Fifth American Arctic Connection Internship Comes to a Close

Having arrived in February, Mia has witnessed the shift from winter to spring to summer in the Arctic and has been a part of many events and projects at UArctic, the University of Lapland, and the US Embassy Finland.

As the informal ambassador from the US to Finnish Lapland, Mia had the chance to welcome several groups of Americans to Rovaniemi, including students from Southeastern Missouri State University on a Magellan Exchange, students and professionals from Dartmouth College, and students from George Washington University completing their capstone project in Rovaniemi.

Additionally, Mia facilitated a visit from her former professors at the University of Washington (UW), from which she graduated with her bachelor’s degree in 2023. The highlight of this visit from two of UW’s Arctic Studies scholars, Jason Young and Elena Campbell was a panel discussion focused on US-Finnish academic relationships in the current global climate, including challenges and opportunities for collaboration. Jason and Elena also had a wide array of meeting while they were in Rovaniemi, including university leadership and scholars from many departments across the University of Lapland. As a result of this visit, both universities intend to sign a Memorandum of Understanding for continued collaboration and plan to establish an Arctic Field School where students from UW and the University of Lapland can gain hands-on experience in Arctic affairs in Finnish Lapland.

Mia with Manu the reindeer at the Porokilpailut (Reindeer Races) in Rovaniemi

She also visited Lyseonpuisto lukio in Rovaniemi in order to present about American culture and higher education, and took trips to Helsinki to visit the US Embassy and the Fulbright Finland Foundation office, where she took part in the pre-departure orientation for Finns traveling to the US as well as the Fulbright Alumni Homecoming event that brought together alumni from every decade from the 1970s to now.   

After an incredibly productive and rewarding internship experience, Mia plans to return to Tampere to finish her master’s degree in Peace, Mediation, and Conflict Research at Tampere University. She will also join the Fulbright Finland Foundation’s team as a Program Coordinator in August.

This internship is made possible through a collaboration between the US Embassy in Helsinki, the University of Lapland and the UArctic International Secretariat. 

See also Fifth American Arctic Connection Intern joins the International Secretariat in Rovaniemi