FINNISH SCIENCE SOCIETY IN THE UK

The Finnish Science Society in the UK is an academic society of Finnish scientists, working in the United Kingdom seeking to improve and establish relationships between the United Kingdom and Finland.

The Society

The Finnish Science Society in the United Kingdom is dedicated to fostering collaboration and networking among Finnish scientists and researchers based in the UK. Our mission is to support academic exchange, organize events, and provide a platform for sharing knowledge and opportunities.

gavel

Advocating

The society acts to advocate for the interests of researchers to advance and promote scientific collaboration and mobility between Finland and the United Kingdom.

groups

Representation

The society acts to encourage constructive dialogue on relevant issues with the Finnish and British governments and their embassies.

event

Social

Outwith the pandemic the society organised social events, typically in London, after an invited talk.

hub

Networking

The society acts as a point of contact for its membership and acts to facilitate inquiries on issues pertaining to research in the UK and Finland.

person

Speaker Series

We organise on average 3-4 events a year, most of them being talks and discussions at a variety of locations in London, as well as virtually.

public

Brexit

Click here for our advisory document on how Brexit may impact scientific collaboration and mobility between Finland and the United Kingdom

Brexit, Science, and Finland

The United Kingdom's exit from the EU (Brexit) happened on 31 January 2020. Further negotiations regarding the future relationship between the United Kingdom (UK) and European Union (EU) have now begun.

Finnish scientists living, working and studying in the UK are an asset to Finland as a nation. Finnish scientists that have established themselves in the UK have a network of contacts in the country, and can aid in creating new links between Finnish and UK institutions. Those who leave Finland for their studies or for a research post and then return to Finland bring new knowledge, ideas and connections with them. Finland should aim to encourage the international behaviour of Finnish scientists and stay in touch with its scientists abroad. If contact is maintained, Finland can draw on the knowledge and contacts of its scientists and attract more scientific collaboration with other nations.

Up until now the focus of the Brexit debate has been on what the UK's position is, while the interests of Finland have widely remained undiscussed. Our review aims to identify and outline what Finnish scientists consider necessary for the future relationship between Finland and the UK to allow for fruitful scientific collaboration. The contents are based on an open discussion of the Finnish Science Society in the UK on 12 January 2019 and a meeting with the Finnish Ambassador Markku Keinänen on 11 March 2020. This document covers four main areas:

  • the role of science and research in the negotiations
  • UK participation in EU research framework programmes
  • status of students
  • mobility of researchers

These views may be of interest to parties such as the Finnish government and the EU Commission when the details of the future of scientific collaboration between the UK and EU are discussed.

Download report

Upcoming Events

Past Events

Some of our past events...

Membership

We welcome all members with an active or passing interest in the society and its goals. Prospective members should use this form to submit a membership request. Membership is free.

Membership form

The Committee

The new Committee was elected in the Annual General Meeting, which was held online on 20 April.

Arttu Rajantie

Imperial College London, Chair

Jaana Tarma

Treasurer

Kalle Sipilä

Imperial College London, Secretary

Markus Ketola

University of Edinburgh, Membership Secretary

Hanne Bown

University of Bath

Harriet Calvert

Luke Roebuck

University of Manchester

Myunghoon Paik

Laura Parkkinen

University of Oxford

Joel Vasama

University College London

Antti Vauhkonen

Contact

Contact us

Please write to us directly.