Journal articles on the topic 'Finland – Economic conditions – History'

This paper aims to identify the features of Finland’s postwar development, which ensured the successful reconstruction and creation of a welfare state and to formulate recommendations for Ukraine’s postwar recovery on this basis. In order to realize the goal, the author consistently revealed the relevance and importance of the selected research issues and emphasized the importance of reviewing the historical and economic development of the Nordic countries in order to identify the mechanisms and tools of postwar reconstruction. Analyzing the Finnish experience is particularly important given: (1) the fact that Finland, in a short period, managed to make a leap and catch up with the leading countries in terms of economic indicators, even though among the Nordic countries, it was the last on the list of catch-ups; (2) indicators of success and economic development of modern Finland, in particular, entering the top rankings of competitiveness and human capital index; (3) similar historical context of Finland and Ukraine. A brief overview of the Finland–Russia relations history gives a deeper understanding of the reasons for the constant consideration of the USSR’s interests during the postwar period. It explains the commitment to the consensus policy, thanks to which Finland saved its independence, despite significant economic and territorial losses. Based on Finland’s historical experience analysis, the author formulated recommendations that can be implemented in the war economy and postwar reconstruction conditions. Emphasis is placed on the need to preserve, return and increase the human capital of Ukraine. The author concludes that Finland took place as an independent state thanks to institutions’ transparency too. In Ukrainian realities, this aspect can be of decisive importance in the issue of implementing postwar reconstruction programs.

The article deals with the measures Finland has had to take in order to determine Russia and other states to recognize Finland as an independent republic. Independence Day in Finland is not a time of festivity but a time of contemplation. We analyze the attitude problems of other countries in recognition of Finland’s independence: Nordic and Western countries but especially Russia. It is also important to investigate in what ways the Finnish government handled relations with Russia and the nature of their relation around 1917. This study also outlines how the Finnish government has acted to obtain the recognition of Finland’s independence by other states. History is explored – in addition to the great state and ideological events – also at the level of everyday life as well as the economic and living conditions. We look at the way people have experienced the period preceding the independence and the year of independence itself. The study presents how the traditions of Independence Day have already stabilized in the early years of independence and how they continued to be respected till nowadays; how the Finns have committed to the official symbols of the country and how these symbols have been rethought and changed since the 19th century.

Identity formation in political and occupational domains was examined from young to middle adulthood based on an ongoing longitudinal study. In addition to the participants’ identity status (diffused, moratorium, foreclosed, achieved), we assessed their perceived importance of politics, future orientation, and career stability four times in adulthood, at ages 27, 36, 42, and 50. The number of participants varied between analyses, from 168 to 291. Changes in the economic situation in Finland from 1986 to 2009 provided a context for the study. Data collections at ages 36 (in 1995) and 50 (in 2009) took place during economic recessions, and at age 42 (in 2001) during an economic boom. The results were discussed from both age-graded and history-graded perspectives. Developmental trends in political and occupational identity were reversed across age and changes in the economic situation. Political identity was at its lowest level and occupational identity was at its highest level at age 42 during the economic boom. Political identity progressed at a time of economic recession at age 50, whereas occupational identity regressed. In women, identity changes were associated with personal career stability. The perceived importance of politics increased concurrently with political identity achievement. During the recession when they were age 50, women tended to worry about future financial problems, while men perceived their future depending decreasingly on themselves and increasingly on the world situation. The results indicate that macro-level economic conditions may have psychological implications on people’s conceptions of themselves that are worth considering in developmental studies.

Pre-industrial money supply typically consisted of multiple, often foreign currencies. Standard economic theory implies that this entails welfare loss due to transaction costs imposed by currency exchange. Through a study of novel data on Finnish nineteenth-century parish-level currency conditions, we show that individual currencies had principal areas of circulation, with extensive co-circulation restricted to the boundary regions in between. We show that trade networks, defined here through the regional co-movement of grain prices, proved crucial in determining the currency used. Market institutions and standard price mechanisms had an apparent role in the spread of different currencies and in determining the dominant currency in a given region. Our findings provide a caveat for the widely held assumption that associates multi-currency systems with negative trade externalities.

Abstract In this article, the Finnish Great Famine of the 1860s will be discussed from a number of perspectives. First, using the famine classification developed by Howe and Devereux (2007), it is analyzed at four levels: mortality rate, food supply, coping strategies, and social breakdown. The main finding is that, although the criteria of severe famine conditions were fulfilled in certain parts of the country, at the local level authorities showed competence and the local government organized help in the desperate conditions. Second, the reasons behind the famine will be considered from the point of view of the structural and event history models (Arnold 1988). I will argue that the flow of events cannot be explained without adopting both of the approaches. The system theory approach (Howe and Devereux 2004; Howe 2010) will be connected with the long-term structural explanations (Mokyr 1985). The events can be seen as a process, where different factors strengthened one another, and the culmination point came in May 1868. Third, and finally, the Great Hunger Years of the 1860s will be discussed in the overall historical context: should the famine be considered as a notable turning point in Finland's history interpretation, or was the event a harmful temporary setback on the road to national social and economic prosperity? The latter view seems to be true. The famine impoverished the country, postponed the adoption of new technology and means of production, and proved how vulnerable the one-sided, agriculturally based national economy was.

Despite the tendency to create a European Higher Education and Research area, academic systems are still quite different across Europe. We selected five countries (Finland, Germany, Italy, Norway and the UK) to investigate how the differences have an impact on a number of aspects of the working conditions of academic staff. One crucial aspect is the growing diversification of professional activity: reduction of tenured and tenure tracked position, the growing number of fixed-term contracts for both teaching and research, including the growing recruitment of academic staff from external professional fields. These changes are connected with the changing functions of higher education systems and signal the growing openness of higher education institutions to their outside social and economic environment. To understand these trends one has to take into consideration the different degree in which systems distinguish between teaching and research functions. A second aspect has to do with career paths, their regulation, their length and speed. Here, the history of recruitment and career mechanisms in different countries are of particular importance because the different systems went through different periods of change and stability. Also connected to career is the willingness and the opportunity to move from one position to another, both within and outside the academic world. A third aspect deserving attention that is connected to mobility is the professional satisfaction among academic staff in the five systems considered.

The successful development of a territory as a tourist destination is not always associated with a variety of recreational resources. In the modern conditions of informatization, of great importance is a favorable image of the territory, which helps to promote the created recreational center. Our study aims to identify the factors that have contributed to the recreational development of the Finnish city of Kouvola, which, in the absence of significant recreational facilities, is one of the most important tourist destinations in southeastern Finland. We have analyzed the features of the economic and geographical position of the city, and identified the most attractive objects of tourist interest based on the content analysis of reviews about Kouvola on tourist Internet portals. We have also examined how careful attitude to the industrial history of the city made it possible to create new attractive recreational objects. The following factors have been found among those making Kouvola attractive for tourists: the border position of the city and its location at the intersection of important transport routes, as well as the presence of interesting recreational facilities in the adjacent territories and large shopping centers in the city itself. Consequently, Kouvola is used as an ‘entry point’ into adjacent territories with richer recreational potential. At the same time, the most important factor in the tourism development of Kouvola is no t the position near the border, but the location on the way of tourist flows. On the other hand, the tourist infrastructure created in the city contributes to the fact that tourists also use it as a point of main stay. Analysis of the recreational development experience of such places can be applied for planning tourism development of geographically similar territories.

The proclamation of independent Latvia in 1920 should be analyzed from the standpoint of political realism as a theory of international relations. In this regard, we can talk about four large-scale external factors that had a fundamental impact on the formation of the Latvian statehood in the period 1917-1920: 1) the Russian factor; 2) the German factor; 3) the influence of the Entente countries; 4) the influence of neighboring states of the region (Estonia, Poland, Finland, Sweden). The main internal factors that determined the state independence of Latvia were the rapid economic development of the region, primarily due to close ties with the Russian imperial market, and the strengthening of ideas of national independence among the political elites of the future Latvia. It is concluded that independent Latvia appeared on the map of Europe as a result of complex historical processes and as part of a change in the general model of Europe's development, moving from empires to nation states.

Since the 1970s, several European countries have experienced high union dissolution risk as well as high unemployment rates. The extent to which adverse economic conditions are associated with union instability is still unknown. This study explores the relationship between both individual and aggregate unemployment and union dissolution risk in five European countries before the recent economic crisis. Using rich longitudinal data from Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, and Italy, the empirical analysis, based on discrete-time event history models, shows that male unemployment consistently increases the risk of union dissolution. While a strong association is observed between male unemployment and separation at the micro level, no association is found between male unemployment and union dissolution at the macro level. The results for female unemployment are mixed, and the size of the impact of female unemployment is smaller in magnitude than that of male unemployment. In Germany and Italy, where until very recently work is less compatible with family life than in other countries, female unemployment is not significantly associated with union dissolution.

The article examines the period of the history of the Transfiguration of the Valaam Monastery of 1918 - 1939, before the evacuation to Heyniavesi. The famous Russian monastery, which belonged to the Diocese of Finland and Vyborg of the Orthodox Russian Church, had to adapt to life in independent Finland. The conditions of the monastery existence had changed significantly after the declaration of independence of this country and the change of the state system in Russia. In 1918, the Finnish government awarded the diocese the status of the second state church of the national minority. Despite the difficulties of socio-political, economic and jurisdictional nature, active finnization, which included the imposed calendar reform, the monastery became a symbol of steadfastness, evidence of the greatness of Russian culture and loyalty to Orthodoxy for Russian emigration around the world. The monastery leadership managed to find a common language with the church and secular authorities of Finland, the monastery won the respect and love of ordinary Finlanders. It can be said that the monastery has found its place in a new Western society. However, the author believes that it is possible to assert about the "prosperity" or "flourishing" of the Valaam Monastery at that time only conditionally, in comparison with the sad fate of monasteries in the USSR. She recalls the contradictory events in the story of the Valaam Monastery in the period, which influenced the fate of its inhabitants and the monastery itself, contributed to the reduction in the number of the brotherhood and the appearance of a "split" in it, and proves that visible well-being was the attribute of an artificially created image, although it had a positive meaning.

In the article, the authors analyze the scope of international tourism development factors based on factological and statistical grounds. It was proven in the article that on the macro-level tourist markets can be grouped into national and oversea ones. The classification of the national markets implies their division into highly-intensive markets (USA, Germany, Great Britain, etc.), stabilized markets (Spain, Greece, Turkey, Poland, etc.), reformed markets (Bulgaria, Romania, Ukraine, China, etc.), ant accumulated markets (India, Tunis, Egypt, Cuba, etc.). The basic factors affecting the international tourist market include static (climate, natural resources, cultural heritage, etc.) and dynamic ones (population, urbanization, wealth, family, leisure, income, spending, technological advancement, international conflicts and their resolution, etc.). In the article, special attention is paid to the analysis of the dynamic factors of international tourism development, social and economic ones in particular. The presence of positive factors in the country promotes favorable conditions for enhancing its tourist attractiveness on the international level. It was found out that positive factors increase the inflows of tourists for the specific regions (Brazil, France, Great Britain, Germany, Finland, Sweden, Cyprus, Israel, and U.A.E.). On the national level, the following factors are crucial for the development of tourist industry: natural resources, politics, population and its well-being, cultural heritage and rich history. It was revealed, that in Ukraine tourist business is internationally-oriented, which has both pros and cons for the national economy. In the article, the authors presented a matrix with positive (catalysts) and negative (inhibitors) factors affecting tourist business in Ukraine. Among the positive drivers are large contribution to the national economy and state financial support. At the same time, imperfect infrastructure and lack of legal regulations can be referred to the negative factors. It was stressed in the article that drastic measures should be undertaken in order to increase social and economic performance of national tourist business in Ukraine and increase it international image.

The presented article is devoted to the problem of printed source studies. According to the author, the study of the latter significantly expands the documentary horizons of all Ukrainian studies topics, including those from the Soviet period of Ukrainian history. Based on the traditions of domestic press studies, the author conducted a content analysis of the currently little-used publication of the Ukrainian SSR, namely, the press bulletin "On Soviet Ukraine". The chronological boundaries of the elaborated copies (1973—1975) were determined by the specifics of the then historical conditions in world politics, in particular, the easing of international tensions and preparations for signing by 35 countries, including the United States and Canada, the Final Act cooperation in Europe, which took place in the capital of Finland, Helsinki. The update of the press bulletin "On Soviet Ukraine" is also related to its auditory and publishing specifics: this magazine was intended for distribution outside Soviet Ukraine and the USSR, in general. The latter was prepared for the foreign reader and required other approaches to finding both topics and ways to reveal them. In addition, the press bulletin "On Soviet Ukraine" was a typewritten manuscript and, according to existing standards, did not belong to the press products of the USSR. Meanwhile, the obligatory copies of this magazine were sent to the Book Chamber of Ukraine in a timely manner and are still stored in the repositories of its State Archive of the Press. A meaningful analysis of the journal, conducted in the presented article, showed a significant interest of the editorial board in the personalized coverage of socio-economic and cultural events that took place in Soviet Ukraine.

Background: The use of Additive Manufacturing (AM) in military logistics is limited by the uncertainty about the legal risks of using the method. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to identify the potential legal risks associated with AM of military materiel and its effects. The study was conducted as a case study, where AM is considered in military logistics. Methods: Legal issues were approached from the normative point of view in the context of potential legal dispute situations in four different cases. The topic was studied by reviewing and analyzing literature sources, official sources, and Finnish Defence Forces military materiel purchasing contracts and interviews. The study interpreted and systematized the general principles of IPR and contract law when using AM in the military. Results: An identified result of the study was that the use of AM to print military materiel under normal conditions may entail risks that should be contractually managed. In other cases, e.g. crises or wartime, there are risks, but they are difficult to predict and manage or are acceptable. The results of the study concern countries with a similar military economic system to Finland in terms of military logistics. The results can be applied to the activities of different security sectors, due to the similarity of their activities. Conclusions: The use of AM can enable the material to be used in safety situations where speed and versatility are required for material readiness. The use of the method requires a legal right, the holder of which has the right to manufacture the product. In different situations, the legal basis is open to interpretation and may pose risks to the decision-maker. The research will provide information to decision-makers for the preparation of contracts for the acquisition and maintenance of military material and implementing AM to military logistics.

The article is devoted to an insufficiently studied problem in Russian and Finnish historiography — the economic policy of the Finnish regime in the occupied territory of Soviet (Eastern) Karelia in 1941—1944. Taking into account that this territory was to become an integral part of Greater Finland, the occupation administration in the first period of occupation set the task of economic restoration and development of the occupied regions of Karelia. But during this period, first of all, industrial and economic facilities were restored, which met the needs of the Finnish army. The central place in the economic policy of the Finnish occupation regime was occupied by the plans of intensive harvesting of Karelian timber and its export to Finland. Economic policy has been changing since 1943, when Finland realized that Germany would be defeated by the USSR. A direct plunder of the natural and material wealth of Karelia begins, the destruction of industrial facilities and the export of equipment to Finland. After Finland's withdrawal from the war in September 1944, the Finnish government partially compensated for the damage caused to the economy of Karelia.

AbstractIn late 1909, the liberal Russian newspaperBirzhevye Vedomostiexpressed the fear that Finland could become ‘Russia’s Ireland’. The implication was that by restricting the autonomy that Finland had enjoyed within the Russian Empire for much of the preceding century, Russian nationalists risked creating a chaotic, discontented eastern province, dangerously close to the imperial capital. The ‘Russia’s Ireland’ motif became so prominent in the following eight years – before Finnish independence in 1917 – as to become an international cliché. The discourse of imperial subjugation that existed in both Ireland and Finland in the first decade of the twentieth century has rather obscured the fact that, despite obvious superficial parallels, the nineteenth-century experiences of these nations differed considerably. Both Finland and Ireland were part of larger imperial systems in the nineteenth century, and national movements emerged in both countries that sought to develop political, economic and cultural autonomy. Finland became a sporadic model for diverse Irish national aspirations, but the analogy was rejected consistently, and often vigorously, by Finns in the nineteenth century. This article charts the development of the Finnish–Irish constitutional analogy from the middle of the nineteenth century to the eve of both nations’ independence. It demonstrates that despite the similarities in overall historical timelines, contemporaries perceived differences between the two cases.

Abstract Despite strong secular economic growth after the crisis of 1990-93, most of rural Finland has continued to face severe job losses. By applying small-area analysis, this paper seeks to explain why some rural areas inevitably experience declining employment while others prosper and grow even faster than urban areas. The variation of job creation in rural small areas derives from local economic conditions, local demographic structure, proximity to larger centers, and natural conditions. Contrary to expectations, the coldest areas with nature reserves have passed the worst job loss. Those areas had a lower burden of declining primary industries than traditional agro-forest areas, and because of tourism, industry has expanded in some places in Lapland. The dependence of an area on the primary sector is a good indicator of the highest rural job losses during the urban-centric economic growth period. Especially the most resource dependent areas have lagged behind and fail in job creation on account of their uncompetitive industrial environment. Persistent labor surplus plagues such areas, implying that established policy measures have been unable to restructure and modernize traditional rural areas. Since Finnish rural and regional policies have been being inefficient they should be reformed especially in resource-based areas in a fundamental way.

Border regions in modern conditions have a special status which is determined by the geopolitical position. The Russian-Finnish borderland was characterized by a high level of activity, which provided the border regions with opportunities for economic growth. The development of the border regions of Russia and Finland diff signifi by socio-economic indicators. A comparative analysis will make it possible to assess the existing gap between the territories and identify possible areas for cooperation between the territories. The object of the study is the border regions of Russia and Finland. The aim of the study is to assess the economic development and diff processes of the border regions of Russia and Finland. The study collected a system of indicators to analyze the development of border regions, which made it possible to assess the level of socio-economic development of border regions of Russia and Finland. The analytical work used the data of Rosstat, Finstat, on the basis of which the database on socio-economic indicators of development of border regions was collected. The comparative assessment was carried out by applying the method of factor analysis (L. Thurstone’s centroid method). Analytical work was carried out with the help of the package of applied programs Statistica. Based on a certain set of indicators refl the socio-economic development of the border regions of Russia and Finland, the characteristics were built based on the values of the regions in the space of latent factors and their heterogeneity was assessed. The construction was formed on the basis of the use of factor analysis of integral characteristics that include the socio-economic indicators under study. The conducted study of the assessment of the development of border regions of Russia and Finland has identifi a high level of lagging behind the Russian border regions from the Finnish border regions according to the majority of indicators. An important result is also a signifi diff between Finnish border regions by the cumulative factor “provision of territory with resources”, Finnish border regions showed a signifi gap in relation to each other.

Immigration, economic hardship, and the European Union (EU) are typically emphasized as key concerns for the electorates of European populist radical right (PRR) parties. At the subnational level, however, these parties perform increasingly well in areas relatively unaffected by ethnic diversity, postindustrial economic decline, or transnationalism. What explains this paradox? Through a novel longitudinal analysis of rich municipal electoral, economic, and demographic data from Finland, this study uncovers the conditions under which immigration, economic hardship, and EU transfers influence support for the PRR. Although levels of ethnic diversity or economic hardship poorly predict support for these parties, they find fertile ground in areas undergoing rapid ethnic changes or economic decline. Growing reliance on EU funds, in contrast, decreases their anti-EU appeals. Thus, by clearly differentiating structural conditions from cyclical effects, this study helps reconcile rival theoretical perspectives on social contact and receptiveness toward immigrants and debates over the economy’s effects on these parties’ performance.

Abstract The nineteenth century in Finland was characterized by significant societal changes. Since 1809 a Grand Duchy of imperial Russia, Finland began to transform from an early modern society of estates to a modern civic society. The end of the nineteenth century was characterized by significant economic growth. Despite this general development, for many people this era signaled impoverishment and downward mobility that affected even the next generations. A fresh look at the economic threats on various societal layers is called for. In this theme issue we are concerned with socially varying dimensions of destitution, its manifestations, and the ways in which it was experienced and repelled. We explore the manifold and fruitful sources available, some of which are as yet little explored, while others afford novel approaches to the history of poverty.

The authors of the article consider various approaches to the disclosure of the concept of a special economic and legal regime, reveal the essence of this concept and determine the main characteristics of a special economic regime (SER). The article highlights the impact of a SER on the competitive environment, namely, presents a list of possible effects and scenarios which arise at the global, national and regional levels as a result of the implementation of a SER. The concept of a “level playing field” is considered and shortcomings in its wording and understanding are revealed. The possibility of using SER as a tool for “leveling” competition conditions is considered. The authors also raise the question of “expediency” of providing state aid for the development of individual industries and territories in the form of incentives from the point of view of economic efficiency. An algorithm of SER is formulated in a simplified way. The authors conducted a study of Ukrainian and European legislation regulating the provision of local incentives for economic development. Also, the article proposes implementing the theory of “leveling the competitive environment” in the form of creating different types of SERs in Ukraine depending on the purpose, general ideas and principles of providing state aid to industrial enterprises of Ukraine. Foreign experience of Finland is highlighted as an example of successful development of the national innovation system, Ireland’s experience is exemplified by the incentive role of the SER in terms of the fiscal component of the regime. Conclusions are made about the basic principles of the concept of state support providing for innovative development in Ukraine, and prospects for further research are proposed.

J. K. Paasikivi belongs to the most famous Finnish political figures, the prime minister and the seventh president of Finland, the architect of its foreign policy in the post-war period. His influence on the political, economic and foreign policy spheres of Finland has been extremely noticeable for more than half a century. This article examines the least studied period of his political activity — the formation of Paasikivi as a politician, diplomat and statesman from the beginning of the 20th century until the signing of the Tartu Peace Treaty of 1920 between the RSFSR and the Republic of Finland. In the first twenty years of the 20th century, Paasikivi traveled a difficult, dramatic path from a staunch supporter of cooperation with the Russian Empire to an adherent of the idea of independence, then cooperation with imperial Germany, and again, recognizing the important fact that the best way to ensure Finland's national interests is to compromise with Russia in matters of its strategic needs. However, the sharp turns in Paasikivi's political fate were by no means a tribute to the fashion or the conjuncture. He was and remained a realist and pragmatist who always took into account a complex of factors: geographical, historical, strategic, foreign policy, economic in the decision-making process. Paasikivi's political heritage in modern Finland are realism in foreign policy, maintaining good relations with neighboring countries, first of all, with Russia, foreign policy aimed at the future, its predictability and long-term, in domestic policy, the desire to awaken interest in foreign policy issues.

A solid starting point for assessing tree-improvement programs would be to determine the effect of genetic gain in economic terms at stand level. This paper presents a stand-level optimization analysis of the use of improved seed material in reforestation from the perspective of forest owners. We used a genetic algorithm to study the effects of optimized stand management on the bare land value (BLV) for both genetically improved and unimproved reforestation material, with increase in BLV (ΔBLV > 0) representing the deployment benefit over the standard tree-improvement program. The stand-level optimization analysis was applied to a case representative of economic and climatic circumstances in Finland. The results show that the absolute increase in the BLV is distinctly higher in southern Finland than in central Finland, let alone northern Finland, regardless of the interest rate (3% or 4%) or genetic gain (3% or 15%). Sensitivity analyses revealed that market-related risks need to be taken into account carefully. Our tentative results provide new insight on the financial incentives for using genetically improved seed material in Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) stand establishment under varying climatic conditions, but the subject merits further investigation — with greater detail and a more systematic data structure.

Abstract The topic of this article is the nature and social character of Finnish rural poverty during the early stages of industrialization. Specifically, I analyze households exempted from two separate taxes in order to locate and study the rural poor. Contrary to several previous considerations deeming taxation sources unreliable in poverty studies, it is shown that under controlled settings tax exemption information does display promising features. These include a high exemption percentage of households without adult male members, small average household size of the tax exempted and a clear concentration of the exemptions on the lower rural social classes. My findings also highlight the fact that conclusions on the usability of the exemption information depend heavily on the selection of the tax studied. Taxes levied at individual level were not necessarily dependent on the households' economic status, and similarly household level taxes may have been independent of the inhabitants' social and economic conditions. On average, the exemption rates are in line with several accounts from pre-industrial Western Europe.

Since the announcement of the National economic strategy 2030, the transition to a circular economy has become an agenda for Ukraine. In these conditions searching for good experience and practices is an essential priority for national higher education. The research focuses on analysing educational experience in the circular economy in the Republic of Finland. The Republic of Finland has become the first country to provide degree programmes in the circular economy. This theoretical research is based in particular on literature review as well as analysis of Finnish universities websites for studying the degree programmes (their learning content and structure), methods and forms of education. The article presents a generalised analysis of the bachelor, master and doctoral programmes in the circular economy or related sciences. The main findings are methods of education in circular economy distinguished according to the following principles: historical (project-based), priority in the pedagogy implementation (teaching and learning), students activities (combined methods), teaching strategies (heuristic methods), source of knowledge (direct or indirect study of reality). The project-based method dominates when a multidisciplinary student team designs the project. The education format varies from traditional to online.

I thank Co-Editors Ass. Prof. Dr. Jože Kropivšek and Prof. Dr. Katarina Čufar for the opportunity to serve as an Editorial Board member of Les/Wood, an international journal firmly grounded in the broad sweep of Slovene wood science and technology. The Editorial Board works to extend the relevance and impact of Les/Wood within and beyond Slovenia to the international community of wood science and technology in the broadest sense. We see the journal as a tool to support research and development of specific technologies, as well as to develop common terminology. I would like to use this opportunity to sketch out how I came to be involved with wood science in Slovenia. In retrospect that involvement seems inevitable, but the path was not always clear at the time! After completing my postgraduate education in plant pathology and mycology in the USA in 1982, I accepted my current position as supervisory plant physiologist for the USDA Forest Service, a US federal land management agency with a strong commitment to research & development and to international forestry. Throughout my career, my personal research has involved tree growth and wood decay in response to injury, infection, and environmental change. These tree responses affect forest health, the economic value of wood for art and industry, the tree-ring record of environmental conditions, and the performance of trees in urban and community environments. My USDA FS mentor and colleague Dr. Walter Shortle met Prof. Dr. Niko Torelli and Prof. Dr. Katarina Čufar at the IAWA conference in Hamburg (1983) and at the IUFRO World Conference 1996 in Ljubljana, where the two of them were local organizers. Afterwards they obtained a joint Yugoslav American Project, “Possible alterations of wood in air polluted trees”, which defined my earlier collaborations with Professor Torelli and Katarina Čufar on silver fir decline in Slovenia and Europe. Later, Katarina Čufar, Dr. Tom Levanič, and I identified changes in the climatic responses of silver fir in Slovenia and of red spruce in the northeastern US. I also worked with Dr. Primož Oven on special considerations for the health and safety of city trees. Later, Katarina Čufar and I both served on the Executive Council of the Tree Ring Society, an international association for dendrochronological research. We co-taught a tree biology section at the Dendro Fieldweek as part of the World Dendro conference 2010 in Finland. We found that our combination of research experience both intensified and broadened our understanding and presentation of wood structure and function. Since then, we have worked to provide Slovene students and scientists a platform to share techniques and experiences that both extend the science and community of scientists in the international research community. As an active researcher, I see Les/Wood as noteworthy because of the potential breadth of articles reporting on topics from wood mechanical properties to technologies and industrial processing to underlying anatomy and the biological processes that result in wood formation and preservation. In addition to the high level of scholarship and technical expertise within Les/Wood, I find collegiality of spirit, openness of approach, and pride of history and context. These qualities lift up and support ongoing and future research for Slovenia, its geographic surroundings, and the broader world research community. I’m excited at the prospect of Les/Wood extending its traditional strengths to meet the critical need for wood science to optimize wood utilization, ecological understanding, and cultural patrimony.

This article analyses the process through which the dangers posed by millions of forced migrants were defused in continental Europe after the Second World War. Drawing on three countries – West Germany, East Germany and Finland – it argues that broad, transnational factors – the cold war, economic growth and accompanying social changes – were crucial in the process. But it also contends that bloc-level and national decisions, particularly those concerning the level of autonomous organisational activity and the degree and type of political and administrative inclusion allowed for the refugees, affected the integration process in significant ways and helped to produce divergent national outcomes.

The article clarifies the essence and features of the digital economy. It was found (according to the European Commission) that Denmark, Sweden and Finland have taken the lead in the digital economy over the last three years; the lowest level of digitization is in Bulgaria, Romania and Greece. The necessity of development and introduction of the system of financial and economic security of the enterprise in the conditions of development of digital economy is substantiated. The essence of the concept of financial and economic security of the enterprise in the conditions of digitalization as protection of activity of the enterprise from external and internal negative factors and introduction of innovative information technologies and software for the purpose of its stable and dynamic development is defined. The priority directions of ensuring the financial and economic security of enterprises in the new realities of digitalization of economic activity are given.

This article is part of a joint project conducted by Finnish and Estonian scholars that aims to comparatively study the famine of the 1860s in those countries. Unlike Finland, research into the last large-scale famine of the 19th century has begun only rather recently in Estonia. Kersti Lust has contributed the most to this area of research. The task of this article is to trace the development of agriculture in the present-day Estonian area in the 1860s, focusing primarily on the size of harvests. Attention is paid to some factors that still made agriculture vulnerable even in the 1860s. Additionally, the article also considers methods adopted at the local level in attempts to resolve the situation, alleviate food shortages, and ward off famine. The appendices to the annual reports drawn up by the governors general of Estland and Livland include statistical data on the amounts of winter grain (rye), summer grains (barley, oats) and potatoes sowed, the size of their harvests (in chetverts), and the number of inhabitants. These appendices also provide an estimate of crop yields (how many seeds these types of crops produced). The fact that more precise information from Estland on 1868 is missing has to be pointed out as the largest gap. In spite of imperfection, the absolute numbers presented in the appendices of the reports from the governors are used in this article since there are no better options. The archives of rural municipal governments provide the opportunity to ascertain how different localities tried to alleviate the situation that emerged as the result of crop failure and to ensure that all members of the rural municipality were supplied with grain. The extent of crop failure, the use of communal grain, and the purchase of grain using money from the rural municipal treasury or on loan unfold from rural municipal council transcripts. Many archives of rural municipal governments have been lost over time. There are only 156 collections in total that contain transcripts from 1868 and 1869. The most important grain was rye, which could withstand poor growing conditions. The amount of winter grains sowed in Estonian territory as a whole was around 200,000 chetverts in the 1860s, and in the better years, the harvest of winter grains exceeded the threshold of 1,000,000 chetverts. The average crop yield of winter grains was 4.8 in the 1860s (excluding 1868). Barley and oats were primarily grown as summer grains, whereas oats were mostly used as animal feed. It was only starting in the 1830s that potato cultivation had begun spreading more extensively in the Baltic region, whereas it started being used primarily in distilleries, where it was cheaper raw material compare to rye. Unlike grains, potatoes were cultivated considerably less in Livland than in Estland. The potato harvest failed in Estland in 1866 and 1867, when the crop yield was only 2.8. The crop nevertheless did not fail in 1868 in the northern part of Livland as a whole, but it was poor (the crop yield was 3.4). Good potato harvests in Estland in both 1869 and 1870, when it set a record, surpassing the 662,000 chetvert threshold, contributed to recovery from the famine. Crop failure (less than three seeds) was not universal, rather it affected only one crop type and was mostly regional. In Northern Estonia and primarily in Saaremaa, the years of poor harvests in 1865 and 1867 were followed by the rainy summer of 1868, which brought with it crop failure and famine. The most complicated situation was in Saaremaa because the soil there was not very fertile. There winter grain yielded 2 seeds, summer grains 2.5 and potatoes 0.5 seeds. Thus, less potatoes were harvested there than were planted. Tartu County was the only district in Livland where average or satisfactory, and even good harvests were almost consistently achieved in the 1860s. Grain grown in Estland and Northern Livland was mostly consumed in the domestic market. Manorial estates cultivated grain primarily with the needs of the market in mind, while farms had to look after covering their own needs first and foremost. At that time, 1 chetvert of winter grain and 1 chetvert of summer grains was considered the food requirement of one person for a year. In Estland, 1.1–1.7 chetverts of rye and 1.2–2.2 chetverts of summer grains were produced per inhabitant in the 1860s. Rye was produced in quantities below this norm (0.8) in 1865, 1867, as well as in 1868, according to indirect data. In Northern Livland, 1–1.4 chetverts of rye and 1.1–2.0 chetverts of summer grains were produced per inhabitant. There the production of rye was slightly below the norm (0.9) in 1865, 1867, 1868 and also in 1870. Although crop yield was higher in Northern Livland, the large number of very small holdings in the crown manorial estates there, where secondary livelihoods, primarily fishing, occupied an important place, caused lower indices per person. The rye harvest per person was lowest in Pärnu County and Saaremaa (0.6) in 1868. The relative proportion of crown manors was especially large in these two counties. Alongside harvests and crop yields, it is also necessary to examine how the population coped in situations of crop failure and hunger, and what measures were taken for alleviating grain shortages. This particular crop failure was the first serious touchstone for the rural municipal communities that had only just been liberated from the control of the manorial estates by the Baltic Rural Municipalities Act in 1866. According to this act, each rural municipal community had to elect a council, which was the governing body of the rural municipal community. Thus, the council was the body that had to make the decisions concerning the use of the communal granary’s grain reserves, the taking out of loans, and distributing aid. Harvests in many regions of Estland and Northern Livland, and especially in Saaremaa, were so small in 1868 as the result of crop failure that they did not make it possible to survive over the winter or to allocate grain for the next sowing. The crisis reached its culmination in the winter of 1868 and the spring of 1869, when famine struck the most backward regions, gripping the province of Estland more or less as a whole, whereas the situation in Lääne County was the worst. Of the counties of the northern part of Livland, it struck only Saaremaa severely. Epidemics broke out in addition to the famine, primarily typhus, as well as dysentery, measles, smallpox, etc. The rural municipality was obliged to care for all its members, especially if they encountered difficulties due to either illness or poverty. Particular attention started being paid to providing poorer people with food and shelter. Food supply policy in the Russian state was founded on maintaining reserves in local communal granaries in order to prevent famine in the event of crop failure. In an emergency, members of the community could borrow grain from the granary for food or sowing, but the borrowed grain had to be returned together with interest in the form of grain from the new crop. In good years, the rural municipality could sell the surplus grain and set aside the money earned from such sales in the rural municipal treasury. When the communal granary’s grain reserves had been distributed and the granary was empty, the next measure was to purchase additional grain in return for the savings of the rural municipality, using both money from the treasury as well as obligations. In some rural municipalities, such measures were sufficient, and the rural municipality managed in this way to ride out this difficult period and also to feed its poor. More exceptional measures did not have to be adopted. This, of course, depended on the condition of the rural municipal treasury, which differed widely. Money taken from the rural municipal treasury was also a loan that had to be paid back. Here the principle of joint surety applied, thus this also had to be paid back on behalf of those who were themselves incapable of doing so. These measures nevertheless were not sufficient everywhere because primarily in Northern Estonia and Saaremaa, rural municipality transcripts record that the whole rural municipality had declined into great need and poverty, and all of the poor were starving. If the rural municipality had spent its own financial resources, the next step was to apply for a crown loan with which to procure grain, which would in turn be loaned out to the people of the rural municipality. The public authorities already made it known well in advance that rural municipalities could take out loans in an emergency, stressing that this was not aid and that it had to be paid back. The rural municipality could use granary reserves and money from the rural municipal treasury and receive support loans from the state only with the consent of the parish judge. The threshold for requesting permission was quite high because rural municipalities mostly already had communal granary debts, and the authorities feared the creation of new debts. The decision to take out a loan was not taken lightly in the rural municipalities because both paying back the loan and the payment of interest were considered to be too difficult. Taking out a crown loan was placed on the agenda only in the event of a very serious emergency, when reserves were completely depleted. The need for loans continued to grow at the end of 1868 and over the first half of 1869, when there were shortages of bread grains as well as seed grain. Different types of tactics can be seen in the case of taking out loans that corresponded to the size and opportunities of the rural municipality. In some rural municipalities, it was common procedure to assess the situation separately for each month, and smaller sums within the range of 100–600 roubles were taken out repeatedly as loans. Elsewhere – primarily in larger rural municipalities – the aim was to borrow a larger sum all at once that exceeded 1,000 roubles. A small proportion of the rural municipalities in Järva, Viru and Lääne counties had taken out a loan by then, but the sum could even extend to 3,000 roubles. Since the rural municipalities had been made responsible for looking after supplying the peasantry with food, resolving the situation depended on the extent of the famine and the economic condition of the rural municipality. At the same time, the rural municipality lacked sufficient power for coping with the tasks assigned to it. The resources of the rural municipality were limited, and it did not have possibilities for redistributing reserves between rural municipalities. In cases of more serious famine when communal granary reserves were insufficient, the manorial estate and, above all, the state had the means for assisting the population. Grain harvests did not depend solely upon the weather or other natural conditions, but also on agrarian relations. The farm economy was still almost entirely dependent on the manorial estate economy in the 1860s. Major changes took place in the 1860s aimed at accelerating the transition from the mode of management based on corvée to a system based on a money economy. The reorganisation of relations between farm and manorial estate did not immediately bring any noticeable changes. The three-field system remained in use in compact hamlets with fields divided into strips in Estland and Saaremaa until the enclosure of farms, which was usually carried out just before the manor put the farms up for sale. Enclosure became universal in the latter half of the 19th century, when the sale of farmland to peasants as hereditary property became its primary impetus. The outright purchase of farms took place early in Livland precisely in those areas with predominantly dispersed settlement where farms had accumulated money from the sale of flax and where it was not necessary to carry out the enclosure of farms before starting to sell farms. At the same time, this is precisely what led to Northern Livland’s more rapid commercial and financial development compared to Estland. Areas with enclosed farms that had been purchased outright were naturally not immune to unfavourable weather conditions and crop failure. They nevertheless had better chances for coping with grain shortages. Only the establishment of new economic relations, primarily the enclosure of farms and the growth of peasant smallholdings, created the prerequisites for the transition to crop rotation and for increased crop yields, which made it possible to cope better with setbacks.

We studied regional effects of alternative climate change and management scenarios on timber production, its economic profitability (net present value (NPV), with 2% interest rate), and carbon stocks over a 90 year simulation period in Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) Karst.) forests located in southern, central, and northern Finland. We also compared the results of optimised management plans (maximizing incomes) and fixed management scenarios. Business as usual (BAU) management recommendations were used as the basis for alternative management scenarios. The forest ecosystem model SIMA together with a forest optimisation tool was employed. To consider the uncertainties related to climate change, we applied two climate change scenarios (SRES B1 and SRES A2) in addition to the current climate. Results showed that timber production, NPV, and carbon stocks of forests would reduce in southern Finland, opposite to northern Finland, especially under the strong climate change scenario (SRES A2) compared with the current climate. In central Finland, climate change would have little effect. The use of optimised management plans also resulted in higher timber yield, NPV, and carbon stock of forests compared with the use of a single management scenario, regardless of forest region and climate scenario applied. In the future, we may need to modify the current BAU management recommendations to properly adapt to the changing climatic conditions.

Estonia’s path towards a market economy started in 1987, when Gorbachev’s market-oriented reform course allowed for an unprecedented level of autonomous cooperation with capitalist countries. The developing networks with Western companies and economists, in particular from the neutral Nordic neighbours Finland and Sweden, played a key role in the process of implementing an increasingly radical pro-market agenda. Unrestricted by diplomatic constraints, Swedish and Finnish entrepreneurs, investors and advisors established numerous links to the evolving Estonian business environment, which was promoted as a bridge to the vast Soviet market. The Nordic connection facilitated the early transfer of market economy thinking and practices to Soviet Estonia and kicked off a long-term rearrangement of economic linkages across the Baltic Sea. Taking into account this transnational cooperation contributes to a new understanding not only of Estonia’s economic transformation, but also of the emergence of a new regional economic order that accompanied the geopolitical changes.

This paper examines the background for leisure-labour decisions in agriculture and evaluates welfare effects of a shift in farmers’ relief services from a state-led subsidised system to a market mechanism. Leisure provided by relief services in agriculture contributes to well-being, but the leisure-labour choice also influences the revenue. Besides conventional economic and demographic factors, we emphasize the importance of special biological bindings and continuity, as well as risk and uncertainty affecting farmers’ time allocation in agricultural production. We consider structural development as an aggregate factor to explain the demand for farmers’ relief services. In Finland the organisation of the services is more centralized than in the other Nordic countries or the European Union. If government subsidies for relief services were removed and a market mechanism with free price formation adopted, direct government savings would be more than enough to compensate for substantial losses to farmers. Moreover, market forces could produce economic efficiency and local flexibility of a higher degree. State subsidization may still be needed to some extent in changing conditions in order to enable the relief services to develop and serve as a support system of a social, de-coupled, and less distorting nature.

Using a collection of conference papers published in 1978 as a point of departure, the article reviews developments in family history research in Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Iceland during the past two-and-a-half decades. Included are those works which either treat the family or household as the object of study or use the family or household to study social, economic, and demographic change. Methodological developments as well as such topics as marriage and the formation of families, illegitimacy, social legislation, family relationships, family planning, and household size and structure are presented with an emphasis on cross-country comparisons.

This article examines the expansion of post-war Swedish ice-breaking and winter navigation from a small state perspective previously put forth in research on the corresponding historical developments in Finland. The results confirm the notion that the post-war expansion of winter navigation was related to the contemporary transformation within the forestry industries. Both State maritime actors and interest groups from the forestry industries framed ice-breaking as a decisive instrument to promote the exports of pulp and paper. This coincided with the introduction of cost-efficiency measures within transport policy, which allowed the State ice-breaker service to expand at the expense of the railways.

The article deals with analyzing the main streams of the education policy in Finland, which reflect the relationship between a person and society in modern socio–economic conditions. Such policy directs the system of education to change the person and his mind himself. Finland using its education system, has long before been concerned about preparing people for the future by reforming approaches to teaching in schools and higher education institutions. As a result, it has achieved world–wide recognition and top positions in various ratings have resulted. Therefore, today there is a great interest of scientists in certain issues of education functioning in Finland. Thus, G. Androshchuk, V. Butova. I. Zhernokleeva, T. Pushkareva and others study in their works the purpose and decisive role of Finland's education policy in the development of the education system. S. Grinyuk and V. Zagvozdkin pay attention to the practical the steps of reforming the Finnish system of education. T. Drobyshevsk investigates the system of providing educational services in Finland as a sector of knowledge production. L. Volynets, P. Kukharchuk consider the principles of the state education policy of Finland. L. Smolskaya examines the role of the state policy in implementing the "Finnish phenomenon"; P. Basyliuk and Yu. Kulykova, focus attention on the study of the evolution of the system of higher education in Finland; O. Scherbak reveals peculiarities of vocational education and training.

Transport infrastructure played a key role in redefining Finland’s economic geography. An empirical investigation involving new gis databases that combine data about railways, population, and administrative boundaries at the municipal level between 1870 and 2000 permits the identification of three main phases of railway expansion: The first phase was a concentration of railways around Helsinki; the second, the construction of a grid-based national railway network, which coincided with a spread of the population into rural areas; and the third, an expansion of the railway into local networks when Finland’s industry began to coalesce around metropolitan areas.

Objectives: This study compared the physical, mental, and social health levels among Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development countries. Methods: We sampled from 34 Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development member countries and divided physical, mental, and social health into three domains based on World Health Organization health definitions. Results: A multivariate hierarchical cluster analysis was conducted to group countries that were similar in terms of health. Regarding physical health, Japan, South Korea, Sweden, Switzerland, and ten more countries reported favorable health conditions. For mental health, Australia, Canada and eight more countries revealed favorable conditions. Finally, in terms of social health, Austria, Finland, Iceland, and seven more countries reported favorable conditions. Sweden and Switzerland reported the best health conditions aggregated across all three domains. Conversely, Estonia, Hungary, and Turkey reported comparatively poorer health across all three domains when compared with other Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development countries. Conclusions: We suggested that mental health policy should be further strengthened in cases of Korea and Japan. In case of the Eastern Bloc countries, health policies should be established focusing on health equity for effective improvement of indicators.

AbstractCommon historical narratives of Finnish European policy emphasise the sudden and dramatic change of 1991–1995, when Finland, as a reaction to the collapse of the Soviet Union, rejected its previously cautious approach and wholeheartedly embraced the goal of joining a unified Europe. This article, however, shows that, already in the mid-1980s, the Finnish political and economic elites questioned the country's position in the Cold War order and took bold steps in order to forge closer relations with Western Europe. A key event was the struggle for membership in Eureka, a novel European project designed to enhance cooperation in high technology.

The paper presents the fi ndings of the research carried out in the framework of pedagogical regional studies and devoted to the analysis of major directions of the reforms in Finnish school education system. Its current state and the trends of its evolution are seen through the prism of historical, sociopolitical, economic and cultural development of the country. The main pedagogical concepts underlying the latest educational reforms are interpreted on the base of original periodization. The authors reveal the ideological foundations of Finnish school defi ning humanization of education as the key factor for its progress. It is embodied in pupil’s self-esteem, his right to self-determination, the fullest development of abilities and fulfi llment of educational needs; in the recognition of pupil as a supreme value, in giving the highest priority to his inner world, in the actualization of his essential powers and creativeness; in the creating optimal conditions for the demonstration of abilities, needs and possibilities as well as for fi nding harmony between the self and the outside world. Through the analysis of the general trends in the development of school in a rapidly changing economic and sociopolitical situation, the authors substantiate the imperative of the current reforms of Finnish school — the conformity to the requirements of modern society provided that cultural and humanitarian traditions of education are preserved. The reference includes new literary sources in foreign languages which has not been presented in scientifi c works on comparative education.

Aims: This study aimed to identify applied definitions and measurements of economic poverty and to explore the proportions and characteristics of children and adolescents living in economic poverty in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden during the last decade and to compare various statistics between the Nordic countries. Methods: Official data from central national authorities on statistics, national reports and European Union Statistics of income and living conditions data were collected and analysed during 2015–2016. Results: The proportion of Nordic children living in economic poverty in 2014 ranged from 9.4% in Norway to 18.5% in Sweden. Compared with the European Union average, from 2004 to 2014 Nordic families with dependent children experienced fewer difficulties in making their money last, even though Icelandic families reported considerable difficulties. The characteristics of children living in economic poverty proved to be similar in the five countries and were related to their parents’ level of education and employment, single-parent households and – in Denmark, Norway and Sweden – to immigrant background. In Finland, poverty among children was linked in particular to low income in employed households. Conclusions:This study showed that economic poverty among Nordic families with dependent children has increased during the latest decade, but it also showed that poverty rates are not necessarily connected to families’ ability to make their money last. Therefore additional studies are needed to explore existing policies and political commitments in the Nordic countries to compensate families with dependent children living in poverty.

The flute players who in 404 B.C. celebrated the demolition of the Athenian walls with a hymn of joy for the liberation of Greece were thought to be hailing the dawn of a new era. It was an era in which Athens herself could participate, for even in defeat she had been spared the worst fate: her citizen population had not been butchered or enslaved; her land was not divided among alien colonists. Nevertheless the future which she faced was expected to be hard, in accordance with her humbled status. Her treasure was spent, her empire at an end; her losses in manpower had been terrible; the farming land which had traditionally been the economic basis of her existence, had been deliberately and extensively damaged. Thucydides in retrospect described the war as the most destructive in history: and Athens had ended as the loser. No wonder that historians have regarded the Peloponnesian War as a turning point of European history; and many have terminated their studies at this point, as if to divert their eyes from the tragic sight of Athens' decline into a new era of poverty and humiliation.