How to support minority groups in academia? - Join the discussion at the Kumpula well-being event!

Bulletin 9.1.2024

At the Kumpula well-being event on January 23rd, 2024, members of the campus community will share their experiences on themes related to minority stress and acting as an ally for underrepresented groups in the academic community. The event is a sequel of the “In Kumpula we can manage... or can we” events organized in 2019 and 2022. 

The Kumpula well-being event is organized on World Mental Health Day, October 10, from 12:00 to 16:30 at Physicum. This year’s themes include minority stress and acting as an effective ally of minority groups. In the interviews that can be heard in the Physicum lobby, students and researchers belonging to the Kumpula community tell us in their own words what kind of issues they face in their everyday life as members of, for example, sexual, gender or racialized minority groups. During the interviews, we will also hear in what ways Kumpula students and researchers themselves have tried to support underrepresented groups in their own work and study environment. After the interviews, members of the audience can continue discussing the topics of the interviews in small group discussions in a classroom together with the interviewees. 

We offer coffee to the first hundred participants in the lobby of Physicum. The Kumpula well-being event offers programs in Finnish and English, and everyone who is working and studying on Kumpula campus is welcome to the event. You can participate in the event for the whole time or listen to just one conversation.  

Lappuja, joissa eri kielillä teksti "Rakentamassa turvallista, moninaista ja kannustavaa Kumpulan kampusta".

Programme: 

PUHEITA PHYSICUMIN AULASSA / SPEECHES IN PHYSICUM LOBBY  

  • 12.05–12.20 Becoming an ally, Professor Timo Vesala and associate professor Mirkka Sarparanta discuss how to become an effective ally to your mentees and team members  
  • 12.30–12.45 Studying as an immigrant in Finland, Research Coordinator Laura Säilä interviewing student Lucas Yoni  
  • 12.55–13.10 Supporting women on building confidence in their skills: An ally story, Academy Research Fellow Eleanna Asvestari interviewing Professor Theo Kurtén  
  • 13.20–13.35 Navigating life and traditions, Student Dithara Ariyasinghe and Postdoctoral Researcher Rosa Rantanen discuss seeking middle ground between values from one’s upbringing and living a life true to oneself  
  • 13.45–14.00 Ally as a mediator, Head of Human Resources Hanna Nurmela interviewing Doctoral Researcher Amina Djurabekova  
  • 14.10–14.25 Experiences as a non-binary researcher and immigrant in Finland, Professor Pedro Camargo interviewing Doctoral Researcher Bruno Oliveira Cattelan 
  • 14.35–14.50 “En halua jättää ihmisiä yksin ennakkoluulojen armoille”, varadekaani Hanna Vehkamäki haastattelee HYY:n hallituksen jäsentä Linnéa Partasta  
  • 15.00–15.15 ‘’Accommodations are scaffolding not a cheat’’ experiences with accommodations for ADHD and dyslexia, Study Psychologist Emma Vilppo interviewing Doctoral Researcher Arianne van de Griend  

OPEN DISCUSSIONS ON THE THEMES OF THE SPEECHES IN PHYSICUM D204  

  • 13.00–13.30 Studying as an immigrant in Finland, group discussion with student Lucas Yoni, Research Coordinator Laura Säilä and YTHS psychologist Jaana Murrosvuo  
  • 13.45–14.15 Group discussion with Professor Theo Kurtén, Academy Research Fellow Eleanna Asvestari, Student Dithara Ariyasinghe, Postdoctoral Researcher Rosa Rantanen and Study Psychologist Emma Vilppo  
  • 14.35–15.05 Group discussion with Doctoral Researcher Amina Djurabekova, Head of Human Resources Hanna Nurmela, Doctoral Researcher Bruno Oliveira Cattelan, Professor Pedro Camargo and YTHS psychologist Jaana Murrosvuo  
  • 15.25-15.55 Group discussion with HYY board member Linnéa Partanen, vice-dean Hanna Vehkamäki, Doctoral Researcher Arianne van de Griend and Study Psychologist Emma Vilppo  

FINAL DISCUSSION IN PHYSICUM E204   

  • 16.00–16.30 Final thoughts and discussion about the day 

The Kumpula well-being event is organized by a team that includes Kumpula campus work well-being support staff, study psychologists, and other staff. You can read more about last year's event which focused on the themes of mental health and coping in this Flamma news item. 

Photo: Bea Karlstedt (University of Helsinki)