Water resources are essential for energy and food production as well as for tourism and biodiversity. Hydropower production and land use impacts in particular have a history of societal tension in Finland. These tensions largely originate in a mismatch between the modes of natural resource governance and the current social-ecological needs.

The seminar will address the ways in which a change in modes of governance could respond to the current social-ecological needs. River basins are complex and dynamic systems comprising myriad social, ecological and economic components. In an era of global environmental change—in particular climate change and biodiversity loss—scientific uncertainty highlights the significance of management and governance of such systems.

Speakers of the seminar include Professor Anna-Stiina Heiskanen from the Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE), Professor Barbara Cosens from the University of Idaho, Professor Niko Soininen from the University of Helsinki, Research Scientist Panu Orell from the Natural Resources Institute Finland (LUKE), and Professor Jukka Similä from the University of Lapland.

The seminar, which will take place on tuesday, the 25th of September at 9:30-17:00 in the Lecture Hall Castrén (LH 11), is a joint effort of the University of Eastern Finland, the University of Helsinki, the Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE) and the University of Lapland. The seminar is part of the BlueAdapt project aiming at developing a comprehensive methodological framework supporting sustainable blue growth by combining multidisciplinary research and the knowledge and experience of public and private sector actors into guidelines for adaptive governance to inform decision-making.

The BlueAdapt project is funded by the Strategic Research Council (SRC) at the Academy of Finland.

The seminar programme

Sign up for the seminar by contacting Tuija Kaihua (Tuija.Kaihua@ulapland.fi) by Thursday the 20^th of September.

Further information on the seminar:

Jukka Similä

Jukka.Simila@ulapland.fi