland updated COVID-19 guidelines starting from 12th of October. The purpose of our updated guidelines is to ensure that the university will be able to continue to operate in the hybrid mode of work.

LYY's 41. Annual Ball week

6.10.2020 10:30

Welcome to celebrate the 41st anniversary of the Student Union of the University of Lapland with us!

Doctoral Dissertation: The Experience of Displacement and Social Engineering in Kola Saami Oral Histories

5.10.2020 9:00

M.A. Lukas Allemann examines in his thesis people’s experiences of Soviet-time, state-initiated displacement and (re)emplacement on the Kola Peninsula as well as the consequences of these developments. Sources show that Saami communities bore the brunt of these processes. The work seeks to draw – for the first time – a holistic picture of the social transformation among the Kola Saami, while nevertheless respecting the reality of mixed and multiple ethnic belongings as well as other categories of identity in the region.

China Law Week 2020 online 20–23 October

2.10.2020 15:45

The China Law Week 2020 will offer analysis of the key features of the legal frameworks, challenges, and reforms that arise today in relation to Chinese law, and the unique characteristics of Chinese legal culture. The speakers comprise of leading academics from top universities in Europe, China and Australia.

Arctic Market Days cancelled

1.10.2020 8:52

Due to current COVID-19 pandemic Arctic Market Days 2020 is cancelled. The market was supposed to be held in December at Arktikum House, Rovaniemi.

Arctic Centre leading a new study on the EU Arctic-relevant policies

28.9.2020 11:53

The Arctic Centre at the University of Lapland has for many years been involved in research and consultancy related to the EU’s Arctic policy. New research commissioned by the European Commission studies the EU policies affecting the Arctic from various point of views.

Warming temperatures are driving Arctic greening

24.9.2020 15:10

As Arctic summers warm, Earth’s northern landscapes are changing. Using satellite images to track global tundra ecosystems over decades, a new study found the region has become greener, as warmer air and soil temperatures lead to increased plant growth.

Carbon emissions could add 40 cm to 2100 sea level rise

17.9.2020 16:00

If greenhouse gas emissions continue apace, Greenland and Antarctica’s ice sheets could together contribute about 40 centimeters of global sea level rise – and that’s beyond the amount that has already been set in motion by Earth’s warming climate. An international effort that brought together more than 60 ice, ocean and atmosphere scientists from three dozen international institutions has generated new estimates on how much of an impact Earth’s melting ice sheets could have on global sea levels by 2100.

A new project on Ageing, gender and ethnicity (AGE-Arctic) has started at the Unit of Gender Studies

17.9.2020 8:30

The Nordic Council of Ministers’ has granted 350000 DKK for first year from the Arctic Cooperation Programme, 2020 to Gender Studies Unit at Faculty of Education. The project entitled “Understanding ageing, gender and ethnicity: Experiences from European Arctic (AGE-Arctic),” is led by Professor Päivi Naskali, co-lead Dr. Shahnaj Begum. Other involved researchers from the University of Lapland (Faculty of Social Science) are Associate Professor Minna Zechner and researcher Marjo Outila.

New book and a conference reflect on the future of the Arctic human population from the perspective of immigration

15.9.2020 10:09

Recently published book “Immigration in the Circumpolar North: Integration and Resilience” explores interconnected issues of integration and resilience among both immigrants and host communities in the Arctic region. It examines the factors that inhibit or enable the success of immigrants to the Arctic and the role of territoriality in the process of integration. Multiple authors from the Arctic Centre at the University of Lapland have contributed to the book and its corresponding editor is researcher Nafisa Yeasmin.

COVID-19: The University of Lapland continues with the hybrid model until the end of year

15.9.2020 9:25

The University of Lapland has updated guidelines concerning coronavirus (COVID-19), and the updated guidelines are valid until 31 December 2020.

Improving Theory-Practice Balance of Mozambican Teacher Education

10.9.2020 14:00

The Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs has granted funding of one million euros to a group of four Higher Education Institutions in Finland and Mozambique to improve the teacher education in Mozambique. The experts from the Faculty of Education of University of Lapland will participate in the implementation of the project.

Five Doctoral Defenses from the Culture-based Service Design Doctoral Programme!

9.9.2020 10:00

Culture-based Service Design Doctoral Programme celebrates the publication of five doctoral dissertations this autumn. The candidates’ research topics are related to Wicked Problems, Artificial Intelligence, Northern Design, Service Design Workshops and Unconventional Computer-Mediated Emotional Communication Systems. Together these dissertations create considerable new contributions of knowledge and theory on service design in both European and Global perspectives.

Doctoral Dissertation: The defence relationship of Iceland and the United States and the closure of Keflavík base

2.9.2020 12:00

M.A. Gustav Pétursson’s doctoral thesis identifies the key elements of the defence relationship between Iceland and the United States. The research results suggest that defence relationships between asymmetrical powers in the international system are not only shaped by developments of the security environment, but also by economic factors and perceptions of decision makers responsible for shaping a nation’s defence policy.

University rectors recommend that the whole university community start to use the Koronavilkku app – “In this way we can work together to create a safe study and work environment”

28.8.2020 13:30