The Finnish Cultural Foundation awarded €1 million for science education initiatives that are aimed at children and young people and that support basic education. In the coming years, the grants will be used to organise science events, workshops and distance learning programmes, allowing children and young people to explore different branches of science, meet scientists and carry out scientific research. Applications for the Discover Science grants were welcomed in January during the application round of the Finnish Cultural Foundation’s regional funds.

The disciplines represented include educational and social sciences, history, archaeology, futures studies, philosophy, natural sciences, humanities, technology, mathematics and sports science. Discover Science projects are organised in almost every region of Finland, making science education accessible to children and youth across the country. They also include projects that offer distance learning, aiming to reach even more children and young people nationwide.

The Discover Science grant aims to spark the curiosity of school-aged children and youth to engage with science. “We also want to help children and young people develop the skills to acquire, process and evaluate new information. Discover Science projects provide them with opportunities to follow science and keep up with scientific developments in an age-appropriate way,” says Päivikki Eskelinen-Rönkä, Senior Advisor at the Finnish Cultural Foundation.

The foundation awarded a total of 16 Discover Science grants. One of them went to the joint project of the Lastu School of Architecture and Environmental Culture and Savonia University of Applied Sciences, to be implemented in schools in the rural areas of North Savo. The Oivaltajat project combines natural sciences, the arts and environmental education, giving pupils the opportunity to explore the biodiversity around their school environment in a scientific and creative way. The participants will learn about biodiversity, for example, through the study of ecosystems, microscopy and water quality analysis. The results and findings will be expressed through art in various forms such as scale models, digital animations and dance choreographies for robots.

In a society where knowledge and skills are increasingly fragmented, we need Renaissance people who not only understand a specific branch of science but also have skills in the arts and crafts. The University of Turku received a grant for the Future Renaissance project that involves organising multidisciplinary scientific and gastronomic food clubs, with food providing the learning opportunities. Food is about nutrition and health, but also about economics, technology, history, culture and psychology. By combining natural sciences and the humanities with children’s science education, it is possible to provide a multidisciplinary learning experience that promotes creativity and critical thinking. 

The Innokas Network’s project, Exploring AI, aims to introduce children and young people to the world of artificial intelligence, while highlighting children’s participation and the importance of children’s rights in the development and use of digital technologies. AI will be examined as a tool, a subject of study and a social phenomenon. The activities of the Innokas Network are coordinated by the University of Helsinki’s Faculty of Educational Sciences.

All Discover Science projects 2025 (in Finnish)

Awarded grants 16, total on €1 003 000.

• Alajärven kaupunki Tiede-etsivät-hankkeen toteuttamiseen Alajärven, Evijärven, Lappajärven ja Vimpelin alakouluissa
• 55 000
• Arkkitehtuuri- ja ympäristökulttuurikoulu Lastu ry OIVALTAJAT-hankkeen toteuttamiseen Pohjois-Savon maaseutualueiden kouluissa 
• 90 000
• Etelä-Karjalan kesäyliopisto Oy Aikahyppy-tapahtuman järjestämiseen Parikkalassa, Ruokolahdella, Luumäellä ja Lappeenrannassa
• 30 000
• Helsingin yliopisto Pöllö-akatemia, monitieteisten etätyöpajojen toteuttamiseen
• 40 000
• Helsingin yliopisto Innostu tutkimaan -etäiltapäiväkerhojen järjestämiseen, maakuntarahastojen haussa Tiede tutuksi -apurahana      
• 60 000
• Helsingin yliopisto, Innokas-verkosto Tutkitaan tekoälyä -hankkeen pilotointiin Turussa, Oulussa, Lappeenrannassa, Vaasassa ja Helsingissä            
• 80 000
• Itä-Suomen yliopisto STEAM-koulutuksen ja -työpajojen toteuttamiseen Pohjois-Karjalan, Etelä-Karjalan ja Etelä-Savon alakouluissa    
• 90 000
• Jyväskylän kesäyliopistoyhdistys ry kaupunkiympäristöä monitieteisesti tutkivien tiedetyöpajojen järjestämiseen ja opetusmateriaalien tuottamiseen
• 58 000
• Jyväskylän yliopisto Utopian arkkitehdit -filosofiatyöpajojen toteuttamiseen Keski-Suomessa                  
• 65 000
• Kansanvalistusseura sr kasvatus- ja yhteiskuntatieteiden tiedetyöpajojen valmistamiseen ja toteuttamiseen kouluissa
• 45 000
• Lapin yliopisto kestävyysmurrosteemaisen kilpailu- ja tiedetapahtuman järjestämiseen Lapin alueen 3.–9.-luokkalaisille                            
• 90 000
• Satakunnan ammattikorkeakoulu Tiedekylä-toiminnan järjestämiseen Satakunnan kouluissa
• 30 000
• Sodan ja rauhan keskus Muisti Oy Mennyt ja manipuloitu, historialliset kuvat ja nykyajan mediakriittisyys -hankkeeseen kuuden maakunnan 8.–9.-luokkalaisille
• 65 000
• Tampereen yliopisto Lasten ja nuorten vertaishistoria tutuksi -hankkeen etä- ja lähityöpajojen toteuttamiseen
• 90 000
• Turun yliopisto Tulevaisuuden Renessanssi – tieteellisgastronomisten ruokaklubien järjestämiseen 7–12-vuotiaille Varsinais-Suomessa ja Etelä-Pohjanmaalla
• 70 000Yhteiskunnallisen ja kulttuurisen eläintutkimuksen seura ry Elonkirjon bussikiertueeseen Etelä-Pohjanmaan, Pohjois-Savon ja Kainuun kouluissa
• 45 000

The aim of the Translating World Literature into Finnish – A Grant for Publishers is to bring world literature into the hands of Finnish readers, especially books written in languages that are rarely translated into Finnish.

The range of source languages within the scheme is expanding. In the coming years, Finns will be able to read books translated from languages such as Chinese, Hungarian and Japanese.

This goal is already well underway, with 24 books that have been translated into Finnish from 13 different source languages having been published so far. The Translating World Literature into Finnish grant has been available since 2022. Over ten years, the Finnish Cultural Foundation will award grants totalling €1 million for the translation of contemporary fiction.

The most recent books published include Tuulia Tipa’s translation of Daniel Kehlmann’s German novel Lichtspiel (The Director) and Tuukka Tuomasjukka’s translation of Moldovan Nicoleta Esinencu’s play Simfonia progresului (Symphony of Progress).

Eleven new books on the way

The grants awarded after the last round of applications will bring eleven new books to Finnish readers, including two Japanese modern classics. Fumiko Hayashi is considered a key figure in the development of contemporary Japanese literature. She rose to fame with her novel Hōrōki (Diary of a Vagabond). Hayashi’s works often deal with the themes of women’s independence, social inequality and the realism of everyday life. The book will be published by Reiwa Suomi Japani Oy and translated by Antti Valkama. The partly autobiographical Kamen no Kokuhaku (Confessions of a Mask) is Yukio Mishima’s breakthrough work. It is a novel about a homosexual man who is forced to hide his true nature because of the demands of society. The book will be published by Sammakko and translated by Raisa Porrasmaa.

The publishing house Punainen Silakka also received a grant for the translation of Hong Kong-based Chan Ho-kein’s detective novel 13.67 (The Borrowed). The book is being translated from Chinese to Finnish by Rauno Sainio.The Finnish-Hungarian Society (Suomi-Unkari Seura) received a grant for the translation and publication of short stories published in Hungary in recent years. There will be 20 translators working on this collection of short stories, ranging from those with many book translations under their belt and to those who are still making a name for themselves. The grant was awarded as a Kopiosto grant, named after the donor, the copyright organisation Kopiosto, from its national funds.

Recipients of Translating World Literature into Finnish – A Grant for Publishers in 2025

The name of the translator is given if known at the time of application. (Text is in Finnish.)

• Gummerus Kustannus Oy ukrainalaisen Sofija Andruhovytšin Amadoka-romaanin ensimmäisen osan kääntämiseen. Suomentaja Riku Toivola.
• Kirjallisuus- ja kulttuuriyhdistys Särö ry puolalaisen Malgorzata Lebdan romaanin Lakome kääntämiseen ja julkaisemiseen. Suomentaja Tapani Kärkkäinen.
• Kustannusosakeyhtiö Kairaamo Oy romanialaisen Tatiana Tibuleacin romaanin Vara in Care Mama a Avut Ochii Verzi julkaisemiseen ja näkyvyyden edistämiseen. Suomentaja Tuukka Tuomasjukka.
• Kustannusosakeyhtiö Sammakko japanilaisen Yukio Mishiman romaanin Kamen no Kokuhaku (Erään naamion tunnustuksia) kääntämiseen ja julkaisemiseen. Suomentaja Raisa Porrasmaa.  
• Lector Kustannus Oy virolaisen Karl Ristikivin 1400-luvulle sijoittuvan historiallisen romaanin Nõiduse õpilane (Noituuden oppilas) kääntämiseen ja julkaisemiseen. Suomentaja Antti Salo.
• Osuuskunta Kirjasin osk (Kustannusliike Parkko) ranskalaisen Paul Eluardin Tuskan pääkaupunki -runokokoelman suomentamiseen ja julkaisemiseen.
• Osuuskunta Kirjasin osk (Kustannusliike Parkko) meksikolaisen Octavio Pazin Salamanteri-kokoelman suomentamiseen ja julkaisemiseen.
• Reiwa Suomi Japani Oy japanilaisen Fumiko Hayashin pääteoksen Hōrōki (Kulkuripäiväkirja) kääntämiseen ja julkaisemiseen. Suomentaja Antti Valkama.
• Suomi-Unkari Seura – Finn-Magyar Társaság ry unkarilaisten 2020-luvulla julkaistujen 27 novellin kääntämiseen ja julkaisemiseen. Useita suomentajia.
• Tammi (Werner Söderström Osakeyhtiö) ruotsalaisen Elin Anna Labban romaanin Far inte till havet (Älä astu mereen) kääntämiseen ja julkaisemiseen. Suomentaja Outi Menna.
• Well Known Ingredient Oy (Kustantamo Punainen Silakka) hongkonglaisen Chan Ho-kein rikosromaanin 13.67 (Lainattu kaupunki) kääntämiseen ja julkaisemiseen. Suomentaja Rauno Sainio. 

The Finnish Cultural Foundation’s residency programme was launched in its current form in 2017 and has since become one of the largest in Europe, both in terms of the number of residencies and their geographical locations. Many residency programmes aimed at Finnish artists take them to the United States or Europe. The Finnish Cultural Foundation’s programme has taken artists to Asia, South America and Australia, and from 2026 also to Africa.

The locations currently include major international centres for art such as New York, Tokyo and Copenhagen, and a new destination, London. The foundation also has strong northern ties that take artists to places such as Iceland and the Lofoten Islands of Norway. Africa and the Global South are some of the programme’s future focus areas.

In the last few years, the programme has had around ten international residency locations, and 2026 will see the addition of its first location in Africa: the Guest Artists Space (G.A.S.) residency in Lagos and Ijebu Ode, established by artist Yinka Shonibare in 2019. The Acme residency in London with its rich traditions will also be included in the programme in 2026. The call for applications for these locations will open in August 2025.

The G.A.S. residency focuses on materiality, identity, cultural heritage, food security and the ecological crisis. In addition to visual artists, curators as well as artists and writers from other disciplines whose work has geographical or thematic links to the residency are eligible to apply. The other new location, Acme in East London, offers excellent networking opportunities for visual artists as well as individual support, for example, through mentoring.

“I couldn’t be happier with the high quality of the new partners we have attracted to the programme.  London’s importance as a centre for the arts is indisputable, and Lagos is an enthralling and vibrant city for the visual arts. However, location alone is not enough. Residencies must also be able to provide artists with networking opportunities and support, which G.A.S. and Acme both do,” says Development Director Johanna Ruohonen, who runs the Finnish Cultural Foundation’s residency programme.

In the photo, the Acme residency Fire Station building  ©Acme archives

Of last year’s locations, Filba in Buenos Aires is not included in the August round of applications. Some of the locations will continue to change each year, allowing the continuous development of the programme.

Supporting mobility in the arts

The Finnish Cultural Foundation’s residency programme combines top-quality locations with sufficient funding for artistic work during the residency. Longer residencies lasting between 2 to 5 months promote the development of artists’ work, contribute to lasting networks and increase appreciation for cultural diversity. The effects achieved will gradually radiate more widely into Finnish art. The next call for applications for the residency programme will be open in August 2025. A webinar with information about the application process will be held on 19 August 2025. More detailed instructions will be provided on the residency programme’s website in August.

Another type of grant open for applications in August is the mobility grant, which is intended to cover the costs of artists’ and art critics’ international collaboration projects, residencies, exhibition projects or festival participation. Mobility grants are awarded for stays of at least two weeks in the target country.

Read more

Residency alumni

Read an article about Panos Balomenos’ experiences at experiences at a residency offered by Triangle in New York.

 

New memories of New York's past

A new initiative of the Finnish Cultural Foundation, the Mirjam Helin Academy, will start in August 2025. The academy aims to provide training for ambitious young singers. The selected students will study topics including performance, programme design, vocal technique, and many related skills required in the music industry, according to a personal study plan. The Finnish Cultural Foundation will cover all the students’ expenses. 

The first singers to take part in the academy have now been selected: Iris Candelaria, Martin Iivarinen, Emma Karsten, Gabriel Kivivuori Sereno, Johannes Pessi, Tuomas Pääkkönen and Marjaana Ritanen.

Two young singers still in school, Faraja Mwamalumbili and Matvei Palola, will participate in a preparatory junior programme.

Applications were welcomed from talented students of classical voice and young professionals in the field in early 2025. The academy did not want to restrict applications too much, for instance by imposing an age limit, as it hoped to include singers from all backgrounds and regions in Finland.

“These ideas were realised in a wonderful way. The number of applicants exceeded our expectations, and the selected singers come from all over Finland”, says Päivi Loponen-Kyrönseppä, who is in charge of the programme at the Finnish Cultural Foundation.

In total, 144 applications were received, and 26 singers participated in the live auditions. The jury consisted of Rosemary Joshua, soprano and director of the Dutch National Opera Studio, Alessandro Misciasci, pianist and choral conductor, Luca Pisaroni, bass-baritone, and Kari Heiskanen, director.

The teachers at the Mirjam Helin Academy will be recruited from the very top of the music profession, and they include opera singers, conductors, directors, musical experts and professionals. The teachers confirmed so far are opera singers Camilla Nylund, Luca Pisaroni and Linda Watson, conductor and pianist Audrey Saint-Gil, psychologist Marjukka Laurola and poet and university lecturer Vesa Haapala.

The Mirjam Helin Academy is funded via the Mirjam and Hans Helin donor fund. The aim of the fund is to support the Mirjam Helin Singing Competition and to award grants to artists and initiatives within the classical-music field. Mirjam Helin (1911–2006) made a significant donation to the Finnish Cultural Foundation. She was a renowned singer and much-loved voice pedagogue with a passion for teaching, a profession in which she continued until she was over 80 years of age.

Concerts for the public in connection with weekend sessions and summer courses

In the Mirjam Helin Academy, teaching will be given in intense weekend sessions and at summer courses to be held across Finland, in collaboration with leading Finnish practitioners in the field.

The first teaching period will be on 14-17 August 2025 in Turku. Other locations for the autumn are Joensuu on 12-14 September and Järvenpää on 13-16 November 2025.

There will also be concerts for the public. After the Turku weekend, the singers will perform on the Espa stage in Helsinki on Monday, 18 August 2025 at 15.

Frame and the Finnish Cultural Foundation will organise a study trip in September 2025 to the 36th São Paulo Biennial and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Participants for the trip were selected through an open call directed at contemporary art professionals.

The selected participants are Danai Anagnostou, Producer at Kenno Filmi and Doctoral Researcher at Aalto ELO, Karoliina Korpilahti, Executive Director of the Association of Finnish Sculptors, Anna Perälä, Exhibition Curator from WAM Turku City Art Museum, and Elham Rahmati, Artist, curator, co-founder & co-editor of NO NIIN Magazine. Altogether 51 applications were submitted for the study trip.

At the top: Danai Anagnostou (Photo: Evgenia Bourzoukou) and Karoliina Korpilahti (Photo: Jesse Laitinen). At the bottom: Anna Perälä and Elham Rahmati (Photo: Salamata Mboup).

In addition, professionals who can cover the costs of the trip themselves or through their organisation may also join the programme. 

The applications were assessed by a jury consisting of Juha Huuskonen, CEO of Frame, Johanna Ruohonen, Development Director at the Finnish Cultural Foundation, and Anni Venäläinen, Frame’s Board member and Museum Director. In the assessment, the jury especially considered the benefits of the study trip for the participant’s work or for the organisation they represent.

The study trips aim to familiarize participants with the art scene in the destination countries, visit international contemporary art events, build networks, and identify potential partners. The São Paulo Biennial is the largest contemporary art exhibition in Latin America. In addition to the Biennial, the itinerary includes meetings and visits to local contemporary art organisations.