Speakers for the 2025 August Arrival Orientation

Ms. Charlotta Collén is a director, policy planner and strategic thinker with experience in science policy/diplomacy, higher education, international affair, diplomacy, and the security and defence domain. She has a strong background in analyzing global trends with strategic significance to state affairs, science, research, development, and innovation. 

Collén is currently Director for the Office for Research, International Affairs and Corporate Connections at, Hanken School of Economics in Helsinki, Finland. Before joining Hanken, she served as the Strategy Director at the University of Oulu, Finland, heading the Unit for Strategy and Science policy, the Offices of the Rectorate. Collén has previously worked as a Senior Advisor in the Defence Policy Department of the Ministry of Defence (MoD) of Finland. Before joining the MoD, Collén worked as a Special Advisor for Policy Planning and Research at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland. Collén holds a Licentiate and Master’s degree in Social Sciences from the Åbo Akademi University in Turku, Finland.

Ilkka Haavisto is Research Manager at Finnish Business and Policy Forum EVA. He has worked with a wide range of economic and social issues including public sector reform, taxation, labour market and the EU. He graduated from Åbo Akademi University (economics and philosophy) in 2000.

Dr. Heikkinen has been with the Ministry of Education and Culture in Finland since 2005. Her tasks consist of national and international science policy responsibilities. An essential part of her work takes place in national and multinational networks. Dr. Heikkinen is heading the Science Policy Division of the Department of Higher Education and Science Policy.

Birger Holm currently works as a Vice Principal, History and Civics Teacher at Haukilahti School in Espoo. He is the U.S. State Department’s Voluntary Visitor Program alumnus and has promoted interdisciplinary studies in Finland by inspiring English teachers to introduce more U.S. History content in English classes.

Reetta Härönoja is currently the Director of the Unit for North America at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland. She has served in the Ministry for Foreign Affairs since 2005 and has extensive experience in matters related to the European Union and Transatlantic Relations. She has been based for example in Brussels, Washington, D.C., and as an exchange diplomat in Tallinn. Before joining the Foreign Service, she worked in the Parliament of Finland and in the Permanent Representation of the Parliament of Finland in Brussels. She has a Master’s Degree in Political Science, and speaks English, Swedish, French, German and Estonian.

Teemu Kokko Ph.D. (Econ.) and adjunct professor is the President at Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences in Helsinki, Finland. During his career he has lived and worked abroad a total of twelve years (Moscow, Budapest, Oslo and Stockholm) and he is deeply involved in numerous international activities. Teemu is an ad hoc columnist for two Finnish hospitality industry magazines.

Emma Mulhern is a Research Scientist on the Intelligent Supply Chains and Logistics team at the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland. Her research interests involve sustainability, emissions reduction and resilience in supply chains. She was a Fulbright-LUT University Graduate Award Grantee in 2021-22 and completed her master's degree in supply management and sustainable business at LUT in 2023. 

Anna-Maria Peltomäki is a University Teacher of Finnish as the Second National Language at the University of Helsinki. She is also a co-author of Finnish as a Second and Foreign Language textbook series Suomen mestari. 

Anna-Maria was a Fulbright Foreign Language and Culture Teaching Assistant at the Department of Scandinavian Studies at the University of Washington, Seattle, during 2011-2012 and later also worked there as the Visiting Lecturer of Finnish Language and Culture in 2021-2023.