Funding offered to five professors at a time enables them to focus, for one term, on promoting innovations in research and teaching that benefit society.
LocalTapiola Group and the University of Helsinki are embarking on a collaboration to support thinking that generates innovation and growth. The University will use a donation of €900,000 from LocalTapiola for a new breakthrough scheme aimed at the University's professors.
The funding will enable professors to spend one term focusing on promoting their own projects, practical research breakthroughs in their fields or teaching innovations. The funding includes starting grants to support projects.
The goal is to boost the discovery of new solutions and practices that benefit society as a whole sustainably.
"We cannot know where we will find a new path to growth and breakthroughs for Finland. While built on knowledge and research, innovations require creativity and capacity for risk-taking. It's great to have the opportunity to help people with enormous knowledge capital enter new creative avenues. Finnish society has always been able to renew itself and find breakthroughs. We wish to strengthen this kind of thinking in uncertain times," says President Sari Heinonen of LocalTapiola Group.
Aiming for societal impact
Funding will be offered to five professors at a time, and the scheme will be piloted for three consecutive years, after which the results will be assessed. The first invitation procedure will be organised in October and November 2025. Prospective projects are expected to have justified plans for societal impact.
Examples of past such breakthroughs, or successful projects, include the Elements of AI teaching innovation, which teaches the basics of artificial intelligence through an online course, and discovery research, which has led to innovations such as novel vaccination techniques and the coronavirus vaccines.
The University of Helsinki employs more than 600 professors whose active careers span on average 25-30 years.
"The University of Helsinki makes scholarly breakthroughs to benefit the world, across generations and disciplines. We are excited to have LocalTapiola share this vision with us," says Rector Sari Lindblom of the University of Helsinki.
This leap into new kinds of experimentation is not a first for the collaboration partners. A decade ago, the University of Helsinki and LocalTapiola produced a project entitled 'Hyvä yhteiskunta Master Class' ('Masterclass in good society'), developing operating models for promoting the common good.
