Finnish-Japanese Arctic Studies Program

The need for multidisciplinary and multidimensional studies on Arctic issues has, in recent years, increasingly gained importance both within the Arctic countries and beyond. The Arctic today is regarded as a global space because of its intersubjective political interests across the states. It has become a socio-political fact that more and more non-Arctic nations are interested in Arctic affairs. In recent years, Japan has become a significant actor in the Arctic. Its joining as an observer in the Arctic Council – a high level intergovernmental forum of the Arctic states – demonstrates national strategy to promote understanding on Arctic issues.

This project, therefore, particularly aims at promoting multidisciplinary understanding and cooperation between Finland and Japan in terms promotion of education and teaching on the Arctic issues.

Objectives

  • Promotion of academic collaboration on the Arctic issues among four participating Universities.
  • Organizing a summer school in 2019 in Sapporo, Japan.
  • Educating advanced level under-graduate and graduate students from the partner Universities.
  • Promotion of continued collaboration among the partner Universities beyond the project period.

Project partners

Project participants

  • Professor Kamrul Hossain, Arctic Centre, University of Lapland (Lead)
  • Professor Veli-Pekka Tynkkynen (University of Helsinki)
  • Docent Kylli Ritva (University of Oulu)
  • Professors Sei-Ichi Saitoh and Juha Saunavaara (Hokkaido University)

Project duration

  • August 2018 – December 2019

Funding & agency

  • 50,000 euro
  • Ministry of Education Finland (EDUFI)

More information: 
Dr. Kamrul Hossain
Research Professor, Director of the Northern Institute for Environmental and Minority Law
Arctic Centre, University of Lapland
+358 40 484 4281, kamrul.hossain (at) ulapland.fi
Program’s page at Arctic Centre website

Posts about the events and publication related to this project can be accessed via the hashtag Fin-Jap Arctic studies.