International work-related travel is not just about hopping on a plane and “seeing what happens.” Oh no—it's a delicate dance of meetings, delegation dynamics, unexpected surprises, and perhaps a suitcase full of goodwill (and hopefully, snacks). Here are some “theses” for surviving, thriving, and occasionally laughing your way through international travel.
During our trip to Namibia as a part of the Circular Economy Models in Namibia: Capacity building project we had an opportunity to visit a local training centre in Swakopmund. In our visit we discovered a circular economy ecosystem which appears as a good example of strong sustainability covering environmental, economic and social elements. We also learned a punch of good practices on how to create value for local actors and communities from circular economy.
There has been a unique cooperation between TAMK and North Carolina State University (NCSU) for over 15 years. The cooperation has included, among other things, a double degree agreement already in the very early days of the cooperation. This co-operation has since then turned into active student and staff exchanges, both as guest lectures and project-related visits. In the future, the intention is to focus on cooperation in research as well.
Ulla Häggblom and Piia Kanto were invited to present the concept of the working life-oriented concept “Talent Factory” in July 2024 in the BioTech Tunisia Project Closing event in Tunisia. The presentation got excellent feedback because of the interesting topic and the captivating way of presenting.
On November 11th and 12th, 2024, the EU Interreg Central Baltic project Succeed in Business started with a dynamic two-day event in Riga, Latvia. The Succeed in Business project aims to encourage young people to become entrepreneurs by providing them with practical skills, international networks, and continuous mentorship. This project offers a platform for students to turn their business ideas into reality, supported by coaches, mentors, and an engaged network of peers from across the Baltic region.
The collaboration between Tampere University of Applied Sciences (TAMK), Finn Church Aid (FCA), and Kenyan Technical and Vocational education and training (TVET) institutions is creating new opportunities for youth employment and education in Kenya. This partnership aims to improve vocational education and address youth unemployment by combining Finnish expertise in education with local Kenyan needs where the emphasis on collaboration with workplaces is expressed in the notion of “Dual TVET”. Project called Youth Employment and TVET in Kenya is funded by the German development cooperation organization Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH.
The May 16th to 17th 2024 Learning, Teaching & Training (LTT) activities of DigiSTEM project took place in Bratislava. Over the course of two days the attendees learned much about the use of technology in math teaching, and got a special treat, too!
Tampere University of Applied Sciences' Succeed in Business project aimed at young people aged 18–25 in the Pirkanmaa Region interested in entrepreneurship to participate in international training that strengthens networking and competence. The Awareness Rising Conference organised at TAMK was attended by 22 participants. I was particularly pleased with the young people's sociability and openness to talk to each other and share experiences and questions about entrepreneurship right from the start.
Pedagogy experts from TAMK, Mikko Turunen and Henri Annala, gave Chilean teachers an intensive training week on Finnish pedagogy and teaching methods. The week was arranged as part of the Play and Learn project funded by the Government of Santiago and Fundación Entrepeneur on the 27th – 31st of May, 2024.
In early summer, I visited the Nonwovens Institute (NWI) and the Wilson College of Textiles in North Carolina. An important part of the visit was to learn about the characterization of nonwoven fabrics and get to know NWI's operations and the services offered to the industry.
The audiovisual (AV) sector, particularly the Film and TV Industry in Finland and Sweden, faces challenges in growth due to a lack of local, regional, and national production resources. This includes staff, teams, skills, equipment, facilities, and international networks. To address these challenges, a cross-border collaboration between Finland, Sweden, Estonia, and Latvia entitled Growth for FINSWE Film and TV Companies (AV–Growth ) will run from 2024 to 2027.
LOGY, the Finnish Association of Purchasing and Logistics, is a professional organization that brings together experts and companies involved in sourcing, logistics and materials management. Established in 1938, LOGY provides its members with training seminars, industry news, and networking opportunities, including the annual LOGY Conference which features both domestic and international speakers from various sectors related to logistics and supply chain management. As part of SPOTLOG project co-funded by Interreg Europe Programme, TAMK’s team attended the LOGY Conference in Helsinki 2024.
For the past two years, the Tampere University of Applied Sciences has collaborated closely with the Albanian public sector, schools and third sector within the framework of the ‘EU 4 Inclusive Teaching’ project. A joint Training-of-the-Trainer -programme, designed and delivered together with TAMK and Tampere University (Faculty of Education and Culture), has provided pedagogical support so far to almost 300 Albanian teachers.
As environmental concerns are becoming increasingly important, more and more industries are prompted to seek sustainable solutions to minimize their environmental impact. An example of such industry is the nonwoven sector, which is known for its wide range of applications, from hygiene products to automotive and construction materials. The nonwoven sector is gradually adopting sustainable fibres and polymers to replace traditional petroleum-based raw materials that take thousands of years to degrade and pose a threat to the environment and human health when they end up in landfills or marine environments.
The Higher Education Pedagogies for Teacher Education (HEP-TED) project has been granted a significant 1.1 million euros in funding from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland. The project, launched in January 2024, aims to develop, and strengthen the capacity of Rwandan higher education institutions and it contributes to sustainable development through quality teacher education for general education, and technical and vocational education and training (TVET).
The need for the development of circular economy (CE) in Namibia is obvious based on both economic, environmental, and social sustainability. At the beginning of November 2023 started a joint project with TAMK and Tampere University aiming at the capacity building of circular economy in Namibia. The project, funded by Finnpartnership, supports the feasibility study of a Finnish company. The project started intensively with a trip to Windhoek, the capital city of Namibia.
The number of immigrants in Finland is increasing for many reasons. In 2022, 508,000 of Finland's population had a foreign background or 9 percent of the entire population. Settling in a new country takes time and energy, especially in the beginning. At different stages of integration, questions or feelings may come to mind, even though they have lived in a new country for a long time.
As nursing students from TAMK, we got the opportunity to participate in the Minun ääneni project (translated as the “My Voice” project). This project is for people with memory disorders, and the particular event we joined was a music event in Pakkahuone on September 21st for the World’s Alzheimer’s Day. Attending was part of our Nursing Care for the Elderly studies.
The sustainability of the materials is an important aspect today and it also applies to nonwoven fabrics. Especially in the case of single-use nonwoven products, the disintegration and biodegradability of the product is a matter of interest to manufacturers and consumers.
It is said that travelling broadens the mind – all the stress with packing, tight schedules, and lack of sleep vanishes when you finally get on the spot, sense the enthusiasm of exhibitors and visitors, and start your adventure.
