Rahma Hersi is a doctoral researcher working at the intersections of education and labour rights for minorities, with a particular focus on how alternative knowledge traditions—including Islamic law, ethics, and theology—shape the lived realities of the communities under study. Her doctoral research topic is titled; Becoming a Lääkäri in Finland: A Look at a Select Group of Finnish Somali Women’s pathway towards higher education and career as medical doctors. A Narrative Inquiry Approach
During her doctoral studies, Rahma was employed as project researcher under the Suojatie Research Project that focused on cross-border protection for children with transnational backgrounds.
Rahma was a visiting researcher at Leiden University’s Faculty of Area Studies under the supervision of Maurits Berger, where they also taught courses on Islamic law and Islamic jurisprudence. The research period was between February- March 2023 and September/October 2023. Rahma has presented her research at academic forums in the UK, Denmark, and Helsinki.
Prior to embarking on their doctoral studies, Rahma completed an Masters in International Comparative Law at the Robert McKinney School of Law in the United States and a Double Bachelor of Laws in Islamic Law and Common Law and Bachelor of Arts in Islamic Studies at the International Islamic University of Pakistan, building a foundation that combines cross-regional perspectives with a deep engagement in minority rights and Islamic intellectual traditions.
Rahma is multilingual speaking ; English, Arabic, Somali and Swahili
Raihanatul Jannat is a doctoral candidate at the UEF Law School, supervised by Dr. Yulia Yamineva and Dr. Seita Vesa. Her PhD research explores the role law can play in building climate resilient development (CRD) for women in Bangladesh. Raihanatul is also the academic coordinator of the UEF Master’s Degree Programme in Environmental Policy and Law, and is a member of the Climate Change and International Environmental Law research group from CCEEL. Raihanatul’s other research interests include climate justice, environmental justice and minority and human rights.
Areas of specialization
Aquatic ecology, evolutionary ecology, behavioral ecology, aquatic ecotoxicology, ecological parasitology, ecological physiology and ecological immunology: empirical and experimental research using mainly fishes, crayfishes, insects, mussels and arachnids.
Publications and citation metrics:
http://scholar.google.fi/citations
2000: MSc in Medical physics, University of Kuopio, Finland
2004: PhD in Physics, University of Kuopio, Finland
2005-2007: Post doc, University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada
2008-2013: Academy Research Fellow, University of Eastern Finland
2013-2016. Associate Professor of Biomechanics, University of Eastern Finland
2016-current: Professor of Biomechanics
2026-current: Research Professor, Kuopio University Hospital
Dr. Korhonen has vast experience in musculoskeletal biomechanics, imaging and modelling at cellular, molecular, tissue and joint levels. Currently his research aims primarily at 1) revealing new biomechanically and biochemically driven mechanisms leading to osteoarthritis and 2) developing novel imaging and in silico modelling methods for osteoarthritis prognosis and treatment planning. Dr. Korhonen has published around 250 peer-reviewed articles and supervised 35 PhD theses, and his research has been funded by EU (e.g. ERC), Research Council of Finland, Business Finland, and other national and international foundations and organizations.
Links to the BBC research group and MSKHealthTech research community:
Home – Biophysics Research Group
Musculoskeletal Health and Technology (MSKHealthTech) | University of Eastern Finland
I am a YUFE4 postdoctoral researcher working on nature-based sustainable solutions for mitigating drought stress in urban greenery. My research involves experimental studies on urban trees in Kuopio, Finland, with a focus on above- and belowground changes, including biogenic volatile organic compound (BVOC) emissions and soil microbial communities. The goal is to enhance the resilience of urban ecosystems under changing climate conditions through biochar-based interventions.
I actively collaborate with stakeholders such as Arbclimb Oy, a professional tree care company, Finland and the Climate Emergency Officer from the Colchester City Council, UK. Additionally, I work with the School of Life Sciences at the University of Essex, where I explore high-throughput phenotyping technologies to assess drought responses in urban tree saplings.
Rauno Sairinen works as a professor of environmental policy and as a director of the RESOURCE rc (Sustainable Resource Society: Circular Economy, Energy and Raw Materials) at the University of Eastern Finland. His major research themes have concerned environmental and natural resources governance, sustainability of mining, sustainability transition and social impact assessment. He is adjunct professor in the Centre for Social Responsibility in Mining (CSRM) at the University of Queensland, Australia. During 2017-19 he was member of the Board of Directors at the Geological Survey of Finland (GTK). During his research career Sairinen has been responsible leader in 36 research projects. Recently he has been WP leader at the GOVERMAT project (concerning recycling of battery metals), the Horizon2020 IMP@CT project (concerning small-scale mining in Europe) and the CORE project (concerning collaborative environmental governance).
I am currently a Visiting Research Fellow at Tallinn University, supported by a grant from the Saastamoinen Foundation. My postdoctoral research examines Finnish cross-border experiences during the Second World War and their impact on the development of nationalism and Lutheranism.
My research focuses on transnational twentieth-century church history, with particular emphasis on war and nationalism. In my doctoral dissertation, I examined the Klooga concentration camp in Estonia through sources produced by Finnish bystanders. I have also studied the relationship between churches and war, including historical interpretations of wars and the use of history in conflicts. One of my current research interests is the theology of security.
Reetta Kälviäinen is the Full Professor and Chair of Neurology in the University of Eastern Finland and the Director of the Kuopio Epilepsy Center in the Kuopio University Hospital. Her special research interest is clinical epileptology including identifying biomarkers of seizure activity, epileptogenesis, progression, and drug-resistancy in cohorts of newly diagnosed and drug-resistant chronic patients. These aspects of scientific projects are combined with therapeutic neuropharmacological interventions. She serves in the steering group of the European Reference Network for rare and complex epilepsies EpiCARE (of which Kuopio Epilepsy Center is a member) and co-chairs the Epilepsy Scientific Panel of the European Academy of Neurology. She is the chair of the steering group for the Establishment Phase of Neurocenter Finland.
I am a doctoral researcher in social psychology at the University of Eastern Finland. In my research, I am interested in social identities and intergroup relations, and I have studied these particularly in two contexts: among mothers of young children in residential areas and in the context of national defense and conscription.
My PhD dissertation is part of the MAMANET project, where I study Finnish-background and foreign-background mothers’ intergroup contacts and outgroup attitudes in diversifying neighbourhoods in Helsinki. The project focuses on mothers of small children. My mixed-method dissertation explores how motherhood as a common ingroup identity can support the development of positive intergroup contact and positive outgroup attitudes in neighbourhoods. The results shed light on how to support the development of positive contacts between mothers which may also support mothers’ wellbeing, inclusion and integration in the Finnish society. My dissertation is funded by the Kone Foundation, the Alli Paasikivi Foundation and the Finnish Cultural Foundation’s North Savo Regional Fund.
I work as a researcher in the FriendMUM project. The project focuses on intercultural friendships between mothers with Finnish backgrounds and mothers with foreign backgrounds in the “Friend for an Immigrant Mum” program organized by Mannerheim League for Child Welfare. The FriendMUM project is funded by the Alli Paasikivi Foundation and the Kone Foundation.
I teach Finnish as a Second Language at the Language Centre of University of Eastern Finland. I mainly teach at the Kuopio campus or online.
During fall 2026, I teach the following courses:
- Suomi 1B
- Suomi 2A
- Suomi 2B
- Suomi 3
- Suomi 1A (for staff)
And in the spring 2027, my courses are
- Suomi 1B
- Suomi 2A
- Suomi 2B
- Suomi 1A (for staff)
I’m doing a PhD on the renewal process of the Finnish National Curriculum for Integration Training 2022 (JYU). My research interests lay within language policies (in Finland), ethnography, and workplace interaction. I combine discursive, ethnographic, and interactional approaches.
