Find Academic Supervisors

Mika Järvinen serves as Associate Professor in the Department of Energy and Mechanical Engineering at Aalto University, leveraging fundamental sciences—physics, thermodynamics, chemistry, and numerical modeling—to address cross-sector energy challenges. His research spans sustainable bioenergy and inter-linked circular economy systems integrating energy, materials, and environmental considerations across biomass, pulp/paper, metallurgy, and waste-to-energy industries. His expertise centers on sustainable bioenergy and circular economy frameworks, utilizing numerical modeling to optimize combustion engineering and metallurgical processes. By maintaining diverse industrial engagement, he ensures research continuity during economic fluctuations while advancing black liquor spraying technologies and energy-material-environment synergies. This approach enables flexible, physics-based solutions for complex industrial energy conversion problems. Professor Järvinen's 2025 publications reveal a cohesive focus on renewable energy systems operating within planetary boundaries, spanning carbon capture (calcium looping), low-temperature heat engines, and comprehensive textbook development. His work integrates solar, wind, bioenergy, and storage technologies into holistic frameworks that balance technical innovation with ecological constraints, emphasizing system-level sustainability over isolated component optimization. His scientific recognition includes: Best Dissertation Award (2002) from Helsinki University of Technology's Department of Machine Technology for research on black liquor droplet conversion Resonate Award (2015) from Caltech University's Resnick Institute As lead of the Energy Conversion and Systems research group, he directs projects bridging fundamental modeling with industrial applications while developing educational resources for next-generation energy engineers. His laboratory work emphasizes experimental validation of numerical models across combustion, metallurgical, and biomass conversion processes.

• Sustainable Bioenergy
• Circular Economy
• Energy Conversion Systems
• +4 more

Sakari Melander is a Professor at the Faculty of Law , University of Helsinki, specializing in Criminal Law , with a focus on constitutionalization, Europeanization, and sentencing policies. His work bridges theoretical criminal law with practical legislative and policy challenges. Key research areas include EU criminal law, constitutional constraints on criminal legislation, and general doctrines of criminal law. He has extensive experience in parliamentary legal consultation, providing expert opinions to Finland’s Legislative Committees (e.g., on immigration control, anti-corruption directives, and digital evidence handling). Recent publications address topics like EU corporate sanction policies, constitutionalization of criminal law, and reforms in Finnish sentencing systems. His 2025 article in the New Journal of European Criminal Law explores balancing administrative and criminal sanctions in the EU. Scientific awards include: Hilkka ja Otto Brusiin Foundation Thesis Prize (2001) Magister Bonus – Good Teacher Award (2014) Primustohtori Award (2010) Year’s Teacher (2010) Year’s Opponent (2008) He leads research projects such as Criminal Law Under Pressure: Differentiation and Harmonization (2012-2015) and Assessment of Human Trafficking Sanction Practices (2021-2022), and supervises doctoral theses on criminal law topics.

• Criminal Law
• EU Criminal Law
• Constitutional Law
• +4 more

Päivi Eriksson is a Professor of Management at the University of Eastern Finland (UEF) Business School. She co-leads the Innovation Management research group and coordinates the MSCA Neuro-Innovation PhD Programme (2021-2026) and NOVEL Postdoctoral Programme (2024-2029). Her research focuses on innovation management, academic entrepreneurship, and collaborative research methodologies. She leads the Neuro-Innovation and Impact research team within UEF's neuroscience community (NEURO). Key projects include DATASLEEP (2021-2025), CO-RESEARCH (2022-2026), and Shadows in Paradise (2022-2032). Her work bridges academic research with societal impact through initiatives like the Auria Biobank commercialization. She has authored/co-authored over 150 publications in journals like Journal of Affective Disorders , Qualitative Health Research , and International Journal of Human Resources Development . Eriksson's awards include research council grants and contributions to Elgar's Encyclopedia of Innovation Management . She advises on academic entrepreneurship policies and collaborates with 30+ external partners in healthcare, tech, and industry sectors. Her teaching emphasizes innovation empathy and service design frameworks for customer-centric solutions.

• Innovation Management
• Academic Entrepreneurship
• Collaborative Research
• +4 more

Kati Kulovesi is Professor of Law at the University of Eastern Finland , specializing in International Environmental Law , EU Climate Law, and the intersection of climate change law with international economic law. She works closely with the 3E Center at the Brussels School of Governance, Vrije Universiteit Brussels , and Earth Negotiations Bulletin , with multidisciplinary collaborations in the Atmospheric and Climate Competence Center . Education: LL.M. from University of Helsinki and London School of Economics; PhD from LSE Research Focus: EU Climate Policy, Legitimacy in Climate Governance, Arctic Environmental Regulation, Carbon Market Mechanisms Professional Experience: Legal adviser for Finnish Government, World Bank, UN FAO, European Commission, Nordic Council of Ministers, IUCN, and World Resources Institute Publications span EU Climate Law, WTO-Environmental Disputes, Arctic Governance, and Short-Lived Climate Pollutants, with recent work on the European Green Deal and Fit for 55 Package . Her scholarship integrates legal theory with empirical analysis of climate policy implementation.

• International Environmental Law
• Climate Change Law
• EU Law
• +5 more

Christian Grönroos is Professor of Marketing at Hanken School of Economics, recognized among the top marketing researchers globally. His pioneering work established service marketing theory and the service logic paradigm. Research focuses on value co-creation frameworks, relationship marketing evolution, and service-driven business model innovation. Publications have transformed understanding of customer management and service productivity. Awards include the Don Schultz Award (2025) and AMS-Parasuraman Best Paper Award. Recent work examines service-informed marketing reform and employee alignment in brand promise co-creation.

• Service Marketing
• Value Co-Creation
• Relationship Marketing
• +2 more

Timo Kaartinen serves as Professor of Social and Cultural Anthropology and Vice Dean for Research and Doctoral Education at the University of Helsinki 's Faculty of Political Science . Since 1992, he has conducted extensive research in Southeast Asia with a focus on Indonesia, exploring communicative practices, narratives, and cultural responses to uncertainty. His teaching spans social change in bachelor's, master's, and doctoral programs, covering environmental anthropology, political anthropology, cosmologies, religions, and linguistic anthropology. PhD in Anthropology, University of Chicago (2001) Docent (Adjunct Professor), University of Helsinki (2011) Research interests center on ethical discourse in Indonesian Islamic universities, resource politics in oil palm estates, and linguistic anthropology with emphasis on storytelling, folk poetry, and minority language revitalization. His work combines ethnographic focus on Southeast Asia with theoretical contributions to frontier studies and postcolonial anthropology. Recent publications examine frontier temporalities (2020-2025), Islamic transformations (2019), and oral narrative structures (2017-2013). Key projects include ARCTIC Research Centre (2025-2029), Diversity in Society and Life (DIVSOL) (2025-2030), and Religious Movements in Ethical Life (2019-2023). Grants from the Academy of Finland and University Profiling Funding support these initiatives. Academic activities include keynote speeches at international conferences (e.g., Empowering Local Wisdom 2014, Labor Migration in Asia-Pacific 2013) and editorial roles. He has conducted fieldwork in Indonesia since 1992, focusing on Bandanese cultural heritage and Maluku religious dynamics . His methodological approach combines ethnographic fieldwork with historical document analysis .

• Social and Cultural Anthropology
• Southeast Asia
• Indonesia
• +9 more

Raakel Plamper is a Doctoral Researcher at the Department of Education, University of Turku, with additional roles as Project Specialist in Geography and Development Specialist in Research Services. Her research focuses on higher education sociology, academic work dynamics, student roles in marketized systems, and university history. She teaches courses on social class and education, research methods, and multivariable analysis. Her work critically examines the marketization of universities, student-as-customer discourses, and managerialism in academic leadership. Key themes include tuition fee policies, institutional identity shifts, and equality in education systems. Recent publications analyze leadership rhetoric, writing retreats for researchers, and cross-country education strategies. Plamper actively contributes to interdisciplinary projects, such as the EU-funded Young Adulllt study on skill governance, and maintains a blog (Kas! blogi) discussing academic work and education policy. She holds an MA and is pursuing a PhD examining student roles in neoliberalized higher education.

• Higher Education
• Sociology of Education
• Academic Work
• +3 more

Masood Masoodian is an Associate Professor in the Department of Art and Media at Aalto University, Finland. He leads the Visual Communication Design research group, focusing on interactive visualization for health, energy, and sustainability contexts. Previously, he held roles at the University of Waikato (2000-2016), University of Southern Denmark, and Massey University. Education: Doctoral degree in Other disciplines from the University of Waikato (1999) Research interests include design thinking, visualization of complex data, and creative aging interventions. Notable projects include the EU-funded INT-ACT initiative (2024-2026) addressing intangible cultural heritage. He has received an award for collaborative work on video game ludonarrative analysis (2019). Recent activities include organizing workshops on map-based interfaces, co-creating cultural heritage methods, and delivering public talks on digital design. Supervised two theses and contributed to 131 peer-reviewed outputs, emphasizing human-centered design and sustainability. Grants: Principal investigator for multiple EU projects totaling over 3 years of active funding. Awards: Prize for 'Comedy in the Ludonarrative of Video Games' (2019). Labs/Teams: Visual Communication Design group, collaborating internationally on projects like INT-ACT's cultural heritage mapping.

• Interactive Visualization
• Design Thinking
• Health Informatics
• +3 more

Pekka Marttinen is a tenured Associate Professor of Machine Learning at Aalto University, Department of Computer Science, and leads the Machine Learning for Health (Aalto-ML4H) group within the Helsinki Institute for Information Technology HIIT. Education: M.Sc. in Applied Mathematics, University of Helsinki (2004) Ph.D. in Statistics, University of Helsinki (2008) Title of Docent in Information and Computer Science, Aalto University (2015) Research Focus: His methodological work spans large language models, reinforcement learning, deep learning, probabilistic machine learning, and causal inference . These techniques are applied to critical domains of healthcare, bioinformatics, statistical genetics, epidemiology, and personalized medicine . The group develops novel algorithms, theoretical guarantees, and open-source software that enable data-driven discovery and decision-making in medicine and biology. Publication Trends: Across 2022-2024 the lab has concentrated on (i) rigorous causal reasoning over temporal clinical data, (ii) principled uncertainty quantification in LLMs, (iii) representation learning for neural network comparison, and (iv) translational projects that turn raw EHRs into actionable clinical insights. Earlier work integrated high-dimensional genomics with metabolomics and mapped evolutionary forces in bacterial pathogens. Scientific Awards & Recognition: While no specific awards are listed, his sustained publication record in top-tier venues (NeurIPS, ICML, AISTATS, Nature Genetics, PLOS CB) and his role as responsible professor of the Machine-Learning, Data-Science and AI major signify significant peer recognition. Advising & Grants: Prof. Marttinen currently mentors 8 PhD students as primary supervisor and an additional 7 PhD students as co-supervisor. He has already graduated 8 PhDs since 2014. The group is supported through competitive funding including the Finnish Center for Artificial Intelligence (FCAI) doctoral program. Labs & Teams: He directs the Machine Learning for Health (Aalto-ML4H) research group, comprising postdocs Hans Moen, Ti John, Alexander Nikitin, Negar Safinianaini, Linli Zhang, Zhiyuan Li, and the above-mentioned PhD cohort.

• Machine Learning
• Large Language Models
• Reinforcement Learning
• +8 more

Ruben Vicente-Saez is a Visiting Professor at Aalto University's Department of Industrial Engineering and Management. His work focuses on Open Science and Open Innovation, contributing to global efforts aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, particularly in education and academic qualification. Aalto University College of Engineering Department of Industrial Engineering and Management His research explores the normative structures, mechanisms, and collaborative frameworks enabling open science practices. Key areas include data sharing, open innovation governance, and strategic policy development for sustainable academic ecosystems. Recent publications highlight his contributions to mainstreaming open science across European universities, developing governance models, and co-creating research proposals through open innovation practices. His work bridges computer science methodologies with social science insights to advance scientific collaboration.

• Open Science
• Open Innovation
• Knowledge-Sharing
• +3 more

Johanna Sumiala is a Professor of Media and Communication Studies at the University of Helsinki’s Faculty of Social Sciences. She holds a Docent title in Communication and leads research initiatives such as the Helsinki Inequality Initiative (INEQ) and the Helsinki Research Hub on Religion, Media and Social Change. Her expertise spans media anthropology, media and religion, visual culture, and media history. She has supervised doctoral candidates in Social Sciences and Theology, and her work bridges academic research with public engagement through media appearances and policy consultations. Education: Master of Arts (History of Ideas and Learning), University of Oulu, 1996 Licentiate in Philosophy, University of Jyväskylä, 2000 Doctor of Philosophy (Journalism), University of Jyväskylä, 2001 Docent of Communication, University of Helsinki, 2010 Research Interests: Her work examines digital death rituals, media’s role in religious populism, and the intersection of technology and existential security. Projects include Digital Death: Transforming History, Rituals and Afterlife and Mediatized Religious Populism . Grants & Collaborations: Funded by the Academy of Finland and EU CHANSE consortium, her research explores topics like hybrid media events, digital witnessing, and transnational Islam governance. She collaborates internationally with institutions like the London School of Economics and University of Bath. Labs/Teams: Leads the Helsinki Research Hub on Religion, Media and Social Change, focusing on digital religion’s methodological challenges and societal impacts.

• Media Anthropology
• Media and Religion
• Visual Culture
• +4 more

Pavel Tkach is a Researcher at the Arctic Centre , University of Lapland. His research focuses on Arctic governance, subnational decision-making, and policy analysis, with a particular emphasis on environmental policy, migration studies, and indigenous rights. Tkach has been actively involved in EU-funded projects such as Arctic PASSION (observing systems for societal needs), SIRIUS 3.0 (migrant education data mapping), and Co-CREATE (responsible solar radiation modification research). He holds a Law background and has contributed to interdisciplinary research on topics like Nordic forest policy, green transition in the Arctic, and indigenous data sovereignty. Tkach has organized major events such as the Arctic Circle Assembly 2024 and Rovaniemi Arctic Spirit 2023 , showcasing his role in fostering international collaboration. His research outputs include commissioned reports on data-driven governance frameworks and peer-reviewed articles on climate policy, cultural security, and Arctic socio-legal dynamics. Tkach collaborates with institutions across Europe and is a key contributor to pan-Arctic observational systems and sustainable tourism initiatives.

• Arctic Governance
• Subnational Decision-making
• Environmental Policy
• +3 more

David N. Thomas is a Professor of Arctic Ecosystem Research and Director of the International Masters Programme for Environmental Change and Global Sustainability at the University of Helsinki. He is affiliated with the Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences, working within the Ecosystems and Environment Research Programme and the Helsinki Institute of Sustainability Science. Dr. Thomas is a distinguished Marine-Arctic-Antarctic-Climate Biologist with extensive expertise in sea ice research, polar ecosystems, and climate change impacts. His research focuses on the biogeochemical processes within sea ice, carbon cycling in polar regions, and the ecological implications of a changing Arctic Ocean. He has made significant contributions to understanding how sea ice ecosystems function and respond to environmental change, with particular attention to microbial communities, nutrient dynamics, and carbon fluxes. His recent publications demonstrate a strong focus on the changing Arctic Ocean ecosystem, carbon and microbial dynamics in thawing permafrost landscapes, and sea ice biogeochemistry. Dr. Thomas has also contributed to important policy documents such as the PAME Synthesis Report on Ecosystem Status in the Central Arctic Ocean, bridging the gap between scientific research and environmental management. Professor Thomas has recently published the 4th Edition of "Sea Ice: Its Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Geology and Societal Importance," which represents a comprehensive update to this seminal work in polar science. His research spans both Arctic and Antarctic environments, examining how these critical polar regions are responding to global environmental change.

• Arctic Ecosystem Research
• Sea Ice Studies
• Climate Change
• +4 more

Jari Murto serves as Associate Professor at the Faculty of Law, University of Helsinki, where he specializes in Labour and Social Law. With over two decades of academic and practical experience, he contributes significantly to Finnish and European labour law discourse through publications, policy analysis, and academic leadership. His educational qualifications include a Doctor of Laws (LL.D), Master of Science in Economics and Business Administration, and Master of Laws (LL.M). Murto's doctoral dissertation Ryhmänormit yrityksessä (Group Norms in Companies, 2015) established foundational research on workplace norm systems. Murto's research examines labour law doctrines, norm systems, working conditions determination, and transition-phase labour market issues. He analyzes EU policy impacts on national frameworks, lifelong learning integration into labour law, and psychosocial workplace safety. Recent work addresses digital workplace challenges, parental employment policies, and just transitions in green/digital economies. His scholarship bridges theoretical legal frameworks with practical industrial relations through frequent commentary on Supreme Court decisions. As Doctoral Programme Supervisor, Murto mentors emerging legal scholars while maintaining active peer review roles. He serves on Finland's Board for Strengthening General Applicability of Collective Agreements and participates in European labour law networks including the Labour Law Research Network and Nordic Network of Labour Law Scholars. His conference activities span topics from social packages in income policy agreements to lifelong learning's role in modern labour law. Murto maintains strong engagement with practical legal applications through Supreme Court commentary series ( KKO:n ratkaisut kommentein ) and regular contributions to Lakimies journal. His research methodology combines doctrinal analysis with empirical studies of workplace practices and policy implementation.

• Labour Law
• Social Law
• Employment Policy
• +5 more

Eetu Mäkelä is a Professor of Digital Humanities at the University of Helsinki, leading the research group at the Helsinki Centre for Digital Humanities. He focuses on computational methods in humanities and social sciences, including datafication and interdisciplinary collaboration. He serves as Technical Director of DARIAH-FI and a Research Programme Director at the Helsinki Institute for Social Sciences and Humanities. Currently, he heads the preparatory group for the Helsinki Liberal Arts and Sciences Bachelor’s Programme. His research emphasizes technological and theoretical foundations of computational research, with notable contributions to linked open data, sociolinguistic analysis, and historical text mining. He has developed widely used tools like Recon, Palladio, and Octavo, which are employed in academic and public sectors. His work has garnered over 20 awards, including best paper and open science recognitions. Key areas of expertise include digital humanities methodologies, data integration, and open science practices. He actively contributes to teaching, designing courses such as 'Methods for Digital Humanities' and demonstrating innovative pedagogical approaches. His recent projects involve analyzing 18th-century philosophical texts and sociolinguistic change using computational methods. Awards: Multiple best paper awards, open data awards, and open science awards. Grants/Advising: Leads research initiatives funded by the Academy of Finland and other bodies. Mentors interdisciplinary research teams but no specific student names listed. He maintains active roles in academic infrastructure, including the DARIAH-FI initiative and the Helsinki Institute’s datafication program. His work bridges technical innovation with humanities scholarship, emphasizing practical, enduring systems for academic and public use.

• Digital Humanities
• Human Sciences–Computing Interaction
• Computational Humanities
• +3 more