The international researchers from the University's EU doctoral and postdoctoral programmes were welcomed to the city at a reception held at the City Hall at the beginning of November 2024.
November’s city reception celebrated international cooperation and research as well as the 80 Marie Skłodowska-Curie COFUND doctoral and postdoctoral positions created at the University of Turku since 2022 with co-funding from the European Commission, designed to advance the EU’s best practices for research and training. The event was attended by a multidisciplinary group of international PhDs and postdoctoral researchers and staff from the programmes, who were welcomed to the city by Deputy Mayor Elina Rantanen.
In her welcoming speech, Rantanen spoke of the important role of internationalisation in the City of Turku's strategy.
“Turku has always been an international city. Our city is built on energy, intelligence, creativity and innovation. An international mindset helps us better understand future developments. I would like to welcome you all to Turku," said Rantanen.
Kalle-Antti Suominen, Vice Rector responsible for research at the University of Turku, also welcomed the researchers and thanked the city for organising the event.
“The university wants to be increasingly international. I hope that we can work together with the city and other regional actors to help you build your networks in Turku and do your research here," Suominen said.
The event also included welcoming remarks from the programme directors, and continued with free socialising and networking between researchers from different programmes.
The research themes of the University's Marie Skłodowska-Curie COFUND programmes cover a diverse range of international researchers and research topics. The postdoctoral Turku Intersectoral Excellence Scheme (TIES) covers interdisciplinary themes related to human sciences. Based within the University’s Turku Institute for Advanced Studies, TIES is inspired by the globally-renowned Institute for Advanced Studies model for research excellence. This established a pioneering, high quality template that would be adapted by subsequent COFUND schemes at the University.
The postdoctoral Systemic approaches to improve cardiometabolic and brain health during lifespan (SYS-LIFE) programme aims to create breakthroughs in health-related research. The doctoral Solutions for Green and Digital Transition (UTU-GreDiT) programme will focus on the green and digital transition. The doctoral Human-Centric Artificial Intelligence for Sustainable Future (HAIF) will focus on Sustainable AI, Human-Centric AI, Safe & Secure AI, and Robust & Scaleable AI.
