Sustainability is the imperative of our time. The Sustainability Transformation Doctoral Education Pilot (SusTra) presents an essential opportunity for everyone to engage with our open Studia Generalia lectures in autumn 2025. The best experts in the field offer the lecture series, tackling the pressing sustainability challenges we face.

These 14 online lectures will provide impactful insights into creating a sustainable life and society across various domains, including work, business, leadership, administration, legislation, social imagination, well-being, and education.

These Studia Generalia lectures are based on an open Sopuli PhD course organised by SusTra Doctoral Education Pilot, a collaboration of 10 universities and Finnish Environment Institute SYKE.

The Sopuli online lectures during autumn 2025, as Studia Generalia

The Sopuli lectures will be held online in zoom, on Mondays and Thursdays 14:15–15:45 and they are open to anyone interested in the topics. The language for the lectures is English.

• Mon 8.9. Jarkko Levänen, LUT University: What is sustainability science?
• Thu 11.9. Ilari Sääksjärvi, University of Turku: Biodiversity as a basis of life on Earth
• Mon 15.9. Jouni Jaakkola, University of Oulu: What is planetary health?
• Thu 18.9. Minna Halme, Aalto University: Sustainability in business in the context of societal sustainability transformation
• Mon 22.9. Leena Aarikka-Stenroos, Tampere University: From linear to circular economy: Circular, low carbon business perspective
• Thu 25.9. Teemu Koskimäki, University of Eastern Finland: Ecological economics: Sustainable development within just planetary boundaries
• Mon 29.9. Niko Soininen & Seita Vesa, University of Eastern Finland: Roles of law in sustainability transformation
• Mon 20.10. Hannu L. T. Heikkinen, University of Jyväskylä: Education for sustainability transformation
• Thu 23.10. Ilkka Ratinen, University of Lapland: Competency-based sustainability transformations
• Thu 6.11. Katriina Siivonen, University of Turku: Cultural sustainability transformation
• Mon 10.11. Reetta Toivanen, University of Helsinki: Indigenous perspectives to sustainability sciences
• Thu 13.11. Irmeli Mustalahti, University of Eastern Finland: Environmental collaboration in sustainability transformation
• Mon 17.11. Maria Huhmarniemi, University of Lapland: Action research for sustainable culture
• Thu 20.11. Riikka Paloniemi, SYKE: Just transformation and citizens' behavioral change in society

Participants can choose which lectures to follow. Kindly note, registration is needed (link available below).

Completing the Sopuli PhD course for doctoral students

By completing the course, the doctoral students participating in it will be supported to identify their researcher position within sustainability transformations. Furthermore, the students will be equipped with transferable skills for becoming sustainability transformations researchers in their respective fields of science.

In addition to the lectures, the students are expected to write an essay (3000–4000 words, in English/Finnish/Swedish). The essay primarily centers on the information provided in the lectures. The deadline for the essay is 18 Dec 2025. To attain the credits (5 ECTS), one needs to attend the lectures and agree about the essay review & language with the own supervisor or faculty member within one's own university.

Grading of the course will be Pass/Fail. Supervisor evaluates the essay's quality based on three criteria: 1) coherence of argumentation, 2) depth of reflection, and 3) adequacy of information.

Registration for the Sopuli online lectures:
Please fill in the registration one week before the lecture. The registration is non-binding and needed only once: https://forms.office.com/e/NHAgVK88tM

Application to the Sopuli PhD course:
Please fill in the course application by 31 August 2025: https://forms.office.com/e/dfBJWFuWQq

SusTra Research Community

Are you a doctoral researcher or a post-doc with a focus on sustainability transformations or related themes? Join the SusTra Research Community by filling out a short application form.

Sustainability Transformations Doctoral Education Pilot (SusTra)

Sustainability Transformations is a doctoral education pilot implemented jointly by ten Finnish universities and the Finnish Environment Institute. The doctoral education pilot will train 40 doctoral graduates in 2025–2027. The Faculty of Art and Design and the Faculty of Education of the University of Lapland are involved in the Sustainability Transformations pilot.

Sustainability transformations research is interdisciplinary and solution-oriented, focusing on climate change, biodiversity loss and depletion of natural resources. Themes of research include, citizens' lifestyles, planetary health and well-being, production and consumption, governance and law, and cultural transformations.

Responsible course leader: Professor Arto O. Salonen, University of Eastern Finland
Course coordination: Research manager Meri Löyttyniemi, University of Eastern Finland
Website of SusTra: www.uef.fi/sustra