University of Lapland

About: University of Lapland is a education organization based out in Rovaniemi, Finland. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Arctic & Context (language use). The organization has 665 authors who have published 1870 publications receiving 39129 citations. The organization is also known as: University of Rovaniemi & Lapin yliopisto.

Does It Really Matter? Assessing the Performance Effects of Changes in Leadership and Management Structures in Nordic Higher Education

Abstract: Universities are public organisations, which operate in a highly institutionalised environment. They are heavily dependent on public resources. As such, universities are susceptible to shifts in governance arrangements but are also far from being passive recipients of reform agendas. They face demands from multiple internal constituencies (academics, administrators, students, managers) and from a variety of external stakeholders. This chapter explores the interplay between governance arrangements resulting from policy shifts and university dynamics. It sets the stage for the book, asking the following research questions: (1) what characterises changes in governance regimes in Nordic universities in the last decade and a half, and (2) what effects have these changes had in the evolution of higher education systems? The chapter takes a comparative approach and identifies similarities and differences across the Nordic countries. This chapter serves as a frame of reference for the book and includes a common methods and data section.

Arctic Vegetation Cover: Patterns, Processes and Expected Change

Abstract: The tundra biome is characterized by strong gradients in temperature, precipitation and incoming solar radiation, which can vary significantly due to elevation, aspect and distance from the sea. Tundras and polar deserts exist as a relatively narrow strip of land up to 300 km wide around the margins of the Arctic Ocean. The biome is terrestrially disparate yet biotically united, characterized by floristic impoverishment and reduced productivity as one moves progressively north. Many of the plants and animals currently occupying the Arctic are ancient, even if their configuration is quite recent in geological terms. Initial views of the biome as ‘simple’ due to its relatively low biodiversity and homogenous structure have become more measured in recent decades as scientists now understand the importance of feedbacks and the nature of cyclic yet exceedingly slow processes. Our knowledge of tundra vegetation dynamics has advanced greatly since the 1970s due to the advent of experimental population and community ecology. Disturbance regimes encompass natural and cyclic phenomena, such as fires and insect outbreaks, but also anthropogenic forces like large-scale oil and gas extraction. In recent decades scientific and public attention has focused on the sensitivity of the biome to climate change. Research has shifted from focusing solely on movement of the treeline and the future species distributions, to more holistic treatments of encroachment coupled with in situ increases in trees and shrubs. Reindeer/caribou feature prominently throughout the Arctic and, especially in Eurasia, tundra areas are managed as rangelands. Future models will need to account for both vertebrate and invertebrate herbivory.

Plant shadow morphing as a peripheral display

Abstract: The amount of status and notification information available to people is increasing beyond the capacity of the current primary delivery channel of smartphones. Ambient displays, e.g. embedded in the home or work environment present an alternative channel, suited to less critical information. We created an ambient display by manipulating the natural shadows cast by a house plant to carry information. To explore user perceptions of the shadow display we evaluated it in a focus group (n = 6). Whilst participants saw some potential in the approach, there were concerns about identifying the meaning of the display and the psychological effects of distorting reality. The work highlights the potential for designers to explore the use of functional shadows to carry non-critical information.

China, Great Power Responsibility and Arctic Security

Abstract: Based on the basic premise of the English School theory of International Relations that great powers have a unique responsibility to uphold international peace and security, this chapter examines the ways in which China’s notions of great power responsibility guide its policies in the Arctic. Thereby the chapter seeks to increase our understanding of what kind of a great power China will be and how its rise may shape the discourses, premises and paradigms of international security in the future. Since there seems to be no real risk of a military conflict in the Arctic, and since China’s growing engagement is unlikely to induce such a risk, the chapter will focus on China’s contribution to the most imminent security risk in the region: climate change. The chapter demonstrates that although the Chinese government has started to define climate responsibility as an important attribute of great power responsibility at a global level, China’s Arctic policy does not make reference to this special responsibility even though climate change generally seems to be one of the key drivers of China’s Arctic engagement. Finally, the chapter concludes that because notions of great power responsibility derive from the practices of security politics, it is not very likely that China—or the United States—will assume a strong climate leadership role without a profound normative transformation in the discourses and premises of international security.

How to have a long-lasting multicultural marriage? Introducing the accumulation theory of multicultural romantic relationships

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to anal yze the factors enhancing stability of multicultural marriages in Finland. The main question set for the study was: What factors explain the stability of multicultural marriages described by the spouses themselves? This was further divided into two sub-questions of what phases long-lasting multicultural marriages go through and what the special features describing the stability of multicultural marriages are. This was a qualitative study, in which 11 Finnish spouses’ interviews formed the data. The results describe the phases of a long-lasting multicultural marriage and factors enhancing the stability of a multicultural marriage, based on which the stability of multicultural marriages was further discussed. The possible conflicts and supportive factors can be located at various levels each contributing to the quality of the relationship. The accumulation theory of multicultural relationships is introduced as the conclusion.