human tech
DESCRIPTION
From FilandTRANSCRIPT
1
JYVÄSKYLÄH U M A N T E C H C E N T E R F I N L A N D S P R I N G 2 0 1 3
www.humantechnology.fi
IN THIS ISSUE: FOCUS ON ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Nordic Business Forum,creating a better world
10
18
20
Team Academy, a young rebel Cyber threats create business opportunities
Smart phones part of children’s everyday life
4
2 H U M A N T E C H C E N T E R F I N L A N D
S P R I N G 2 0 1 3
ISSN 1795-3146
Editorial O"ce in this issue
Jyväskylä Educational Consortium,
Viitaniementie 1 A, 40720 Jyväskylä
niina.luttinen@jao.#, www.jao.#
Editor-in-chief
Niina Luttinen
Jyväskylä Educational Consortium
Editorial sta#
Viestintä-Paprico Oy, www.paprico.#
This publication is brought to you by
The City of Jyväskylä, with a population of 132 000, is one of
Finland’s centres of growth. Recognised as a city of high-quality
education, Jyväskylä is also internationally known for the
architecture of Alvar Aalto.
www.jyvaskyla.#
Jyväskylä Regional Development Company Jykes Ltd. is a busi-
ness promotion and development company owned by the four
municipalities in the Jyväskylä Region. The aim of Jykes is to create
a favourable business environment. By o$ering expertise, support
and various networks for companies, Jykes creates opportunities
and conditions for pro#table business operations.
www.jykes.#
The University of Jyväskylä is one of the largest, most attractive
and dynamic research universities in Finland, with about
15 000 students, including international students from some
90 countries.
www.jyu.#
JAMK University of Applied Sciences is a multidisciplinary institu-
tion of higher education with a strong international orientation
and a student enrolment of 8 000. Our strengths are workplace-
driven learning, close cooperation with the labour market and
business, as well as extensive international contacts.
www.jamk.#
Jyväskylä Innovation Ltd. is a development company that
reinforces the growth, development and competitiveness of
technology companies in Jyväskylä and Central Finland. The
company carries out the Jyväskylä Region Centre of Expertise
Programme.
www.jklinnovation.#
Jyväskylä Educational Consortium provides vocational and
general upper secondary education to young people and adults.
The consortium’s educational institutions are attended by over
22 000 students.
www.jao.#
Published twice yearly, Human Tech Center Finland magazine
showcases the expertise, culture and people to be found in
the Jyväskylä Region.
Printed by ER-paino/Kariteam Circulation 9 200 Cover photo by Petteri Kivimäki
Editorial board
Liisa Harjula (University of Jyväskylä), Helinä Mäenpää
(City of Jyväskylä), Niina Luttinen (Jyväskylä Educational
Consortium), Pirjo Nikku (Jyväskylä Innovation Ltd),
Taija Lappeteläinen (Jyväskylä Regional Development
Company Jykes Ltd.), Heli Toivola (JAMK University of
Applied Sciences)
English translation
Peter Gregory
and Tony Melville
Contents
4 Aiming to bring about positive change
7 From university research to entrepreneurship
8 Creativity and entrepreneurship
10 Team Academy, a young rebel
12 A new model for generating ideas
14 The full picture of entrepreneurship
15 Toivola Old Courtyard – a journey back in time
16 Stepping bravely into an entrepreneur’s shoes
18 Cyber attacks – opportunities for business
20 Right there where it’s happening
22 The magic of the circus
24 “Moving my company to Jyväskylä was easy”
20
10
3
FIRST WORDS
JANUARY 8, 2013
FINNS ARE ENTREPRENEURIAL by nature. Attitudes to entre-
preneurship, particularly among the young, have grown more
favourable with each year. Factors that encourage people to
become entrepreneurs include independence and freedom of
work, and the opportunity to be successful and set one’s own
timetable.
In Finland the significance of entrepreneurship education is
seen as being much broader than merely a factor that encour-
ages the setting up of businesses. The objective is to support
school pupils’ innate entrepreneurship at an early stage, helping
them to develop into independent citizens who take the initia-
tive, are able to collaborate with others, and participate in so-
ciety. Familiarisation with working life starts at comprehensive
school, and this supports the process of choosing a career and
creates the basis for respecting the world of work.
The difference between employment and entrepreneurship
has narrowed, and this change is also reflected in vocational
and upper secondary education. In addition to knowledge and
skills in individual fields, students preparing for today’s project
based working life increasingly need more holistic competence
and the ability to take a responsible and creative approach to
work. At the vocational institutes and upper secondary schools
that form Jyväskylä Educational Consortium, for example, the
objective of entrepreneurship studies is to encourage an entre-
preneurial mindset, continuous learning and self-development.
THE POPULARITY OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP can be seen in
Finland’s growing number of small companies. By networking,
small companies can come together to form strong units. Net-
working and leveraging the strengths of partner companies are
creative operating approaches in a situation where the global
economy and issues facing big industrial companies require
quick responses. The ability to creatively “think outside the
box” – such as seeing poten-
tial business ideas in places
where different fields of ac-
tivity meet – can also be a
good quality in an entrepre-
neur.
Education is also a field
that provides potential
ideas for companies, in
both the domestic and ex-
port markets. Finland has
repeatedly been so success-
ful in the PISA and many other studies which measure school
pupils’ performance, that other countries are interested in the
Finnish education system. This favourable interest has given us
a major opportunity to promote our model of an effective edu-
cation system. There is particular demand for Finnish exper-
tise in the developing economies, where education systems are
being developed on the back of strong economic growth. Ed-
ucation exports also offer the opportunity for specialised con-
sultancy companies to promote models for an effectively func-
tioning society.
THE THEME FOR this issue is entrepreneurship, which we will
approach from a number of different angles. How are creativity
and entrepreneurship promoted at primary school? What sort
of plans do doctoral candidates make? What do upper second-
ary students think about entrepreneurship as a path to a bright-
er future?
Vesa Saarikoski
CEO
Jyväskylä Educational Consortium
Education creates the basis for entrepreneurship
“BY NETWORKING, SMALL COMPANIES CAN COME TOGETHER TO FORM STRONG UNITS.”
MIK
A J
UH
AN
I LU
OM
AN
SIV
U
4 H U M A N T E C H C E N T E R F I N L A N D
In just a few years two young entrepreneurs, Jyri Lindén and Hans-
Peter Siefen, have succeeded in creating a world-class business
seminar in Jyväskylä. Their vision is for Nordic Business Forum to
be the world’s most signi$cant seminar of its kind by 2021.
Words by Timo Sillanpää Photos By Petteri Kivimäki
FOCUS ON ENTREPRENEURSHIP
AIMING TO BRING ABOUT
POSITIVECHANGE
4 H U M A N T E C H C E N T E R F I N L A N D
5
Headed by Jyri Lindén (left) and Hans-Peter Siefen, Nordic Business
Forum Oy is based in Schauman Castle, which was built in the 1920s
as the home of Bruno Krook, manager of a plywood factory.
EACH YEAR NORDIC BUSINESS FORUM, which is held
in Jyväskylä Paviljonki, has turned the spotlight on the
central issues facing society and business. The main
speakers have included some of the world’s top names:
Al Gore in 2011 and Sir Richard Branson in 2012. The
theme of the autumn 2013 seminar is Leadership and
the star speaker will be Jack Welch, legendary Chairman
and CEO of General Electric.
In a few years the event has grown to become one of
the biggest business seminars in the Nordic countries
and has attracted thousands of influential guests to Jy-
väskylä.
The young entrepreneurs behind Nordic Business Fo-
rum, Jyri Lindén (26) and Hans-Peter Siefen (29), have
taken their inspiration from the world’s greatest busi-
ness seminars, The World Economic Forum, World
Business Forum New York and the TED Conference Cal-
ifornia.
“Nordic Business Forum will be one of the world’s big-
gest and most influential business seminars in 2021.
We believe that by then participants will also be follow-
ing the event around the world via the internet. In our
view, a seminar is significant when it is well-known,
discussed, and attracts participants from among the
world’s most important political and business leaders,”
Siefen and Lindén state.
The two entrepreneurs admit that they have set them-
selves a tough target, but they believe they can reach it.
Three new members joined their company’s board at
the beginning of 2013, and their task is to help the com-
pany grow Nordic Business Forum.
The pull of entrepreneurship
Entrepreneurship has fascinated both Lindén and Sie-
fen from a young age, and both operated their own busi-
nesses before the age of 20. Their paths crossed at a Uni-
versity of Jyväskylä marketing lecture in autumn, 2007.
They gradually came up with a joint business plan, ac-
cording to which they were supposed to start a training
business by 2013.
“The timetable was accelerated when I had knee sur-
gery. While I was recovering I had the chance to step up
the planning for the training business. The first training
event for 80 participants was held in Schauman Castle
in Jyväskylä in November 2009,” Siefen says.
5
6 H U M A N T E C H C E N T E R F I N L A N D
Each year Nordic Business Forum has succeeded in
reaching a new level. The 2010 event was called Week-
end Seminar and the theme was how to tune one’s own
economy, mind and tools to be more effective. The main
speaker was business coach Jari Sarasvuo and the event
brought 700 seminar guests to Jyväskylä Paviljonki.
The main speaker at the 2011 event, Strength from
Responsible Choices, was US politician and former Vice
President Al Gore.
In 2012 British businessman and adventurer Sir Rich-
ard Branson captivated 2300 seminar guests at Jyväsky-
lä Paviljonki.
Highlighting responsibility
According to Siefen, successful seminars with good
speakers will make the audience stop and think, and
can even bring about positive changes. He believes that
there are problematic aspects to the way we live current-
ly, making it necessary to spread the message of respon-
sibility. Entrepreneurship is one way of turning society
towards a path of favourable development.
“We want to promote entrepreneurship and responsi-
bility at all levels. Employees of companies can also em-
brace their internal entrepreneur, which means promot-
ing responsible business operations,” Siefen explains.
Lindén and Siefen list a number of problem areas
which underline the need to highlight themes like re-
sponsibility.
“Young people are marginalised from society and peo-
ple are concerned about our planet’s limited natural re
sources. Hopefully our generation will be able to take
the necessary action to put things on the right track,”
they say.
Plans for expansion abroad
In addition to major coaching events, Nordic Business
Forum Oy organises smaller Business Summit seminars
which give successful entrepreneurs a platform to tell
their story and enable participants to create new net-
works to support their businesses.
“We have just opened an office in Tallinn. We are aim-
ing to organise our 2013 Business Summit in Tallinn as
well as Helsinki. We are also taking initial steps towards
opening offices in Stockholm and St. Petersburg,” Sie-
fen says.
Securing famous speakers to appear at Nordic Busi-
ness Forum has meant hard work for the company’s ten-
strong team. However, success in recent years has given
the event so much credibility that attracting top interna-
tional names has become easier.
“We have to start making arrangements early because
the world’s top names soon end up with a full diary. We
have to be prepared to pay the speakers and convince
them that Nordic Business Forum is a significant event.
We always aim for our seminars to provide the audience
with an unforgettable experience,” Lindén says. ■
NORDIC BUSINESS FORUMNordic Business Forum is organised at Jyväskylä Paviljonki,
which is one of Finland’s biggest trade fair and congress cen-
tres. A large number of volunteers, including over one hun-
dred hospitality management students from JAMK University
of Applied Sciences, are involved in the arrangements.
Nordic Business Forum Oy is part of Nordic Business Group.
The Group’s other subsidiary, Nordic Business Investments Oy,
is involved in real estate investment.
Nordic Business Group’s turnover during its #rst three years of
operations: EUR 43 000 (2009), EUR 280 000 (2010), EUR 3.0
million (2011).
Nordic Business Forum 2013 26.–27.9.2013. Further informa-
tion: www.nbforum.#/2013.
“WE HAVE TO
BE PREPARED
TO PAY THE
SPEAKERS AND
CONVINCE
THEM THAT
NORDIC BUSI-
NESS FORUM IS
A SIGNIFICANT
EVENT.”
FOCUS ON ENTREPRENEURSHIP
NORDIC BUSINESS FORUM 2012
The founder of Virgin Group, Sir Richard Branson.
Business coach and writer Brian Tracy.
“Hopefully our generation will be able to take the necessary
action to put things on the right track,” say Jyri Lindén and
Hans-Peter Siefen.
7
EXPERTISE IN MULTIPLE fields provides the potential
to tailor services according to customer needs. Human
Business, a cooperative set up by doctoral students at
the University of Jyväskylä, is seeking to establish itself
in markets requiring expertise from the social sciences
and humanities.
“The cooperative’s main areas of competence are well-
being, culture and communications,” says Tiina Koivu-
lahti, who is writing her doctoral thesis in art history.
The eleven members of the Human Business cooper-
ative are all experts and believe that customers will be
interested in their multidisciplinary team’s competence
and skills. The members’ own entrepreneurial spirit and
services offered by the cooperative have been reinforced
by team coaching provided by the Yrittäjäksi yliopistos-
ta (‘Entrepreneurs from University’) project run by the
Faculty of Humanities at the university.
“The cooperative offers doctoral students an oppor-
tunity to commercialise and market the results of their
own doctoral thesis. We hope that entrepreneurship
will bring new employment opportunities and offer
meaningful assignments. The cooperative will also pro-
vide a safety net for researchers starting out as entrepre-
neurs,” says Leena Ikonen, who is preparing her doctor-
al thesis in pedagogics.
Team coaching provides a good start
In the past, human sciences PhDs have generally found
employment at universities. The Yrittäjäksi yliopistos-
ta (‘Entrepreneurs from University’) project, which was
launched at the University of Jyväskylä in April 2010,
uses entrepreneurship to promote the employment of
PhDs from the Faculties of Humanities, Education, So-
cial Sciences and Sport and Health Sciences. In 2011 a
total of 85 human sciences PhDs graduated from the
University of Jyväskylä.
“A survey of doctoral students by the project revealed
that around 90% wanted to take their expertise outside
the university,” says Heli Niskanen, Project Manager.
The project involves team coaching sessions, where
the doctoral students have learnt the basics about en-
From university studies to business ideasUniversity researchers are increasingly interested in opportunities to make commer-
cial use of their academic backgrounds and research. A new cooperative at the Uni-
versity of Jyväskylä is actively seeking business ideas from the human sciences.
Words by Timo Sillanpää Photo By Petteri Kivimäki
trepreneurship and how to commercialise their own ex-
pertise. Issues investigated during the sessions include
how the researchers would like to utilise their own sci-
entific expertise. The coaching has also covered basic
aspects of entrepreneurship, including how researchers
can price and commercialise their expertise. An other
important part of the training is exploring one’s own
motivation and goals.
The objective is for entrepreneurship training to be-
come a permanent means of offering academic research-
ers new prospects for their own employment.
“Writing a doctoral thesis is often a very lonely task.
Students who have participated in the training sessions
have found the group work rewarding. In addition, peo-
ple with expertise in different fields can network in the
groups and plan how to work together,” Heli Niskanen
says. ■
Doctoral students Tarja
Hiltunen, Irma Äyräväinen,
Eila Romo-Murphy, Leena
Ikonen and Tiina Koivulahti
hope that the recently es-
tablished Human Business
cooperative will deliver
“meaningful assignments,
independent work and
joint projects involving dif-
ferent scientific fields”. The
cooperative has 11 mem-
bers in all.
7
8 H U M A N T E C H C E N T E R F I N L A N D
NETTA LAMMINMÄKI AND RONJA REIVINEN, two
second year students at Muurame Upper Secondary
School, are full of energy. The 17-year-olds are involved
in their school’s entrepreneurship projects which aim to
educate young people to adopt the principles of entre-
preneurship and sustainable development.
“By doing things together we can achieve a lot. Here
in the west people are always in such a hurry that they
don’t have time to think about the consequences of their
actions. It’s really testing our planet’s capacity to cope,”
Netta says.
Ronja says that she stopped to think about the west-
ern way of life when she had read the Worldwatch In-
stitute’s State of the World 2012.
“Every individual consumer can make responsible
choices. I buy my clothes second-hand from flea mar-
kets and I recycle as much as I can,” she explains.
Awareness of one’s own abilities
Muurame is one of four upper secondary schools in the
region involved in the Jyväskylä Entrepreneur School,
which trains school students to work in an entrepre-
neurial way by means of teamwork and project based
learning. In late 2012 Netta and Ronja planned a Busi-
ness Camp for Year 9 students. Netta is the project man-
ager and Ronja’s task is to highlight the theme of sus-
tainable development.
“Students in their last year at comprehensive school
are faced by choices. We want to offer them an event
that introduces the spirit of entrepreneurship. During
the six-hour Business Camp, Year 9 students set up a
practice company and plan its products and marketing.
The Year 9 students are planning what they’ll do next,
and we use the event to market our own upper second-
CREATIVITY AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Jyväskylä Entrepreneur School
Jyväskylä Entrepreneur School’s teaching methods have brought a new spirit of en-
thusiastic teamwork to upper secondary schools in the Jyväskylä Region. Teachers
take on the role of coaches while the students implement their entrepreneurship
projects and learn how to get a team to work towards a common goal.
Words by Timo Sillanpää Photos By Petteri Kivimäki
ary school to them,” Netta and Ronja explain.
The Entrepreneur School trains students and teachers
to work in an entrepreneurial way by means of team-
work and project based learning.
“It’s essential that the students become aware of
their own abilities and skills, and think about how they
should use them,” says Aki Puustinen, Headmaster of
Muurame Upper Secondary School.
Project learning has also meant changes in the teach-
ers’ work – instead of their conventional role they now
work as entrepreneurship coaches.
“We do a lot of teaching by means of team learning.
In fact, we’ve organised entire team weekends outside
the school. The coaches have an important task in the
teams because they have to be able to see what stage of
development the student team has reached and provide
sparring at the right times,” Puustinen notes.
Learning through mistakes
Even though students in the Entrepreneur School can
choose study units related to entrepreneurship, the
School’s purpose is not directly to get students to go on
and set up their own company.
“The main objective is that everyone learns to work
in an entrepreneurial way, even if they don’t start their
own business. Nowadays working life is based on pro-
jects and teamwork, and we want to give young peo-
ple the appropriate training. The projects we do as part
of this entrepreneurship education involve developing
ideas into products and we also learn by making mis-
takes,” Puustinen says.
The students at Muurame Upper Secondary School
have implemented a variety of projects. The results
have included winter events for children. Students who
“THE MAIN
OBJECTIVE IS
THAT EVERYONE
LEARNS TO WORK
IN AN ENTREPRE-
NEURIAL WAY,
EVEN IF THEY
DON’T START
THEIR OWN
BUSINESS.”
FOCUS ON ENTREPRENEURSHIP
9
have chosen to study sustainable development organise
info spots at the school, collect empty bottles for recy-
cling and carry out “litter raids”.
The Entrepreneur School model developed in Jy-
väskylä Region has been so successful that its best prac-
tices are currently being introduced into more than 20
other upper secondaries around Finland. There are three
central themes in the Entrepreneur School’s curriculum:
project learning, working like an entrepreneur and crea-
tivity, as well as practising entrepreneurship, for exam-
ple by working for a cooperative.
Puustinen believes that in future new innovations,
like the social media, mobile technology and tablet com-
puters, will further change the way entrepreneurship
is taught. Digital Storytelling, for example, encourag-
es people with a common interest to share their stories
and learn from each other’s materials. ■
Some of the ideas coming out of Muurame Upper Secondary School are fairly zany. On ‘woolly sock day’ all the students walked around in woollen socks and
background noise was blocked out as far as possible. “We wanted to create a home-like atmosphere for one day. We have also run campaigns promoting road
safety,” say Netta Lamminmäki and Ronja Reivinen.
“Entrepreneurship means working in a practical and open-minded way.
In the upper secondary school context it manifests itself in different ways of collaborating,
and in a commitment to do things well and take responsibility for one’s own work.”
Aki Puustinen
Aki Puustinen, Headmaster of Muurame Upper Secondary School.
10 H U M A N T E C H C E N T E R F I N L A N D
FOCUS ON ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Team Academy is like an alarm clock which awakens the spark of intrapreneurship
in young people. Many of those who graduate from JAMK University of Applied
Sciences’ centre of excellence in entrepreneurship go on to establish their own busi-
ness. At the beginning of 2013 this example of educational innovation celebrates its
20th anniversary.
Words by Pia Tervoja Photos by Petteri Kivimäki
”Here there’s every potential for
growth and an op-portunity to try out
whatever one dares to.”YOUNG REBEL
10 H U M A N T E C H C E N T E R F I N L A N D
11
”YOU ARE PRIVILEGED. This is what the organisations
of the future look like,” stated one international visitor
to Team Academy.
The innovative educational model has aroused inter-
est both in Finland and abroad for twenty years now.
The Centre of Excellence in Entrepreneurship func-
tioning within JAMK University of Applied Sciences
constitutes a different way to study for the Bachelor of
Business Administration degree. Right at the beginning
of their studies students set up cooperative-style team
enterprises which operate for the rest of their studies.
Students are encouraged to develop themselves and
venture into their own discomfort zones.
”Young people apply to us who are looking for some-
thing which the traditional higher education world can-
not offer. They have a desire to do things differently.
Our strength is learning by doing and doing things to-
gether. With the support of a team an individual can ex-
ceed himself,” says Team Academy’s Head Coach
Ulla Luukas.
High level of employment
The level of employment amongst those
graduating from Team Academy is high.
Of those who have completed their stud-
ies nearly half work as entrepreneurs within
two years of graduation. According to Ulla Luu-
kas graduates’ high level of success in finding employ-
ment is the result of close cooperation with companies.
”Building networks is important. We encourage
young people to go out as soon as possible and meet
customers and to develop products and services in part-
nership with clients. Many young people later on find
employment at one of their client companies.”
Young people also take on important positions of re-
sponsibility within Team Academy itself. Among other
things they may act as brand managers, or as managers
dealing with visitors and recruiting. The students are
also responsible for planning and arranging Team Acad-
emy’s 20th anniversary celebrations.
Internationalization a key value
Team Academy has spread beyond Finland’s borders.
Foreign Team Academies can currently be found in
Hungary, France, Holland and the Basque Country of
Spain. Team Academy also operates on an experimental
basis in Brazil and Britain.
”The spread of Team Academy internationally has
been driven purely by interest from customers. For our
international visitors we have developed a Learning Ex-
pedition programme which provides an introduction to
our learning methods. Generally the spark is generated
in the course of the programme,” Ulla Luu kas explains.
For Team Academy internationalization is a
value of paramount importance. Finnish young-
sters are encouraged to go on an exchange at one
of the Team Academies abroad and young people
from other countries are welcomed to Jyväskylä in
reciprocal fashion.
”Our aim is to increase international exchanges of
coaches and programmes.”
Multi-track entrepreneurship
”I consider Team Academy an educational innovation
that has been ahead of its time,” states Jussi Halttunen,
Rector of JAMK University of Applied Sciences.
In his view Team Academy has been a young rebel,
which with its new-style practices and learning meth-
ods has challenged the institution in which it is based.
”Team Academy has gone its own path, but its way
of sparking intrapreneurship, courage and a service at-
titude in young people has been wonderfully suc-
cessful.”
Ulla Luukas and Jussi Halttunen are of
the same opinion that generating new en-
trepreneurship requires cross-sectoral co-
operation. Luukas hopes a multi-track
Team Academy will emerge, which would
bring together students in different fields
with an interest in entrepreneurship under one
roof.
New activation measures
JAMK University of Applied Sciences as a whole is cur-
rently realigning its activities to provide more encour-
agement for entrepreneurship. JAMK University of Ap-
plied Sciences accepts over 1 000 new students each
year and in future each will take basic studies in entre-
preneurship.
”We’ll go through all our students with a fine tooth
comb and examine how well different entrepreneur-
ship-related activation measures go down. A student
can obtain help if necessary with commercializing his or
her idea. An idea can also be refined in one of our pro-
toshops, such as the Schauman Service Lab which gets
under way next year,” Jussi Halttunen continues.
In the rector’s view the key factors in promoting en-
trepreneurship are networks and close contact with
working life.
”For JAMK University of Applied Sciences the net-
works of importance are the international EPAS-accred-
ited institutions of higher education, other partners,
such as Harvard University and national partners, such
as Aalto University and the University of Jyväskylä.” ■
www.tiimiakatemia.fi
”For us Team Academy’s 20th anniversary event is simultaneously a celebration of vision. We’re celebrating Europe’s leading, boundary-
breaking educational unit devoted to team entrepreneurship. The gathering on January 19th will be attended by almost 1 000 guests”,
say Team Academy students Ville Häll, Tomi Salmi (foreground), Anniina Maukonen and Emma Soikkeli.
d Coach
-
in
Luu-
ing employ
titude in yo
cessfu
Ul
th
trep
op
Team
bring
with an
roof
”What’s most impor-
tant is to find your own thing. Doing busi-ness is then a natural
accompaniment.” Tomi Salmi
in
ges of
”I came to Team
Academy straight from upper secondary
school. I was just no longer interested in the way of
learning used there.”Emma Soikkeli
Head
Coach Ulla
Luukas.
12 H U M A N T E C H C E N T E R F I N L A N D
IN THEIR HANDS young schoolchildren hold drawings
of their dream machines. In the autumn of 2012 all the
pupils at little Savio school developed all manner of fas-
cinating devices to make every day life easier.
An eating machine cuts up your food and feeds it to
you. With a cycle machine the rider can sleep while on
the move. A non-melting snowman takes summer in his
stride and can do all the things a human can. In turn an
aeroplane teaches small birds to fly.
”When I started thinking of different machines, sud-
denly a whole bunch of them came into my head. It
was fun drawing them at school. My own favourite is
a homework machine, because it does everything for
you,” says 10 year old Julia Koskinen, who came up with
eight different machines.
Designing the machines is all part of the Mini Idis
model, which is currently being piloted in the Jyväsky-
lä Region by the City of Jyväskylä’s Innovation Ser vices
and YES Central Finland, an entrepreneurship educa-
tion service. The Jyväskylä Region is the first area in
Finland where the Belgian-influenced method of crea-
FOCUS ON ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Which school pupil wouldn’t want a homework machine?A swimming propellor may one day help a non-swimmer to
swim, an angling machine may handle catching *sh completely
independently and a homework machine could eventually take
care of a pupil’s homework. In the Jyväskylä Region a new mod-
el for generating ideas has been introduced in creative and entre-
preneur education.
Words by Tommi Salo Photos by Petteri Kivimäki
tive and entrepreneur education is to be tried out.
Mini Idis begins with an ideas stage, where pre- and
primary school pupils invent and draw their dream ma-
chines. During the design stage students in higher edu-
cation draw up proposals on how the machines could be
turned into reality.
Subsequently, at the implementation stage, the tech-
nical drawings and working models are given to stu-
dents at Jyväskylä College who, in collaboration with
the pupil who suggested the idea and possibly with
higher education students, build a prototype of the ma-
chine.
Building materials for workers of the future
Tuula Leppäkari, Head of Savio school, developed an im-
mediate interest in the new-style method of entrepre-
neur education and idea of encouraging creative think-
ing.
”The wonderful thing about Mini Idis is that small
children see the development paths that products fol-
“THE WONDER-
FUL THING
ABOUT MINI IDIS
IS THAT SMALL
CHILDREN SEE
THE DEVELOP-
MENT PATHS
THAT PRODUCTS
FOLLOW.”
13
low. With the children we’ve gone over where goods of
all kinds come from and how they are developed and
designed. The purpose of the innovation is give these
kids building materials for the future,” Leppäkari under-
lines.
And the building materials for these workers of the
2020s Leppäkari finds easy to list.
”Later on, in working life, in addition to basic skills
these children will need creativity and social skills;
they’ll also have to be enterprising, articulate and capa-
ble of acquiring information.”
Leppäkari also considers it important that the chil-
dren become accustomed at a young age to presenting
their ideas and suggestions to others and to expressing
their thoughts both orally and in writing.
Model to be rolled out all over Finland
Mini Idis, which will be implemented in the autumn
of 2012 and spring of 2013, is a pilot model. The idea
is to disseminate positive experiences from the project
throughout Finland in the course of 2013. In the spring
of 2013 the children’s stories and drawings will com-
piled as a summary into a separate booklet.
The spring of 2013 will also reveal what form the
dream machines drawn by the young schoolchildren
will take in practice.
”It was fun to lie on the floor of the gym designing
machines and then drawing them on paper. It would be
great to see them sometime in their finished state, too,”
10 year old Maija Pastinen says thoughtfully. ■
MINI IDISA novel method of creative and entrepreneurship education in which all levels of education from pre-schools to universities are tied into common innovating and doing. Generation in the idea stage of models of dream machines, in the design stage of proposals for turning these into reality and in the implementation stage of machine prototypes.In the Jyväskylä Region the Mini Idis model will be piloted in 2012–2013 by the City of Jyväskylä’s Innovation Services and YES Central Finland, an entrepreneurship education service.The idea originates from Belgium (MyMachine).
Primary school
children came up with
machines to make
everyday life easier.
Seen here presenting
their ideas are Ben-
jami Ylhänen (left),
Semi Hänninen and
Julia Koskinen (right),
who among other
things developed a
non-melting snow-
man.
14 H U M A N T E C H C E N T E R F I N L A N D
”RESPONSIBILITY AND SELF-HELP”, re-
spond six tourist services students with
one voice when asked what entrepre-
neurship has taught them.
The business owned by Sarianna Ku-
ula, Tiia Muhonen, Roosa Siekkinen, Ii-
na Hämäläinen, Juuso Kakkonen and
Saara Mäkinen is called Move NY. The
letters NY at the end of the name reveal
that this is not a limited company but a
YE mini-company operating within the
college and that running the business
is part of the ‘Year as an Entrepreneur’
study programme.
Possible career option
For six years now it has been possible
to study entrepreneurship at Jyväskylä
College in a practical manner. The busi-
nesses established by students operate
like a real company, but at the same time
the students receive advice and guidance
from coaches. The budding entrepre-
neurs can also make use of the college’s
premises and equipment.
”Undisputedly a good way of learn-
ing entrepreneurship. I was also around
at the time when entrepreneurship was
taught on an overhead projector in the
classroom,” says coach Timo Lehtonen.
Coach Tea Ruppa also points out that
in a YE company young people get to see
entrepreneurship from all sides.
”YE entrepreneurship teaches students
how to work as a group, all the aspects
of managing a project, customer service
and handling feedback. In the process
the youngsters also become acquainted
with financial management issues.”
During the autumn Move NY arranged
FOCUS ON ENTREPRENEURSHIP
The full picture of entrepreneurshipWhat could be a better way of learning the ground rules of entrepreneurship than by starting your own
business? Move NY, a YE mini-company established by students of tourism at Jyväskylä College, offers
recreational and wellness packages with an emphasis on action.
Words by Pia Tervoja Photo by Petteri Kivimäki
a variety of entertainment, events and
hands-on activities for its clients. The
autumn’s principal project was participa-
tion in Germany’s Christmas markets, at
which the company an ice skating event
for children and marketed Finnish prod-
ucts to market-goers.
”We gave them a small taste of vari-
ous Finnish delicacies and in doing so
provided a picture of Finnish food cul-
ture,” recount Sarianna Kuula, who has
been appointed Move NY’s Managing Di-
rector.
Each student has his or her own role
in the business. Kuula underlines that
all take care of their own area of respon-
sibility while implementing a jointly
agreed business idea – going it alone is
not allowed. For the students involved
experience of running a business means
that entrepreneurship is now a serious
career option.
”Not all of us will become entrepre-
neurs, but we can all learn to approach
work with an entrepreneurial attitude,”
Tea Ruppa states. ■
”It’s a completely different thing to learn entrepreneurship by running an actual business than, say,
attending a course on the subject,” say Move NY’s young entrepreneurs Sarianna Kuula (left), Tiia
Muhonen, Iina Hämäläinen, Saara Mäkinen, Roosa Siekkinen and Juuso Kakkonen (front).
-
te
e
ce
-letely different thing to learn entrepreneurship by running an actual business than, say,
15
A SLICE OF JYVÄSKYLÄ’S HISTORY as a city built of wood has come back to
life. Toivola Old Courtyard, now fully restored, represents a typical 19th century
homestead in which the main building, constructed in log, fronts onto the street,
while various outbuildings are located at the rear of the yard.
”Smith Herman Toivola’s yard has been carefully transformed, with respect
for the old buildings on the site, into a fascinating rendezvous for today’s towns-
people and tourists alike. The place provides a wonderful showcase for Jyväsky-
lä’s cultural heritage. The yard permits an engaging trip back into an age when
Jyväskylä consisted of wooden houses,” says Museum Director Heli-Maija Vouti-
lainen from the Museum of Central Finland.
Toivola Old Courtyard is also a fine example of partnership between actors
in the public and private sectors. Renovation of the buildings and the start of
business operations in the yard are the responsibility of entrepreneur Margo
Saxberg. The City of Jyväskylä, which owns the plot, drew up a project plan
for the location. The Museum of Central Fin-
land transferred two craftsmen’s houses built
in the 1840s – the coppersmith’s and carpen-
ter’s houses – to the site.
Craft and artisanship still constitute the un-
derlying theme of what goes on at Toivola Old
Courtyard. The yard houses the workshops
of no less than nine craftsmen. The yard also
functions as a market place for local and or-
ganic food from producers in Jyväskylä and
the surrounding area.
In the run-up to Christmas the yard will
be filled with small Yuletide cabins selling all
kinds of Christmas delicacies and local craft
products. ■
Toivola Old Courtyard:
Words by Pia Tervoja Photos by Petteri Kivimäki
Entrepreneur Tiina Huhtaniemi, who runs the Titityy thread shop, found suitable premises for her
business as well as great atmosphere in Toivola Old Courtyard’s log building.
A journey back in time and a new opening for entrepreneurs
An anchor entrepreneur was sought for Toivola Old
Courtyard to take responsibility for renovating the build-
ings and getting the firms’ business activities under way.
Margo Saxberg took up the challenge and agreed to pur-
chase the buildings outright. ”In my view it was the only
correct way to develop the yard”, says the entrepreneur.
Today’s artisans continue the craft traditions. Smith
Markus Ahola’s firm Manalanpaja operates in the same
building as Herman Toivola’s smithy back in the 1800s.
Entrepreneur Johanna Harju’s boutique Wishwear
Waateh timo sells romantic and original clothing items
in a house that was once a a private maternity hospital.
The business also includes a dressmaker’s shop offering a
made-to-measure service.
15
16 H U M A N T E C H C E N T E R F I N L A N D
THE FREEDOM TO MAKE decisions oneself versus having to
make decisions on other people’s terms. The motivation to do
things out of personal passion versus the responsibility of doing
things according to the wishes of others. Sami Poikonen, who
founded Emergem Oy in 2012, was attracted by the former fac-
tors considerably more than the latter.
Poikonen, who had worked for various companies in the IT
field for some time, decided to start a business of his own be-
cause he saw a gap in the market for a small and agile player.
Jyväskylä-based Emergem Oy produces information, docu-
ment and content management services. In Poikonen’s words
Emergem seeks to assist companies with managing documents
and transferring companies’ employees from email to better
functioning environments such as social media. Emergem was
born global and born digital.
In Poikonen’s view the step from salaried employee to entre-
preneur was not entirely simple. When working for a big indus-
try player support and security are always close at hand. In a
small enterprise, on the other hand, responsibility and routine
tasks always fall to the entrepreneur him- or herself.
”There’s certainly a threshold to becoming an entrepreneur,
if you have a family and a mortgage to pay,” Poikonen suggests.
At Protomo experimentation costs nothing
At no point in the enterprise’s start-up phase was Poikonen left
high and dry. Emergem began its activities at Protomo, a multi-
disciplinary and collaborative innovation and enterprise envi-
ronment. It provides skilled individuals who are interested in
Stepping bravely intoan entrepreneur’s shoesSami Poikonen dared to establish his own business, unaided. At no stage of his
+edgling entrepreneurial career, however, did he need to go it alone.Words by Tommi Salo Photo by Mikko Takkunen
a career as an entrepreneur with free workspace and facilities,
community support and the opportunity to spar with experts
regarding bringing new products and services to market with-
out immediate entrepreneur risk.
”For a new entrepreneur the threshold for starting operations
at Protomo is low. There you can refine and test your business
idea without immediately incurring expenses. Protomo puts a
workspace and meeting facilities at your disposal. At Protomo
there are also many other entrepreneurs who are at the same
stage with whom you can talk about operating methods and
challenges that have come up,” Poikonen continues.
He also considers it important that Protomo may provide an
introduction to potential clients for the new business. Emergem
has already established its first significant client contacts.
Poikonen, in tandem with one salaried employee, has already
completed projects for Finland, Sweden and Britain. Two thirds
of the firm’s turnover currently comes from outside Finland.
According to Poikonen Emergem is aiming to become one of
the top companies in Northern Europe in its own narrow area
of special expertise over the next five years.
”In future, where companies are concerned, it’s going to be vi-
tal to achieve more in a shorter space of time, in other words to
get the most out of their present employees. All the enterprise’s
wheels have to be made to turn in the same direction. For this
reason a company’s IT systems have to be given a thorough ex-
amination,” comments Poikonen on the tasks that lie ahead. ■
www.emergem.fi
ENTERPRISE FACTORY SIFTS HUNDREDS OF BUSINESS IDEAS – AND POLISHES THE BEST INTO DIAMONDS
By Tommi Salo
Jyväskylä Enterprise Factory supports the creation and development of
growth enterprises in the Jyväskylä Region. Launched in November, the
aim of the Enterprise Factory is to find hundreds of business ideas, the best
of which make it through the development process to the growth incuba-
tor. Incubator services are offered to enterprises setting up in the Jyväsky-
lä Region.
Jyväskylä Enterprise Factory lays down a path via which support for the
development of a business idea can be provided at all stages. A budding en-
trepreneur refining his or her product or service idea has access to services
from the moment inspiration strikes right through to a growth incubator.
“Jyväskylä Enterprise Factory clarifies the roles of different actors in pre-
incubator and incubator services in the Jyväskylä Region. What’s more, its
activities accelerate and streamline the start of enterprises’ business activi-
ties, because ideas are not transferred from one player to another,” says
Director Risto Kinnunen of Jyväskylä Regional Development Company Jykes
Ltd.
Jyväskylä Enterprise Factory is sponsored jointly by JAMK University
of Applied Sciences, the University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä Innovation Oy
(Protomo), Suomen Yrityskehitys Oy, Tuhansien Järvien Uusyrityskeskus ry
and Jyväskylä Regional Development Company Jykes Ltd. ■
17
“At Protomo there are also many other entrepreneurs
who are at the same stage with whom you can talk about
operating methods and challenges that have come up.”Sami Poikonen
Man on the move. Jyväskylä-
based Emergem Oy’s Sami
Poikonen spends part of his time
in London working for clients.
17
18 H U M A N T E C H C E N T E R F I N L A N D
Cyber threats create opportunities for businessCyber attacks represent a real risk to the functioning of the information
society. One of Finland’s most important clusters for education and
research in information security is being built in the Jyväskylä Region.
Words by Timo Sillanpää Illustration by Martti Hänninen
ATTACKS TARGETING INFORMATION networks
have become an everyday occurrence. Finland takes cy-
ber threats seriously, because a successful attack could
cripple the whole of society. The Finnish Government
has introduced a programme that aims to make Finland
a global pioneer in cyber threat preparedness by 2016.
“Cyber attacks can impede and interfere with ser vices
in IT-based societies, produce data leaks, and cause
damage. In particular, research based education in in-
formation security should be increased,” says Mikko
Siponen, Professor of Information Systems at the Uni-
versity of Jyväskylä.
During the last few years universities have sought
to bring new skills into the field by in-
creasing research and education
in cyber security.
In autumn 2011
the University of Jyväskylä introduced courses on infor-
mation security for Master’s and PhD students.
“In autumn 2013 these courses will be expanded to
form a Master’s Programme in Information Security. It
will support Jyväskylä’s leading position as an educa-
tion and research cluster for information security,” says
Pekka Neittaanmäki, Dean of the Faculty of Information
Technology at the University of Jyväskylä.
Opportunities for new business
JAMK University of Applied Sciences is launching its
own Master’s Degree Programme in Information Tech-
nology. The programme is targeted at students with a
Bachelor of Engineering in ICT, or equivalent, who have
at least three years’ relevant experience after graduating.
“There’s been a lack of cyber security education and
JAMK is now the first University of Applied Sciences to
respond to this need. In future, cyber security re lated
content will increasingly be included in Bachelor of En-
gineering studies,” states Jarmo Siltanen, Head of ICT
and R&D Manager, JAMK University of Applied Sci-
ences.
18 H U M A N T E C H C E N T E R F I N L A N D
19
create opportunities for businessThere are many types of cyber threat. Cyber crimi-
nals and cyber terrorists, for example, have different ob-
jectives.
“The scale extends all the way from nerdy hackers to
state cyber warfare,” Siltanen explains.
Even though a cyber attack is a nightmare scenario,
cyber threats can provide new opportunities for busi-
ness. It has been calculated that the worldwide market
for protection against cyber attacks will have reached 80
billion dollars by 2017.
Two projects currently running at the University of
Jyväskylä – Cyberwar and Truly Project – aim at com-
mercialising the outcomes of research studies. The Cy-
berwar project seeks to develop a method of protecting
information systems by studying abnormal models of
behaviour among masses of data, and then performing
an analysis and determining the seriousness of the ob-
served behaviours for information security. Truly Pro-
ject aims to develop methods to protect digital media
such as video games, movies and music.
“These projects are supported by scientific break-
throughs achieved during almost five years of research.
The aim is to create new international business activi-
ties within a few years,” Neittaanmäki states. ■
THE JYVSECTEC PROJECT, which is coordinated by
JAMK and partially funded by the ERDF, aims to de-
velop information security expertise in collaboration
with specialized companies. The companies involved in
the project are Cassidian Finland Oy, Descom Oy, Rela-
tor Oy, Ajeco Oy and Jyväskylä Regional Development
Company Jykes Ltd.
“At the moment a laboratory is under construction to
develop and test solutions for protection against infor-
mation security threats, and at the same time provide
related training. The objective is to create an interna-
tionally significant cluster in the security sector which
will work closely with companies and other players,”
Jarmo Siltanen says.
New laboratory to test cyber threatsCassidian Finland Oy, which is involved in the pro-
ject, is the world’s leading player in the field of security
and defence systems. According to Vesa Arkko, Senior
Manager at Cassidian Finland, JYVSECTEC supports the
further development of the company’s cyber security ex-
pertise and business activities. The project has attracted
interest not only in Finland, but also within Cassidian’s
international network of contacts.
“The field of cyber security is a growing area of busi-
ness. Cyber security affects all companies and organisa-
tions, because the pursuit of economic advantage and
ideological conflicts lead to increased cyber attacks. We
believe that Finnish cyber security expertise will be-
come a significant export product,” Arkko says. ■
Cyber security a"ects all companies and organisations because the pursuit of economic advantage and ideological con"icts lead to increased cyber attacks.Vesa Arkko, Senior Manager at Cassidian Finland
19
20 H U M A N T E C H C E N T E R F I N L A N D
”EVERY DAY YOU GET a new game as a reward, pro-
vided you’ve answered all the questions. But it’s not just
because of the game that we take part. The programme
tells you how to make the push and improve your eating
or physical exercise, for instance,” explain fifth-graders
Ella Linna and Heini Huovinen.
Class 5A of Jyväskylä’s Keljo school tested a mobile
application supporting life management skills, the pur-
pose being to underpin pupils’ feeling of control over
their own lives. The application monitors a pupil’s
every day affairs and generates reminders about the
amount of sleep and the importance of social contacts,
among other things.
Class teacher Maarit Hentunen is content that her
own class was chosen to take part in the University of
Jyväskylä’s Personal Mobile Space project, which is en-
gaged in studying mobile service solutions developed
for promoting and maintaining well-being and learning
as well as evaluating their usefulness.
”Smart phones and tablet computers are part of chil-
dren’s everyday experience. Schools, too, have to stay
abreast of development,” Hentunen says.
She considers mobile devices support learning in a va-
riety of ways.
Some pupils learn best by reading, some by listening
and others by doing. Mobile devices permit different
kinds of learners to find motivation.
”With the help of mobile devices pupils can also learn
Right there where it’s happeningMobile devices permit learning beyond the
walls of the classroom too. At the University
of Jyväskylä mobile learning is being devel-
oped in partnership with companies and
users. In addition to learning, the focus is
on supporting the well-being of children and
young people.
Words by Pia Tervoja Photos by Petteri Kivimäki
from each other. For instance, we experimented with
self-made audio-books. The pupils recount a particular
period of history which is simultaneously recorded on a
phone and the other pupils get to listen to it and make
comments.”
Classroom walls disappear
The experiences of pupils and teachers at Keljo school
correspond with the picture formed by the research
team at the University of Jyväskylä’s Agora Center, Fac-
ulty of Information Technology and the Finnish Insti-
tute of Educational Research regarding the potential of
mobile services.
”Mobile services can enrich and diversify learning and
bring new-style ways of working to learning situations.
“SMART PHONES
AND TABLET
COMPUTERS ARE
PART OF CHIL-
DREN’S EVERY-
DAY EXPERIENCE.
SCHOOLS, TOO,
HAVE TO STAY
ABREAST OF DE-
VELOPMENT.”
21
At best the teacher and pupils exit the classroom, al-
lowing learning to expand into different operating en-
vironments. With a mobile device to accompany you,
learning can take place wherever,” says Researcher Jen-
ni Rikala.
”Previously you had to go into the computer room,
but now information technology is right there where
you are and where the real things happen”, Professor
Pekka Neittaanmäki continues.
Easily adopted
In the course of the Personal Mobile Space project a
number of mobile services have been developed for use
by people of different ages.
”We took as our point of departure teachers’ and
pupils’ needs and the ideas they put forward. On the ba-
sis of these we came up with application prototypes to
be tried out in different target environments and situa-
tions, such as in schools, in a zoo, and on nature tours.
User experiences have been positive and enthusiastic,”
says Postdoctoral Researcher Tuula Nousiainen.
”The aim is to promote 21st century skills, such as
the learning and development of collaborative problem-
solving, communication, ITC expertise and creativity,”
states Research Professor Marja Kankaanranta.
”The development of learning solutions is challeng-
ing because information and communications technol-
ogy is evolving at a breathtaking pace. We’re pondering
what the future might have in store for us,” comments
Research Coordinator Mikko Vesisenaho. ■
EXAMPLES OF MOBILE SERVICES DEVELOPED AT THE UNIVERSITY OF JYVÄSKYLÄ
Nature TourThe mobile service functions during a nature tour as a tool for ob-servation and documentation. The service permits species of +ora and fauna to be captured in the form of photographs and sound recordings, and observations to be sent to a server from which they can later be accessed via a www user interface.
A Visit to the Zoo A map of Ähtäri zoo functions as the basis of this service. At vari-ous animal enclosures marked on the route the user can open a
brief pro#le of the animal in question. Also includes mini-games involving the animals.
Catch the FlagIs a kinematic team game in which the players try to steal +ags from opponents directed by the game on a virtual playing #eld visible on a mobile device. In order to take possession of the +ag a player has to approach the +ag in the real world and then run away from his or her opponents. The game, with its emphasis on physical movement, is best played during the school break.
Last autumn fifth-graders
Veeti Jäntti, Innocent
Nchimiyimana, Emil Kos-
kinen, Heini Huovinen,
Maria Karvonen and Ella
Linna tested a mobile
service that supports life
management skills. Smart
phones were also used in
a number of other ways
for study purposes.
22 H U M A N T E C H C E N T E R F I N L A N D
Circus works its magic
THE MAGIC OF THE CIRCUS has been around for centuries,
but where does it come from? According to Seija Hakkarainen,
Executive Director of Circus Uusi Maailma (Circus New World),
it is created by boldly breaking the bounds of normal everyday
life. Making a place where social norms no longer apply.
Globally Wanted, for example, which was first performed in
late 2011, has been described as ”intimidating and yet enjoy-
ably fulfilling”. It is a mystical and twisted family reunion, with
love, violence, loneliness and crippled minds and bodies.
The contemporary circus group behind Globally Wanted, Cir-
cus Uusi Maailma, is based in Jyväskylä. Founded in 2006, it
performs in Finland and abroad – both indoors and out. Acro-
batics, music, non-verbal theatre, dance, parkour and light are
all used as means of communication in the performances.
Contacts with Germany and Russia
In addition to Finland, Globally Wanted has been performed in
Germany and Sweden. Circus Uusi Maailma has also appeared
in Russia.
“Globally Wanted was well received in Germany, where there
is hardly any contemporary circus. It was seen as communi-
cating in a sensitive way and yet at a deep level,” Hakkarai-
nen says.
She adds that Globally Wanted may also be performed abroad
“Circus isn’t just made up of individual stunts – it’s about the way the performers
use their bodies to express themselves in movement. Circus is a way of life, a way
of thinking.” This view of the essence of circus comes from Seija Hakkarainen, who
has brought together a contemporary circus group in Jyväskylä.
Words by Tommi Salo
in 2013. Hakkarainen says that Circus Uusi Maailma is looking
for international contacts, mainly in Russia, the Baltic countries
and Eastern Europe. Also, there is an interesting touring net-
work in Netherlands, and a fertile ground for contemporary cir-
cus in France, where Cirque Nouveau was born in the 1970s.
July 2013 will see the first performance of a new show, Bor-
der Line. Set in the future, it is the story of six people who are
stuck in a bunker. It will be performed in the old Kangas paper
mill in Jyväskylä and can also be booked for indoor spaces in
Finland or abroad.
Hakkarainen believes that Game Over, which will be per-
formed for the first time in 2014, will also attract internation-
al attention. It combines the logic of electronic games, persecu-
tion and torture.
In addition to its performances, Circus Uusi Maailma organ-
ises acrobatics courses and workshops for both children and
adults. The acrobatics courses not only teach physical skills and
techniques but also emphasise the dimensions of expression
and performance.
“Interest in circus is growing all the time. It’s to do with basic
human nature. People are always looking for new forms of self-
expression,” Hakkarainen states.
www.uusimaailma.org
Kerrostalo (A Block of Flats)
JIR
I HA
LTT
UN
EN
22
23
“INTEREST IN CIR-
CUS IS GROWING
ALL THE TIME. IT’S
TO DO WITH BASIC
HUMAN NATURE.
Seuraava Maailma (A Following World) Globally Wanted
Winter
RE
NE
LIM
BE
CK
ER
JIR
I HA
LTT
UN
EN
JAR
MO
LA
HT
INE
N
JAR
MO
LA
HT
INE
N
23
24 H U M A N T E C H C E N T E R F I N L A N D
RELOCATING A COMPANY involves challenges for
both the business and its employees and their fami-
lies. Jarkko Ässämäki, owner of Minestrone Oy, took
up the challenge in 2010. He moved from Tampere to
the Jyväskylä Region with his family in spring 2010 and
transferred his business to Jyväskylä at the beginning of
2011. Mi nestrone Oy was started in 2004 and its main
activity is foodstuff imports.
Jarkko Ässämäki’s family found a new home in Lau-
kaa near Jyväskylä. His wife got a nurs-
ing job in Jyväskylä and places were
available for his two children at a local
day care centre, which can also provide
round-the-clock care if necessary.
“I enjoy living in the Jyväskylä Re-
gion. Everything is fairly close and
there are plenty of services available.
Even my social life has improved, be-
cause in Tampere I didn’t have the
chance to do very much apart from run-
ning my company,” Ässämäki says.
He especially likes the opportunities
for sports and leisure activities in Jyväskylä Region. He
enjoys riding enduro and diving in the local lakes, and
he is also a part-time diving instructor.
Help to find new premises
In addition to his private life, Jarkko Ässämäki started
a new ‘business life’ in the Jyväskylä Region. He trans-
“Moving my company toJyväskylä was easy”Opportunities for leisure activities and the
availability of good housing attracted Jark-
ko Ässämäki to the Jyväskylä Region. Sup-
port was also provided to help him relocate
his company.Words by Tommi Salo Photos by Petteri Kivimäki, Suomen Ilmakuva Oy
ferred all the activities of the company he owns to Jy-
väskylä as soon as he had found suitable premises. He
was able to find premises totalling around 1 000 square
metres for his office and storage facility very close to the
centre of Jyväskylä.
Moving was surprisingly easy
“Moving my company to Jyväskylä was surprisingly
easy. The biggest challenge was finding suitable premis-
es, but I got help from the regional development compa-
ny, estate agents and my own contacts.”
Products for Minestrone come to Jyväskylä from the
Netherlands and Baltic countries. They include nuts,
dried fruit and energy drinks.
In Jyväskylä orders are made up ready for shipping
to customers around Finland. In terms of customer ser-
vice, Ässämäki cannot see any real difference between
Jyväskylä and Tampere. ■
“I ENJOY LIVING IN THE JYVÄSKYLÄ
REGION. EVERYTHING IS
FAIRLY CLOSE AND THERE ARE PLENTY
OF SERVICES AVAILABLE. EVEN
MY SOCIAL LIFE HAS IMPROVED.”
25
By Tommi Salo
The professional staff at Jyväskylä Regional De-
velopment Company Jykes Ltd. have helped nu-
merous companies of different sizes to expand
their activities or completely relocate to the Jy-
väskylä Region.
When a company has made the decision to
come to the Jyväskylä Region, Jykes’ Location
Services work with the company to draw up a
practical action plan. The end result is that the
company starts operations in Jyväskylä.
Location Services provide practical help
rather than simply producing reports. Compa-
nies can access a range of services including ad-
vice on financing, information on premises and
staff availability, and support in finding clients
ADVICE AND CONTACTS FORCOMPANIES SETTING UP IN JYVÄSKYLÄ
and partners. All stages of the establishment
process are closely monitored and help is also
offered during the relocation stage.
“Companies that are setting up here don’t nec-
essarily have solid and accurate information on
the Jyväskylä Region. Our aim is to help compa-
nies to grow their business and create new jobs,”
says Harri Heinänen, Sales Manager at Jykes.
He adds that the Jyväskylä Region offers
companies extensive partnership networks,
high level skills, motivated and committed
employees, and an excellent location in the
centre of Finland. The fact that Jyväskylä is one
of Finland’s most important growth centres also
boosts the region’s attractiveness. ■
www.jykes.fiJarkko Ässämäki
26 H U M A N T E C H C E N T E R F I N L A N D
Kunming
Lake
Dianchi
10 km
C H I N A
IN BRIEF
ENVIRONMENTAL TECHNOLOGY DEAL OPENS A
BUSINESS CHANNEL FROM JYVÄSKYLÄ TO CHINA
By Pia Tervoja
The societies of the Nordic countries and USA
differ in the opportunities and challenges they
offer to entrepreneurship and entrepreneurship
education.
“In American society the culture of entrepre-
neurship is in-built and entrepreneurship starts
with the students’ own initiative,” says Juha
Perälampi, Senior Lecturer at JAMK University of
Applied Sciences and Manager of the JAMK Busi-
THE ENTREPRENEURIAL UNIVERSITY
LETS THE BRIGHTEST STUDENTS SHINE
for the needs of the people there,” says MK Pro-
tech’s Sales Director Heikki Kutinlahti.
Signing an agreement for the plant is a
groundbreaking step because the assumption is
that it will open up new environmental-branch
business opportunities for Central Finland-based
firms with Kunming partners. ■
www.mk-protech.fi
By Tommi Salo
MK Protech Oy, a Jyväskylä-based environmen-
tal engineering company, is planning a sludge
treatment plant for the city of Kunming in south-
western China and will also supply key equip-
ment for the project. The total value of invest-
ment in the plant will be EUR 25 million, of
which MK Protech’s share comprises overall
planning of the plant’s process section, the
training of personnel, start-up of the pro-
cess and the supply of key equipment.
The plant will be built by Chinese contractors
under the supervision of MK Protech. According
to current plans the plant will be completed at
the end of 2013.
Planning the delivery of the sludge treatment
plant was started subsequent to 2005, when the
cities of Kunming and Jyväskylä signed a friend-
ship agreement covering the exchange of know-
how in business, culture, science and technolo-
gy. At that time representatives of the two cities
began discussions about environmental-branch
expertise in Central Finland.
”The plant process would not have got under
way without the establishment of ties to Kun-
ming by Jyväskylä Regional Development Com-
pany Jykes Ltd. We had just the right technology
ness Incubator.
Perälampi, who was a speaker at Stanford
University’s ‘Building the Entrepreneurial Univer-
sity’ conference, states that the strength of the
Nordic countries and Finland is that their citizens
have a high level of education and skills.
“In economic terms we are a stable and well
developed society. By nature we are hard-work-
ing, reliable people who always manage to pull
through.”
He believes that one threat facing Finland is
excessive equality, which can lead to important
potential and human resources being wasted.
“We should also recognise the brightest peo-
ple and encourage them to shine. One way to
do this is to create an entrepreneurial university.
JAMK University of Applied Sciences is making
strong progress in this direction. This means a
comprehensive approach, where entrepreneur-
ship is part of the overall strategy and perme-
ates all units at both the personnel and student
levels, ” Perälampi explains. ■
27
JYVÄSKYLÄ FESTIVAL 9.–14.7.2013
Jyväskylä Festival is a warm-spirited urban festival that offers concerts, non-verbal theatre,
seminars, clubs, a children’s programme, free events and even instruction.
8.–10.3. Building Trade and Home Renovation 2013 Special exhibition for constructional engineering
and professional building repair.
Venue: Jyväskylä Paviljonki International Congress
and Trade Fair Centre
www.jklpaviljonki.#
22.–23.3. The 3rd European Conference for Social Work Research – ECSWR 2013Venue: Rantasipi Laajavuori
www.jyu.#/en/research/congress/ecswr2013
17.–19.4. FinnGraf 2013FinnGraf 2013 will provide a full picture of the vari-
ous combinations of media production.
Venue: Jyväskylä Paviljonki International Congress
and Trade Fair Centre
http://#nngraf.#
15.–16.5. Infratech 2013 ExhibitionFinland’s largest seminar and exhibition event for
the public utilities industry.
Venue: Jyväskylä Paviljonki International Congress
and Trade Fair Centre
www.yhdyskuntatekniikka.#
24.–25.5. Mobile Telephony in the Developing World Conference – Mobile Technology, Gender and DevelopmentVenue: University of Jyväskylä
http://mobiletelephony-developingworld.
blogspot.#
5.–7.6. Language and Super-diversity: Explorations and interrogationsThe aim of this international conference is to
investigate the perspective and potential o%ered
by super-diversity to language study – for example,
linguistics, sociolinguistics, sociology of language,
linguistic anthropology, applied linguistics,
discourse studies, new literacy studies, pragmatics,
ethnography and multi-modality.
Venue: University of Jyväskylä
www.jyu.#/en/congress/superdiversity
5.–7.6. ENROAC2013 – the 9th European Network for Research in Organisational & Accounting ChangeVenue: University of Jyväskylä, School of Business
and Economics
www.jyu.#/jsbe/en/research/enroac2013
11.–15.6. The 3rd International Conference on Music & Emotion, ICME3The conference will bring together leading re-
searchers, teachers, and practitioners from di%erent
By Tommi Salo
The Housing Fair to be organized in the sum-
mer of 2014 in Jyväskylä will showcase the latest
trends in Finnish housing design and construc-
tion and set a direction for future building. On
display at the Housing Fair will be 37 single fam-
ily dwellings and one block of flats which all vis-
itors to the fair will be able to explore over a pe-
riod of a month. Staged annually in Finland, the
Housing Fair attracts approximately 150 000 visi-
tors to the host city.
The Housing Fair in Jyväskylä will see the
creation of a modern residential area situated
close to the city centre in which residents will
be able to enjoy the best aspects of a close-to-
nature lifestyle and compact urban existence.
Where construction of the homes and area is
concerned particular attention will be paid to
the use of wooden materials, Green Factor pilot-
ing in Finland, lighting and ecological values in
house building.
In the Housing Fair area the spirit of one of
Finland’s most famous architects, Alvar Aalto,
will also be honoured by combining the diverse
housing models of today with imaginative,
boundary-breaking architecture. ■
Housing Fair in Jyväskylä 11.7.–10.8.2014.
www.jyvaskyla.fi/international
HOUSING FAIR
2014 WILL UNVEIL
MODERN HOMES
FOR ALL TO SEE
areas of music and emotion.
Venue: University of Jyväskylä
www.jyu.#/hum/laitokset/musiikki/en/icme3
1.–3.7. Reliable Methods of Mathematical Modelling, RMMM-2013RMMM 2013 brings together scientists working to
achieve reliable methods of mathematical model-
ling, which are among the latest developments on
the #eld of scienti#c computing.
Venue: University of Jyväskylä
4.–5.7. 12th European Conference on Information Warfare and Security, ECIW 2013ECIW will address elements of both theory and
practice of all aspects of Information Warfare and
Security, and o%ers an opportunity for academics,
practitioners and consultants involved in these
areas to come together and exchange ideas.
Venue: University of Jyväskylä
http://academic-conferences.org/eciw/eciw2013/
eciw13-home.htm
9.–14.7. Jyväskylä FestivalVenue: Jyväskylä Region
www.jyvaskylankesa.#
31.7.–3.8. Neste Oil Rally Finland 2013Venue: Jyväskylä Region
www.nesteoilrally#nland.#
24.–25.8. Alvar Aalto Design Seminar New WaveVenue: Jyväskylä
www.alvaraalto.#
28.–30.8. Interpersonal Violence Interventions – Social and Cultural PerspectivesVenue: University of Jyväskylä, Agora
4.–6.9. Wood and Bioenergy 2013 Venue: Jyväskylä Region
www.jklpaviljonki.#
EVENTS
ANTERO TENHUNEN /HOUSING FAIR FINLAND COOP
Academy of Finland Research Fellow Geoff Luck
will act as conference chair at the 3rd Internation-
al Conference on Music & Emotion.
Every year, for four weeks in July-August, various
living solutions and residential areas are show-
cased at the Housing Fair.
PETTERI KIVIMÄKI
28 H U M A N T E C H C E N T E R F I N L A N D
L A U R A I S an ordinary girl who goes to an extraordinary kindergarten in Jyväskylä – she and her friends exercise more than twice as much at their kindergarten than most children their age. Laura goes to a private Treasure Island kindergarten in Jyväskylä, which is a new Finnish innovation based on humanizing. The new idea behind the Treasure Island kindergartens is that their imaginative adventures combine music and exercise.
I F E V E R Y child in Finland could go to a Treasure Island kindergarten, Laurawould make 220,000 new friends every year. And if every child exercised as much as the children who go to Treasure Island, our children would be the most active children in Europe – which would save us over 15 million euros a year in healthcare costs. And that’s not all: in a few decades we would have the healthiest adults in Europe. This would mean huge savings at the municipal level alone.
Above all, Treasure Island Kindergartens is a company that has understood the power of humanizing. The organization behind the concept of humanizing is Human Tech Center Finland – HTC, which assembles specialists, researchers and enterprises worldwide in order to develop new and successful products from a human perspective – products that are humanized. www.humantechnology.fi
HTC’s impetus is provided by Jyväskylä Regional Development Company Jykes Ltd, the City of Jyväskylä, the University of Jyväskylä, JAMK University of Applied Sciences, Jyväskylä Educational Consortium, Jyväskylä Innovation Ltd, Ääneseudun Kehitys Ltd, Jämsek Ltd and the Regional Council of Central Finland.
C U R R E N T LY , new Treasure Island kindergartens are being established all over Finland and the Treasure Island model is being made into an international export concept. This exceptional
nursery school innovation is complemented by the use of service vouchers, which are used to offer
private kindergarten services to customers.
FOR MORE information, please visit: www.aarresaari.fi