THE CONSTRUCTION OF A RUSSIAN-FINNISH NUCLEAR POWER PLANTin Pyhäjoki has suffered yet another delay, as It was announced last night that the project would be delayed by a further four years.

The Hanhikivi 1 plant, a project jointly-owned by a consortium of Finnish energy operators and the Russian state energy giant Rosatom, was first approved for construction by the Finnish parliament back in 2010. 

THE FINNISH METEOROLOGICAL INSTITUTE HAS ISSUEDa series of weather warnings over approaching wind storms which are due to hit Western Finland on Tuesday evening.

Meteorologist Joanne Rinne has described the coming wind storm, which is expected to reach hurricane levels of force in some parts of the country, as unlike anything they have seen during their decade-long career.

 International news outletsthis week highlighted how Finnish citizens have adapted well to social distancing, attributing their positive attitude towards isolation to a culture that values personal space. 

The Finn’s natural propensity for solitude, coupled with the country’s low population density and remote location has aided in its fight against COVID-19. 

THE ELECTRIC MOTOR VEHICLE GIANT TESLAhas opened applications for its “2019 winter experience” to celebrate the release of their upcoming Model 3 and Model S cars. The event will allow lucky winners to experience the winter driving capabilities of the new Model 3 and Model S in Finland’s icy north.

In a message on Tesla’s official website, the company announces that an ice track has been purpose-built near the northern city of Kemi. Here competition winners will enjoy an all-expenses-paid trip which involves being driven around the frozen plains by a professional driver. 

THIS WEEK FINLANDintroduced wipe-sweeping proposals to its criminal justice system that would ensure that “sex without consent” and sex with underage minors will always be treated as rape. The ground-breaking proposals, similar to laws introduced in Sweden in 2018, have garnered widespread attention in the global press, particularly in the context of the burgeoning #MeToo women’s movement.

In other news, international media outlets have also begun their coverage of the Finnish general election campaigns.

When asked about racism towards foreigners in Finland, Finns answer in a culturally approved script: “We Finns are not racist”; “If there is racism in Finland it is not as bad as it is in other countries” and; “Racism is the fault of the foreigners who move to Finland with unrealistic expectations.” Such dismissals require wilful ethnic blindness to racism, which is banal and rife in Finland. When compared with other European countries, racism in Finland is more recent, but the point about foreigners arriving there with unrealistic expectations about racism is not something that we can entirely attribute to Finns.

DR. JOY HONEA, ASSOCIATE DEAN OF BILLINGS UNIVERSITY IN MONTANA, has received a Fulbright Scholarship to move to Finland in order to learn from the country’s acclaimed suicide prevention strategies.

The highly-competitive scholarship, which has produced dozens of Nobel Prize winners, is a state-funded initiative which aims to “encourage innovation in order to improve society”. Dr. Honea will be relocating from Montana to the University of Tampere in July 2020, where she will spend several months researching how Finland was able to bring down its once world-leading suicide rates. 

THE TOWN OF LAITILA IN SOUTHWEST FINLANDhas announced that a curfew for school-age minors will be introduced in full, following months of consultation and media attention over the controversial policy.

The curfew has been described by members of the local government as “unofficial” and “informal”, meaning that although a curfew for young people will be in place, it is not legally enforceable. This is because it was determined that a curfew enforced by law and police action would lack legal grounds and possibly be in violation of human rights law. 

INTERNATIONAL HEADLINES WERE DOMINATED THIS WEEKwith news of the passing of legendary Finnish ski jumper Matti Nykänen, as much of the country mourned following his unexpected death on Sunday evening. Tributes to the troubled and controversial athlete poured in from across the world, with the New York Times dedicating a touching obituary to him.