Happy Tuesday everyone!

What a packed Weekly Feed again! Municipal and County Elections are coming in April (The City of Joensuu, International House Joensuu, Talent Hub Eastern Finland, and the ELO-project are hosting a workshop for immigrants, where you can learn more about the upcoming elections, read more about the event below!), along with the famous and popular Savo-Karjala Excursion, Portti54 open day and an All in English day with SYKETTÄ as upcoming events. Be sure to check out the whole newsletter to not miss on anything!

 Have a great week! 

Kind regards,

Joona Rantala | Coordinator of International Affairs, Joensuu Campus

Experience Finnish Vappu Celebration in Savo-Karjala Excursion

Savo-Karjala Excursion is one of the most famous and popular May Day celebration traditions of the Student Union (ISYY). The first Savo-Karjala Excursion was organised in 1990. The event is held every year in Joensuu and Kuopio on 29th April despite the day of the week.

During the Savo-Karjala Excursion, students circle around the North Savo and the North Karelia regions on buses on a predetermined route, which will remain a secret until the buses start their journey, and enjoy refreshments in different bars and restaurants along the way. 

To attend the event, it is not required that you can speak Finnish. The most important thing is that you and your friends have fun and you can keep up in the schedule of the bus. If there are English speaking people in the buses, we'll ask the bus leaders to give all the important information about the schedule in English.

Ticket sales start on Thursday 3 April 8 am at ISYY office (in Studentia building, C entrance, Yliopistonranta 15). The remaining tickets, if there are any, will go on sale on Kide.app on the next day at 11 am. The ticket price is 20 €. One person can buy a maximum of two tickets.

Municipal and County Elections

This April 2025 we will be having the Municipal and County Elections, and there are only a week left before the advance voting period begins!

Don’t know who you are going to cast a vote for yet? Don't worry! The Student Unions in Joensuu and Kuopio, meaning ISYY, SAVOTTA, POKA and HUMAKO are organising events that might help you to find a candidate to vote for.

• Tue 25.3. Election Fair in Kuopio at 11-13 at Snellmania lobby and in Joensuu at Carelia lobby
• Tue 1.4. ISYY ja POKA’s Panel Discussion (in Finnish) at 13-16 in Joensuu at Aurora (AU206)
• Wed 2.4. Advance Voting Event in Kuopio (Studentia) and Joensuu (Aurora) at 12-13

Coffee & Friends event today!

The café meets on Tuesdays at 4-6 pm at Agora café in Joensuu and at 3-5 pm at Lukema in Kuopio.

Upcoming themes in Coffee & Friends:

• 25.3. Singing bowl relaxation
• 1.4. Volunteering (Guests from JoMoni)
• 8.4. Easter Crafts

Coffee & Friends event offers low-threshold hanging out after lectures and the opportunity to meet other students over coffee and a snack. All students of the University of Eastern Finland are welcome to Coffee & Friends. You can come to the café alone or with a friend. In addition, Coffee & Friends has a changing chill program. Participation in the programme is voluntary and you can come for a while or for the whole time. Participation is free of charge and does not require pre-registration. 

You can find more information and the program of Coffee & Friends on ISYY's website.

ISYY Club Meetings

All club meetings (except Academic & Historical Dance Joensuu & JEIS) are held weekly in ISYY's meeting room in Haltia-building, 2nd floor (Yliopistokatu 7).

More information and a full list of ISYY's clubs in Joensuu can be found on ISYY's webpage: ISYY Clubs in Joensuu

• Magic The Gathering Guild meeting Mon 3 pm - 8 pm
• Academic & Historical Dance Joensuu Mon 6 pm - 8 pm (Educa, E200)
• Joensuu's Exchange and International Students Mon 4 pm - 6 pm (Aurora, AU206)
• LUOMIO! Literary Arts club Tue 6 pm - 8 pm 
• JOOJAKU meeting Wed 4 pm - 8 pm
• Joensuu Board Gamers meeting Thu 3 pm - 8 pm
• ISYY Chess Club meeting Fri 4 pm - 8 pm

Sports courses of spring: Basics of self-defence course

When: On Saturdays 29.3.-5.4. at 10:30am-11:30am
Where: Mehtimäki hall pedagogical room

During the course, we will go through the most common situations where self-defence is needed and how to predict them and act on those situations. Enrollment via sports calendar on both sessions separately. You can enroll on the course with both a group exercise and a ball sports sticker.

PorttiSport 25.3.2025

Welcome to Portti54 gym on Tuesday 25.3.2025, when there is an open day at the gym and activities from 8am to 5:30pm. The day's more detailed schedule can be found on SYKETTÄ Instagram, Facebook and website.

Enrollment on instructed workouts via SYKETTÄ sports calendar. You can also enroll without a SYKETTÄ sticker via the sports calendar on the website. If you do not have a SYKETTÄ sticker, you must register as a user via the website.

SYKETTÄ Joensuu 10 years: InBody measurement days

SYKETTÄ will organize two InBody measurement days to celebrate the anniversary. The first measurement day will be held on Thursday 27.3.2025 at 8am-11am and 12noon-4pm at Mehtimäki TestLab project sports testing center at Joensuu Areena.

Enrollment via the sports calendar on the SYKETTÄ website. You can also enroll without a SYKETTÄ sticker. If you do not have a SYKETTÄ sticker, you must register as a user via the website in order to enroll.

SYKETTÄ Joensuu 10 years: All in English day on Monday 31.3.2025

SYKETTÄ will have an All in English day on Monday 31.3.2025 in classes instructed by our own SYKETTÄ instructors. The following classes will be instructed entirely in English on that day:

• Figure/synchronized skating
• Fitness boxing
• LL: Instructed gym
• Acrobatics for beginners
• Contemporary dance
• Instructed volleyball for beginners
• Syke dance
• Instructed volleyball for more advanced
• Dancehall

Enrollment on classes as usual via the sports calendar.

The library is invoicing overdue and reservation fees at the end of March

We are invoicing unpaid overdue and reservation fees at the end of March. We send the bills by e-mail. You can avoid the invoicing by paying your fees in advance on UEF Primo or at Joensuu or Kuopio campus library. The minimum limit for online payment is 1 euro, a payment card is accepted on the spot. For more information, contact library@uef.fi

Hey UEF student! Are you our new UEF student ambassador?

We are looking for international student ambassadors to assist in international marketing and student
recruitment activities of the university in the academic year 2025-2026. We welcome applicants from
diverse nationalities and backgrounds, who possess an enthusiastic, motivated attitude and fluent English skills.

Ambassador tasks include i.e. attending webinars and other virtual events and other communication and marketing tasks related to the international degree programmes and participating modeling for the university brochures and advertisements. Your main responsibility includes sharing your firsthand experiences of living in Finland, discussing your studies, and providing insights into student life to potential applicants.

You will receive training for the position, and the tasks will be compensated.
The application closes 7 April 2025.

Huhtimarkkinat / April Market

The traditional Huhtimarkkinat/April Market is organized at the Joensuu Market Square from Friday to Saturday, 11.-12.4.2025

Market hours:

Friday 11.4.: 7:00 - 18:00

Saturday 12.4.: 7:00 - 16:00

Do you want to know more about how elections are organized in Finland?

Or what issues are decided
in municipalities and regions, and why it’s important to vote?

The City of Joensuu, International House Joensuu, Talent Hub Eastern Finland, and the ELO-project are hosting a workshop for immigrants, where you can learn more about the upcoming elections!

When? Tuesday, April 1, from 2 pm to 4:30 pm
Where? Carelicum’s Auditorium, address Koskikatu 5.

The main part of the event is in English, but the presentation is in Simplified Finnish and Russian. You are welcome at the event, even if you do not have the right to vote just yet. No advance registration required. The event and its organizers are not politically affiliated. They provide only general information without favoring any political party or candidate.

Global Friday

Joensuun Setlementti organises Global Friday, an international meeting place activity. At Global Friday you can get to know new people and cultures, express your own culture in the way you want or just enjoy being together.

Global Friday is a place open to everyone and free of charge, which takes place every Friday from 5 to 8pm in the Tupa space of Joensuun Setlementti. Our Tupa is located in our premises at Siltakatu 10 A 13, 5th floor (access by stairs and lift).

English speaking LGBTQIA+ hangouts

Open hangout nights organized by local LGBTQIA+ rights NGO North Karelia Seta. Coffee, tea and snacks provided. Free of charge. Bring a friend! Hangouts are organised in Community space Tove, Torikatu 9 A, 2nd floor, two times a month on Mondays at 5–7 pm

Schedule for Spring 2025:

• 31.3. Let’s watch a movie!
• 14.4. Theme will be announced later
• 28.4. Theme will be announced later
• 12.5. (Pride week) Picnic 
• 26.5. Theme will be announced later

Registration for the KiVANET network's summer 2025 is open!

Registration for the KiVANET network's summer 2025 courses is open from March 24 th to April 10 th 2025.

There are several optional languages available as online studies. Check out the course selection and register on the KiVANET website! When registering, only use your student email and read the instructions carefully. If you have any questions about the network or registration, please contact kivanet@uef.fi

Welcome to KiVANET courses!

Waves for Change - Youth forum Baltic 2025

Are you interested in internationality? Are you passionate about sustainability, the Baltic sea or nature-based solutions to environmental challenges?

If you are 18-28 years old, you now have the opportunity to participate in a youth forum in Sweden from June 16 to June 19!

The Waves for Change forum will bring together young people to the Kristianstads Vattenrike biosphere reserve to learn about nature-based solutions related to the Baltic Sea and other waters. 

You don’t yet need to know what a biosphere reserve is, and you won’t have to go alone! A small group of young people from North Karelia and the Archipelago Sea in Finland will also be joining. Travel arrangements and expenses will be covered!

Applications are open until tomorrow March 26! You can contact Vilma Lehtovaara for more information (vilma.lehtovaara@ely-keskus.fi, 050 380 6152)

Survey on the inclusion of immigrants in the treatment path for memory disorders 

I am Sakari Mattila from the North Karelian Memory Association. In a three-month project in spring 2025, I will explore how to promote the inclusion of immigrants in the treatment pathway for memory disorders. Now I would kindly ask for your help.

As an international student, you are the best expert to talk about your own culture's approach to brain health. By answering this survey, you are contributing valuable and important information that can be used to improve the treatment of immigrants brain health in Finland. The survey has only five questions and individual respondents cannot be identified based on their answers. You can answer the survey in Finnish or English. The response time ends on April 21, 2025 and responding only takes a few minutes.

Thank you very much for your help and have a nice spring!

Weekly Feed is the English language newsletter of the Student Union of the University of Eastern Finland (ISYY). You are receiving this letter on your email because you are a member of ISYY and are studying at Joensuu campus or because you have joined the mailing list yourself. 

Weekly Feed provides you with current information on matters related to the Student Union, UEF or other organisations close to students, such as FSHS. In addition, the newsletter provides you with information on events taking place at campus or the campus city.

Weekly Feed is published on Tuesdays during the academic year, with the exception of holidays and a few other days. If you do not want to receive the newsletter anymore, you can unsubscribe the letter via the unsubscription link  located on the top of the letter. 

You will find more information on ISYY's newsletters  and data protection on ISYY's website.