Diseases have no borders. A disease anywhere in the world may become a health threat everywhere. It takes less than 36 hours for an outbreak to spread from a remote village to any major city in the world, therefore, the most effective – and cost effective – way to protect people from such health threats i.e measles, cholera and COVID-19 is to stop them before they spread to others and cross borders. Here comes the role of public health surveillance. Public health surveillance is the continuous, systematic collection, analysis and interpretation of health-related data. An effective disease surveillance system is essential to detecting disease outbreaks quickly before they spread, cost lives and become difficult to control. Digital technologies can improve the ability to both detect and respond to disease outbreaks by sharing data swiftly thus helping us to understand how and where diseases are spreading. This information is crucial for deciding what health policies and strategies to make and follow. Significance of this research is not limited to one country but it has global health dimensions. It can help to address the critical issue of global health security by evaluating the impact of digital technologies on public health surveillance. Low and middle income countries (LMICs) including Pakistan have fragile health systems therefore the risk of spreading diseases, even beyond their borders, is high. Disease surveillance system in Pakistan has largely been outdated and paper based, frequently leading to delayed detection of measles, cholera and other communicable disease outbreaks. In 2017, Ministry of Health Pakistan, with support of World Health Organization (WHO), launched Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response (IDSR) system which uses electronic health information system (District Health Information System – DHIS-2) as a platform for rapid and near real time reporting for selected diseases. From 2017 to 2022, the new system was implemented in 52 districts of the country while remaining 104 districts are still using paper based system. The dual existence of different reporting systems presents a unique opportunity for a comparative analysis, allowing for insights into the effectiveness of the digital transition. As a doctoral researcher, I will conduct an evaluation to address the existing knowledge gap regarding the effectiveness of transitioning from traditional paper-based disease data reporting systems to new digital systems. Specifically, my research will focus on evaluating the impact of Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response (IDSR) and District Health Information System 2 (DHIS-2) initiatives in Pakistan. This evaluation aims to assess the effectiveness of new electronic infectious disease surveillance system in enhancing the country's health system capabilities. I aim to conduct a comparative analysis of the performance between DHIS-2, an electronic system, and traditional paper-based systems through cross sectional study, evaluate the effectiveness of the Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response (IDSR) framework and the District Health Information System 2 (DHIS-2) through a comprehensive assessment and explore the determinants influencing the adoption of electronic surveillance systems through a mix method study. The local research infrastructure is well-established, with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Pakistan under Ministry of Health serving as a central data hub for disease surveillance and public health information. The presence of this infrastructure is vital for the success of the research project, as it provides access to comprehensive and up-to-date data on disease surveillance, outbreaks, and response efforts across Pakistan. The NIH website hosts weekly epidemiological IDSR reports. These reports serve as a rich source of information, forming the foundation for the research and ensuring the reliability and relevance of the data collected. Furthermore, the International Doctoral Programme in Epidemiology and Public Health at Tampere University, drawing on its expertise and research strength, will help to improve the quality and depth of the research findings. Together, these elements of the research infrastructure will contribute to the robustness of the study. The research project is feasible as IDSR implementation, led by Ministry of Health Pakistan, is already in progress with support of WHO. I have five years of practical experience, as a public health expert, in disease surveillance, monitoring and evaluation with World Health Organization, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and UK Health Security Agency. My previous role as the Training Coordinator in the Integrated Disease Surveillance and Response (IDSR) project has been very relevant. Research will be implemented in phased manner starting from kick off meetings, ethical approvals to data collection, data analysis, reporting and dissemination and finalization and publications. The results of this study may help to improve global health security by examining how well digital health information systems detect and respond to diseases quickly. In Pakistan, the findings might help strengthen the healthcare system, providing useful guidance to policy makers and contributing to practical strategies for better public health monitoring. My research is in line with the European Union's recent Global Health Strategy, which is a cornerstone of the EU's external policy. Addressing and mitigating health threats, particularly pandemics, is highlighted as a key priority within this strategy. Through my research, I aim to contribute to this overarching goal by examining the effectiveness of infectious disease surveillance systems, ultimately working towards a healthier and more resilient global community.

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Decision Support for the Supply of Ecosystem Services under Global Change (DecisionES) is a Marie Curie Horizon 2020 - Research and Innovation Framework Programme (2021-2025). Pressures on forest ecosystems are very likely to increase as a consequence of socioeconomic and demographic trends. A growing population will demand more products (e.g., wood) to be extracted from forest ecosystems. At the same time, these harvesting activities and their interactions with global change drivers will impact the sustainability of the supply of a wider range of non-provisioning services (e.g., wildfire protection, water, and biodiversity). The integrity of ecosystems must be safeguarded when developing harvesting activities, and yet this is further complicated by the occurrence of natural disturbances such as wildfires and droughts, etc. New decision support approaches are needed that can cope with this challenge. European and the American experiences with the development and application of decision support approaches for the provision of ecosystem services (ESs), offer a solid base for continued improvement in the efficiency and effectiveness of forest management in the context of global change (e.g., responding to changes in demographics, socioeconomics, and climatic conditions). This provided the rationale for a project that will help to strengthen research collaboration through active networking and staff exchange between 8 European organizations and 10 American organizations that are leaders in these fields. This project will build from the top-level multidisciplinary expertise (wildfire ecology and management, wildfire behaviour simulation, hydrology, process-based modelling, biodiversity, wildlife management, ecology, water services, operations research, management science, stakeholder engagement, forest ecosystem management planning methods, supply chain management methods and decision support systems) in these organizations to address the integration of operational, tactical and strategic forest ecosystem management planning levels and potentiate the supply of ecosystem services at various spatial and temporal scales.

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Jordi García-Gozalo

The study on science, technology and innovation (STI) collaboration between Finland and Africa was compiled with three aims: (i)To explore the different strategies that exist in the Finnish-African STI landscape (ii)To review the current context and landscape of Finnish-Africa STI cooperation (iii) To explore if the drive for private sector engagement has affected Finnish-African STI collaboration. The study was implemented under the “Developing Finnish Science, Technology and Innovation Cooperation between Europe, Africa, Asia and the Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) Region” (FinCEAL) initiative coordinated by the University Partnership for Development (UniPID).

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This study explores inequalities in access to housing. In the light of the premise "Leave no one behind", the case study on occupations and struggle against evictions in social housing estates of Lisbon metropolitan area (LMA) draws the attention to the groups of population that are excluded from access to housing. In particular, gendered and racialised aspects of housing exclusions are examined. In addition, the role of civil society in contesting housing exclusion is analysed.

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Saila-Maria Saaristo

The Myanmar Energy and Environment Education (MEEE) project, coordinated by the Finland Futures Research Centre, directly contributes to the development of sustainable and inclusive socio-economic growth in Myanmar by enhancing capacities of Myanmar partner institutions to provide quality education on environment and sustainable energy for growing societal and energy sector development needs. Myanmar is currently in a critical time in its energy transition. To be able to attract investors in the renewable energy sector and to re-investigate the government’s RE targets, enhancing access to energy and electrification, as well as reducing CO2 emissions and environmental pollution from fossil fuels there is a dire need for nationally grounded energy expertise.

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Mika Korkeakoski, Noora Vähäkari, Osku Haapasaari, Jyrki Luukkanen

The CRECE project, coordinated by the Finland Futures Research Centre, supports Cuba in the provision of regionally relevant multidisciplinary education in sustainable energy engineering and renewable energy development. This is done in order to ensure that Cuban higher education institutions (HEIs) are better equipped and able to provide high-quality experts for the ever-growing societal and energy sector development needs. The Cuban energy sector is undergoing a state-led transformation. So far, this “Energy Revolution” has improved energy efficiency but harnessing renewable energy (RE) resources is still lagging far behind. In order to attract investors, meet the government's RE targets, and reduce CO2 emissions and environmental pollution from fossil fuels, Cuba needs national expertise and experts in RE development. CRECE answers this call by training skilled experts and enabling cross-sectoral and regional cooperation possibilities. Cuban partners will be better equipped to conduct international-level energy related research and provide sustainable energy experts to the growing labour market needs.

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Noora Vähäkari, Mika Korkeakoski, Osku Haapasaari, Jyrki Luukkanen

Antibiotics have made it possible for people to live longer, healthier lives. Antimicrobial resistance, however, is an increasing problem, especially in low-resource settings. This project will employ a range of methods from microbiology, clinical medicine and sociology to produce new knowledge about how AMR genes spread especially in poor West African regions, in areas where local capacity to address AMR is lagging behind, and identify ways to curb the spread of AMR. This knowledge can be utilized in national and international health policy and medical research.

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Isidore Bonkoungou, Victorien Dougnon, Kaisa Haukka, Bourema Kouriba, Salla Sariola, Marko Virta

Mainstreaming Populism in the 21st Century is a research consortium funded by the Academy of Finland. It is based on collaboration between media and communication studies, as well as political science and political theory researchers at the universities of Helsinki, Jyväskylä and Turku. The research consortium explores different forms of mainstreaming of populism in Europe and the Americas in the 21st century. The project will analyse how populist parties have become part of the mainstream, how other parties have coloured their policies increasingly with a populist streak and how different mainstreaming forms of populism have transformed public debate, the media and democracy in various polities. One of the country case studies in the project focuses on Venezuela. This sub project is conducted by Salojärvi.

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LEAP4FNSSA is a Coordination and Support Action (CSA) whose main objective is to provide a tool for European and African institutions to engage in a Sustainable Partnership Platform for research and innovation on Food and Nutrition Security, and Sustainable Agriculture (FNSSA).

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Melissa Plath

The FinCEAL Plus BRIDGES project (2019-2020) supports the development of partnerships and collaborative research activities between the Finnish research community and those in Africa, Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). In addition, the project facilitates connections with European partners, whenever the cooperation also includes partners from the target regions. The project is an extension of the FinCEAL (2013-2014), FinCEAL Plus (2015-2016) and FinCEAL Plus Continuation initiatives, all financed by the Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture. Previously, the focus of FinCEAL has been on supporting research collaboration in the thematic areas determined by the EU's bi-regional science, technology and innovation (STI) policy dialogues with Africa, Asia and LAC. FinCEAL BRIDGES will continue to contribute towards strengthening bi-regional cooperation, while expanding the thematic focus to the Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, particularly Global Partnerships for Sustainable Development (Goal 17). On a national level, BRIDGES also supports the International Strategy for Higher Education and Research 2017-2025. The Ministry has mandated the UniPID network to coordinate the initiative.

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Jarkko Mutanen, Melissa Plath, Quivine Ndomo