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Finnish mobility scheme endorses international collaboration

Posted on 30 July 2014

marieThe Historical Archives of the European Union has since June had a Nordic visitor: the Communications Manager of the National Archives of Finland, Mrs. Marie Pelkonen. The six-month-visit is part of an exchange scheme of Finnish government officials, aimed at opening up international opportunities and collaboration to civil servants.

Mrs. Pelkonen is a communications specialist with over fifteen years of experience in the field. Her CV includes such employers as The National Board of Customs, The Ministry of Finance and Tekes, The Finnish Funding Agency for Innovation, where she worked closely with ERA-NET and FP7 related issues.

“The incentive for contacting the HAEU in particular, came from our Director General at the National Archives, Jussi Nuorteva, who recognises the added value of employee exchange and has an extensive knowledge of the EU as well as a keen interest in international cooperation. For me, the possibility to work in such an inspiring, international environment like the Historical Archives in Florence was also very exciting,” says Mrs. Pelkonen.

Although moving a family of four to a new country for a relatively short period of time turned out to be quite a laborious endeavour, it has already proven to be a worthwhile decision, says Mrs. Pelkonen.

“This is a fantastic opportunity for me, both professionally and personally. I am very grateful to be able to learn from such prominent professionals as my colleagues and Director Schlenker here at the Villa Salviati. The Historical Archives has welcomed me with open arms and I hope to be able to return the favour by sharing my knowledge and experience of communications obtained in Finland.”

Even though the institutions differ in scale, the challenges faced are similar:  How to promote collections for research, how to make the documents easily accessible to users, how to survive in the current economic climate?

According to Mrs. Pelkonen, the research infrastructures need to reach out to the research community and emphasize that in-depth study requires primary sources available in such Institutions as the HAEU and the National Archives of Finland. The gap between the general public and the Archives should also be narrowed. To achieve this, the Archives’ public visibility must be enhanced.

“The digitalized environment builds consumer expectations, which we must take over promptly. We need to build a bridge from the past to the future, from paper to bits, and affirm our legitimacy with new audiences as well, through contemporary channels. We must follow the visual flow of the times, and present our treasures for the world to marvel at in a user-friendly manner,” Marie Pelkonen concludes.

The Finnish government officials’ exchange scheme facilitates the international mobility and professional development of civil servants. The programme is hosted by CIMO, the Centre for International Mobility, and funded by the Ministry of Finance of Finland.

Each participant contacts their institute of choice abroad, in their own administrative field, and negotiates a programme for the exchange period. During the exchange term, the participants are on leave of absence and continue to receive normal salary from their home institution. CIMO supports individual civil servants with a grant on secondments, to cover some of the travel and housing costs.

National Archives Service of Finland

CIMO

The Official Travel SIte of Finland

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