The overall aim of my research is to understand the role of freshwater in the Earth system and the well-being of societies. My main focus is currently on my ERC-funded project AQUAGUARD, where we assess changes in the global water cycle and their human drivers and Earth system impacts, with the aim to identify feasible and just opportunities for safeguarding freshwater’s life-supporting functions.

I work as a senior researcher in environmental policy, and I have a title of docent in University of Lapland (sustainable natural resources policy). I have been involved in agri-food research in social sciences since 1994 and mining research since 2009, and I am a head of CEMMS (Research center for Mining, Minerals, and Society). My academic interest covers food issues (especially development, meanings and actors of organic production), food policy, food security, rural research and actor networks. In mining research my interests cover societal issues of mining industry, community experiences and impacts of mining, activism, social movements, actor-networks, green transition, CRMs, and environmental justice.

I was a chair of the Finnish Society for Rural Researchers and Developers in 2008-2013, member of Finnish Rural Policy Committee in 2008-2011, member of National Rural Network in 2012-2013, and the member of the board of Finnish Society for Social Scientific Environmental research in 2014-2015.

I have been a member of Scientific Committee of Nordic conferences for Rural research since 2011 and a representative of Northern Europe in International Sociological Association’s RC 40 (Sociology of Food and Agriculture) in 2017-20.

In addition to refereed articles and edited books, I have also written numerous popular texts and given interviews in national media. I am familiar with food, rural and mining research networks globally.