Jeffrey

Dora Puhakka -Helsinki Area Coordinator

I had the pleasure of meeting Dora during an event that was hosted by the Namibian embassy a little over a year ago. As there were so many Namibians at the event, I did not get a chance to really know more about Dora.
Fast forward to a year later, I learn that Dora was coming to represent Nicehearts, at a networking event my colleagues and I were hosting. I was delighted at not only meeting Dora again, but having a fellow Namibian coming to our event. This time around I thought to myself I could not let her go without hearing her story and how she has navigated her way through life in Finland to get to where she is today. Juggling marriage, motherhood and a career like a champion, Dora is definitely a super woman in my books, and it was an honor to interview her.

Currently Dora occupies the position of Helsinki Area Coordinator for a “neighbourhood mothers” project at Nicehearts, an organization
founded in 2001 for girls and women’s productive activities, the aim of which is to enable girls and women to feel they have a place in society as equal members. Encouraging them to be agents of change! Dora has been with Nicehearts now since February 2017, and is loving the experience.

Although Dora has lived in Finland for nearly 14 years now, her journey actually started in Namibia where she completed her Bachelor’s degree in Economics with the University of Namibia. Upon completion of that degree, Dora came to Finland to pursue a Masters in Environmental Economics at the University of Helsinki. When I asked her what was the difference between the two programs, her response was “Economics is about the distribution of wealth, understanding the value of things and distributing them to different sectors at a micro and macro levels, while environmental economics is about studying the value of environmental resources and again about the dynamics of balancing how we use those resources of the nature sustainably”.

Dora says that she was very passionate about both working with numbers and the sustainability aspect of her masters, which led her to the position of freelance waste advisor, at Helsinki Metropolitan Area Reuse Centre during her studies.

Not making enough money to sustain her living, Dora went on to apply for a summer job at Helsinki Summer School, which led to her being appointed within the International Exchange Services as an International Exchange Coordinator until her contract ended.
Shortly after Dora applied for and was offered a position in the Finance department with the University of Helsinki, where she worked until the university’s most recent economic situation led to her retrenchment.

Two months later Dora was appointed at the TE employment office, where she worked for four months, along with some voluntary work she has been doing for an multicultural organisation called Familia ry, in a project: DUO for Intercultural Families as a peer group counsellor for 8 years. During her time with the TE Dora was receiving re-orientation training (outplacement coaching) for the labor market through a private consulting firm. Through this guidance and coaching Dora says “I was able to find something that matched my interests and my skills”, she goes on to say “This was an experience that I truly value because it made me realize that I wanted to do something more, and wanted to make a difference in lives of people”.

Nicehearts was that one place where her skills met her interests and passion. Dora says every working day is different at Nicehearts, and she loves the challenges. Her task revolves around having a lot of meetings with the staff members, and partners planning and discussing over activities that are happening in and around the organization. Working with other organizations that are similarly aligned, and finding out what issues women are currently facing and what type of solutions would be required. On a regular basis she would meet partners and discuss partnership possibilities in Helsinki.

When I asked her what piece of advice she could offer to those wanting to follow in her footsteps. She said that “Getting employed in a foreign country requires determination and hard work. Finding your ideal place requires a wide network/experience and these in Finland are easily built/gathered through a demonstration of commitment. Volunteering offers an open door to these”. she also encourages students to learn Finnish because it makes a big difference.