Last modified 15.3.2011 at 13:21

UArctic Ezine starts for the very first time in the world

Text: Anni Jyrinki Photo: Pekka Kallasaari

Nine international students will arrive in Oulu in the beginning of February and their unforeseen job is to create the first University of the Arctic Ezine.

Inghild Eriksen, Marielle Eriksen, Niklas Wildhagen, Erik Lieungh, Irina Azarkina, Olga Egel, Petr Petrov, Solveig Olsen and Mona Byrkjedal are getting used to the Finnish winter.

Becoming an exchange student doesn’t necessary mean just studying at a school and taking part in lectures. Cooperation network between northern universities and colleges called the University of the Arctic. UArctic gives students a chance to show what they can do in practice.

In the beginning of February 2009 starts the very first UArctic Ezine. This Ezine will be made by nine students from Slovakia, Norway and Russia. They arrive in Oulu and will stay here for a couple of weeks. During that time they will write articles to the Ezine. Articles are going to deal with issues under the theme Northern countries.

One of these young journalists is Solveig Strand Olsen from Norway. She comes from Brønnøysund and studies journalism for the first year.

– Also five other students from my school are coming to Oulu, Solveig tells.

– We are going to work as journalists and publish our stories in an e-paper, she continues about their plans.

Solveig hasn’t visited Finland before. She knows only some things about it beforehand.

– I don't know much about the country. I know about Nokia, ski jumpers, lakes, Helsinki and Moomins.

– I hope I will learn a lot about being a journalist, writing in English and get to know new people. And I hope to go skiing, Solveig lists here the ideas for her trip to Oulu.

What is this UArctic?

The University of the Arctic is a cooperation network of universities, colleges and other organisations committed to higher education and research in the North.

UArctic was founded in 1997. Nowadays it covers six countries and dozens of universities and colleges. Institutions from Finland, Sweden, Norway, Russia, Canada and USA (Alaska) are members of this network. From Oulu both the Oulu University of Applied Sciences and the University of Oulu are members.

UArctic offers great exchange possibilities to students and cooperation between schools and teachers in many different subject area.

Now it is the first time when journalism students are going to do an ezine. UArctic’s plan is that this sort of activity will continue annually in the future. Next year in some other country than Finland.

– In the Ezine we are going to write stories about how it is like to live in an arctic region, Solveig from Norway explains.

Solveig and her fellow students want to take part in this UArctic network because they want to learn new things, make connections, experience another country and become better journalists.