University of Turku Confers 12 Honorary Doctors

​The University of Turku organises a Ceremonial Conferment of Doctoral Degrees on 28–30 May, where 12 honorary doctors are conferred alongside with the doctors who have completed their degree in the last two years. Each of University’s seven faculties has chosen one or two persons who will be conferred as honorary doctors.

Of the three-day Ceremonial Conferment of Doctoral Degrees, the most visible part to the public is the academic procession on Friday and it is comprised of the University’s rectors, professors, conferrers, honorary doctors and doctors. The procession leaves from Turku Concert Hall on Friday, 29 May, approximately 3pm, and proceeds down Aninkaistenkatu Street to the Cathedral.

The Faculty of Humanities Honours a Researcher of Romanticism

The Honorary Doctor of the Faculty of Humanities is one of the most esteemed scholars of Romanticism, Emeritus Professor of Philosophy Manfred Frank at the University of Tübingen in Germany. Frank’s research combines the study of the history of philosophy, contemporary philosophy and literature. His collaboration with the Comparative Literature of the University of Turku has been ongoing for years and, for example, Frank has been a partner in co-operation in The Academy of Finland research project Literature and Time in 2010–2013.

Faculty of Education Confers a Seasoned Finnish Researcher and a Supporter of Young Researchers

The Faculty of Education confers two honorary doctors: one of the most significant researchers in the history of Finnish education, Emerita Professor Sirkka Ahonen, and Professor Johann Gruber from the University of Regensburg, who researches learning and how expertise is built.

Even after her long academic career, Emerita Professor Sirkka Ahonen continues her work on developing education. At the moment, she is the leader of the Equality and Parity in Education subgroup of the Future School Committee appointed by Minister of Education Krista Kiuru. She has also worked in close collaboration with the University’s researchers on educational history and policy and been the opponent and preliminary reviewer of several doctoral dissertations.

The research of Professor Johann Gruber involves ethical questions, interactive learning, imaging methods, simulations, social networks and learning in art education. During his career, Gruber has visited several universities and worked at the University of Turku many times. In the last few years, he has especially strived to improve the position of young researchers, for example, by organising international seminars for doctoral candidates.

Vice Rector and a General Are the Honorary Doctors of Turku School of Economics

Turku School of Economics chose as its honorary doctors Vice Rector Jörg Becker from the University of Münster and Chief of Defence, General Jarmo Lindberg.

Professor of Information Systems Science Jörg Becker’s area of responsibility as a vice rector is the strategic planning of the university and quality assurance. He has led the worldwide European Research Center for Information Systems (ERCIS) since its founding in 2004. Straight from the beginning, he thought it was important that Turku School of Economics is part of the Center’s operations and one of its founding members. Professor Becker has visited Turku several times and researchers from Turku have often visited the University of Münster in turn. 

The title of the honorary doctor is conferred to General Jarmo Lindberg for his work as the Deputy Chief of Staff Logistics and Armaments when he led a very significant project of reorganising the Finnish Defence Forces. As a result, the Finnish Defence Forces Logistics Command (ACOS) started its operations at the beginning of the year. In practice, it is on the same level as the Army, Navy and Air Force branches of the Defence Forces. The Defence Forces and the research that is carried out in and for it have many connections to the University of Turku, among others through the Operations & Supply Chain Management Unit.

Pioneer in Paediatrics and Partner in Co-operation in PET Imaging Are the Honorary Doctors of Medicine

The Faculty of Medicine confers Professor of Paediatrics W. Allan Walker from the United States and Professor of Internal Medicine Ele Ferrannini from Italy.

Alan Walker, who works at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital, is one of the most central originators of the basic research and education in paediatric gastroenterology. His research focuses on the immune response of the intestine, the intestinal development of a sick child, and finding out how nutrition promotes the maturation of the most important immune responses of the human body. He has received several international awards and recognitions for his significant research and teaching. In the course of years, Walker has worked in close collaboration with researchers from the University of Turku, which continues to this day.

Professor of Internal Medicine Ele Ferrannini at the University of Pisa Medical School is a pioneer and a central figure in the European research on type 2 diabetes. Co-operation with the University of Turku started in the 90s and Ferrannini, who was excited about the possibilities of PET imaging, encouraged a young Italian doctor to come to Turku to carry out a doctoral degree. After that, researchers from Turku and Pisa studied the significance of the liver and adipose tissue in the onset of diabetes with the help of PET technology. The collaboration is still ongoing.

Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences Confers a Structural Biologist and a Biochemist

The honorary doctors of the Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences are Emeritus Professor of Chemistry of the University of Tokyo, currently Professor at the University of Tsukuba, Makoto Komiyama and Professor Gunter Schneider who works at the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden.

Professor Makoto Komiyana is focused on bio-organic and inorganic chemistry. With the results of his work, the mechanisms of enzyme reactions can be understood better and essential information has been utilised in practical methods. One of Komiyama’s most significant achievements has been to produce chemical tools for the development of new biotechnology. In addition, new gene manipulation techniques have been developed on the basis of Komiyama’s work. 

Professor Gunter Schneider is a widely known German Structual Biologist, whose particular interest lies in canvassing the principles of enzyme functions with protein crystallography. The collaboration between Schneider and the Antibiotic Biosynthesis Enzymes research group at the Department of Biochemistry of the University of Turku has continued for over a decade. The group studies how Streptomyces bacteria that live in the soil can produce complex natural compounds which are used in antibiotics and cancer treatment, among other things. One of their research topics is the molecular basis for the formation of anthracycline molecules, which are used in chemotherapy. Detailed understanding of the topic has made it possible to produce new bioactive compounds with genetic engineering.

Faculty of Law Honours the President of the Supreme Court

President of the Supreme Court Pauliine Koskelo is the honorary Doctor of the Faculty of Law for her merits in the legal society and the whole Finnish society. She has also been a long-term supporter of the operations of the Faculty of Law by participating actively in teaching as well as in postgraduate education and research projects. Koskelo has been one of the most central partners in co-operation for the Faculty and its staff.

Social Sciences Confers a Psychologist and an Expert in International Politics

The honorary doctors of the Faculty of Social Sciences are Emeritus Professor Marinus Voeten and Professor Ole Wæver.

Emeritus Professor Marinus Voeten has significantly contributed to methodological knowledge in psychology, especially in statistical multilevel modelling. He has published several scientific articles in co-operation with researchers from the University of Turku, with topics such as bullying, early childhood development and traffic psychology. For the last 15 years, he has been working long periods at the Psychology Unit of the University of Turku each year conducting research.

Professor Ole Wæver from the University of Copenhagen is one of the leading researchers of international politics and he is known especially for his security theory, which has been the most popular method in theses on international relations during the last two decades. His collaboration with the University has included, for example, reviewing dissertations.

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Text: Erja Hyytiäinen
Photo: Hanna Oksanen
Translation: Mari Ratia