According to Professor Matti Muhos, Director of the University of Oulu Kerttu Saalasti Institute, the core of the Institute’s work since its founding 25 years ago has been societal impact based on research knowledge. The Institute operates regionally, nationally, and internationally as a producer of new knowledge and promoter of expertise. It produces information on regional excellence, future manufacturing technologies, sustainable energy business, and micro-entrepreneurship.
The Institute has a national mandate set by the Ministry of Education and Culture to research and provide education on micro-entrepreneurship. According to Minister of Science and Culture Mari-Leena Talvitie, this represents a promise that small businesses and local expertise are recognized as key factors in building sustainable growth.
Muhos states that the Institute’s work is closely linked with the University of Oulu’s long-term strategy and the legacy of Kerttu Saalasti. In line with the university’s strategy, our northern impact is global.
According to the University of Oulu’s Rector, Arto Maaninen, northern impact is expertise shaped by the special characteristics of the northern environment and by the resilience and ability of communities to renew themselves. It consists of solutions that support the growth of small and medium-sized enterprises, strengthen digitalization and sustainable development, and open pathways to new innovations.
Arto Maaninen sees the Kerttu Saalasti Institute as an important example that higher education and research belong to all communities – including those in the north and in rural regions.
“The Kerttu Saalasti Institute was founded on the idea that higher education, research, and the creation of new knowledge are not only for big cities, but also for northern and rural communities. At the time, this was a progressive idea, and over the years it has only become timelier,” Maaninen said.
Ari Alatossava, Mayor of Oulu, previously conducted a study on the potential for university activities in the region as part of a regional development project in Nivala–Haapajärvi. He also served as secretary of the university working group when the Institute – first known as the Oulu Southern Institute – was established. According to him, the idea of establishing a permanent university presence in Nivala and Southern Oulu area during the recession of the 1990s required courage and willingness to cooperate, with students and businesses also taking part.
Alatossava notes that the Institute’s creation was based on determined regional development influenced by Finland’s EU membership and the establishment of regional councils. Following the international Triple Helix model, the aim was to create interaction between academic research, industry, and government to support economic and social development. In line with smart specialization, it was considered natural in the Institute’s early years to strengthen research related to sheet metal production, industry, and the Pyhäsalmi mine.
Maaninen also thanked the Institute for building a network that supports both regional vitality and international visibility. He emphasized that expertise developed locally can serve as a global benchmark. Northern impact is visible in municipalities, companies, and communities, but it is also heard in international scientific discussions.
According to Maaninen, the current and future challenges of the university include mitigating climate change, advancing the green transition, harnessing digitalization and artificial intelligence, and safeguarding regional vitality. The university and the Institute are well equipped to address these.
In her video message to the seminar, Minister Mari-Leena Talvitie highlighted the significance of the green transition and RDI collaboration in fostering regional growth.
Talvitie stressed that the green transition is not only ecological but also an economic and social opportunity — especially for rural regions that possess both expertise and the will to renew themselves. Vital and attractive future regions will be built on skilled, bold, and entrepreneurial people. Population decline should not lead to despair; instead, it should inspire new solutions.
She stated that cooperation between businesses and RDI actors is essential for building a sustainable transition, competitiveness, and growth. The government’s billion-euro investments in research and development are helping to achieve this. Talvitie calls for bold experimentation, new partnerships, and long-term cooperation. It is important to identify one’s strengths, ensure enough experts, and have the courage to invest.
According to Docent Ossi Kotavaara, head of the Regional Excellence Research Group, it is important to recognize and acknowledge the role of smaller localities as platforms for entrepreneurship, exports, and rapid growth. Research conducted at the Kerttu Saalasti Institute has shown that many municipalities have the capacity to generate growth. For many rural regions — particularly from Northern Ostrobothnia to Southern Ostrobothnia and all the way to Lapland — clusters of growing micro-enterprises have emerged. For example, in the areas around Nivala and Ylivieska, micro-enterprises have shown both turnover growth and strong exports relative to the population.
Micro-enterprises make up 95% of Finnish companies and a significant share of jobs and are therefore vital to the economies of many rural regions. While employment and turnover have decreased in the short term, micro- and small enterprises have experienced turnover growth in most municipalities over a ten-year period.
Gazelle companies — young, rapidly growing firms — are found not only in large urban centers but also in core rural regions and, in some cases, in sparsely populated countryside.
In her keynote speech, Jenni Airaksinen, CEO of the Local Government Development Foundation, noted that Finnish discussions on vitality focus too heavily on growth and population change, often dramatizing the decline of many regions. According to Airaksinen, vitality does not require growth — but it does require renewal. Renewal must happen in population structures, business activities, operational models, and everything that can generate initiative and action. Public administration must foster confidence in the future and belief that challenges can be solved. This also attracts investors.
“We need to discover new nuances in the narrative of vitality based on growth and population trends. Every region must find its own nuances that enable renewal and activity,” Airaksinen said.
She emphasized that diversity must always be present in regional development. Regions should not have all the same things, because each has different starting points, strengths, and weaknesses. For example, not every region in Finland has the so-called ‘manure potential’ required to build biogas plants like in Nivala. Each region therefore has the freedom — and responsibility — to invest in what is most effective for them. It is also important to have the courage to fail.
According to Airaksinen, the focus should not be on quantity, but on quality. The problem is that there are no proper indicators for measuring vitality in a way that captures quality, diversity, and multidimensionality. The core elements of vitality are resources, networks, and renewal. Resources are not only euros; they are people, businesses, skills, technology, and innovation potential. Even manure can be a resource.
Harri Jaskari, Director of Business Policy at the Federation of Finnish Enterprises (Suomen Yrittäjät), has worked as a researcher, entrepreneur, and political decision-maker. Throughout his career, he has noticed that research and real life should be brought closer together. This would allow research results to be better utilized in policymaking.
According to Jaskari, more research should be done on why there is such a low desire for growth in Finland. A Nordic study conducted at the Kerttu Saalasti Institute of the University of Oulu showed that Finns tend to be extremely cautious, often creating multiple strategies first, whereas in Iceland, for example, people dare to fail and treat failures as interesting stories.
In 2016, half of Finnish companies wanted to grow strongly or if possible, but growth ambition later dropped to 31 percent. Fortunately, the trend is rising again, and it is encouraging that 51 percent of young people are considering becoming entrepreneurs.
It is also worth researching why growth companies emerge in some rural areas of Finland. For many, it may be surprising that growth occurs outside the so-called “golden triangle” of Helsinki, Tampere, and Turku. The importance of micro-enterprises has also been underestimated, and research can help change this.
Jari Joutsenvaara, Development Manager of the Regional Excellence Research Group at the Kerttu Saalasti Institute, asked in his presentation whether we are a resource periphery.
According to Joutsenvaara, the resource periphery — such as Northern Finland and rural Finland — is a place rich in natural resources, minerals, forests, energy, expertise, and people, but where decisions, value creation, and visibility often occur elsewhere. It is a place that gives much but does not always benefit from it. Headquarters and later stages of the value chain tend to concentrate in Helsinki, Brussels or even further away.
Joutsenvaara challenged the audience to rewrite this narrative. Europe now stands at the threshold of the green and digital transition. Strategic self-sufficiency makes critical raw materials, renewable energy, food security, and regional sustainability more important than ever. The position of the periphery is changing, as digital connectivity reduces the significance of physical distance. International research and innovation work provide regions with the opportunity to become not just resource providers but solution developers and makers of the future. They offer the chance to become a resource front instead of a resource periphery.
One way to rewrite the narrative is to transform local expertise into growth through entrepreneurship. A seminar example of this was the growth story of Muon Solutions, a company that began as a university spin-off. It demonstrated how international cooperation can transform regional strengths into engines of sustainable growth.
Muon Solutions is a deep-tech company originating from the Pyhäsalmi mine and the particle physics research carried out by its underground physics group. The company develops and provides muon imaging and muon-based positioning (muPS) solutions. Muon-based positioning can be used both underwater and in mines. Muon imaging also enables, for example, the study of the structure and load-bearing capacity of snow and ice, as well as of cultural-historical buildings and cultural heritage objects.
According to Marko Holma, CEO of Muon Solutions and researcher at the Kerttu Saalasti Institute of the University of Oulu, the opportunities for commercial and scientific applications and innovations based on the company’s deep scientific expertise are vast, offering a strong foundation for future growth. Holma explained that the company has addressed resource challenges by demonstrating impact, which has helped open up new opportunities.
In the seminar panel discussion, participants explored how internationalizing RDI collaboration could foster regional growth in rural areas. In addition to Ossi Kotavaara and Jenni Airaksinen, the panel included Elisa Sipponen, Finance Director at Finnvera, Markus Erkkilä, Planning Director at the Council of Oulu Region, and Aleksi Salo, Customer Manager at the Geological Survey of Finland (GTK).
Panelists emphasized that future success would grow from cooperation between different actors. Sustainability is built on the ability to combine local expertise, research, and the courage of companies to renew themselves. The University of Oulu carries out numerous national and international projects in which universities, stakeholders, and entrepreneurs work together. According to Kotavaara, the university can, for instance, jointly apply for European funding with businesses to support riskier solutions that are not yet market-ready but can be developed.
Expertise and networks were highlighted as critical resources determining whether a rural business can grow and enter international markets. Sipponen noted that without funding know-how, financing can become a bottleneck, especially for “born global” companies that target international markets from the outset.
Kotavaara reminded the audience that Finland, with five million inhabitants, is the size of a single city on the global scale. If growth is the goal, the focus must be international. Business incubators and accelerators could help companies in the early stages. Airaksinen pointed out that support is also needed beyond the early phase, such as export training. Sipponen added that Finnvera provides funding workshops for export companies, which could be helpful.
Panelists also challenged how companies view themselves. According to Salo, for example, a farm could be seen as a business with million-euro turnover, or the best mechanic in Varpaisjärvi could also be the best in Finland — or even Europe. Ambition, willingness to take risks, and determination are needed, but so are incentives.
Salo noted that it is easier to obtain funding for technological and digital innovations than for service innovations, even though both can generate growth. Sipponen pointed out that funding opportunities exist for both, but solutions should be tested more boldly and quickly on the market. The role of micro-enterprises is growing, as they employ people, develop new services, and can make agile — even radical — changes. However, ensuring business continuity remains important. There is significant untapped potential in export activities.
Salo also stressed the importance of recognizing ecosystems where large companies depend on small ones: industrial complexes do not carry out all maintenance, electrical installations, construction, or transport themselves — these can be provided by micro-enterprises.
Airaksinen and Erkkilä emphasized that especially in service innovation, customer needs must be better understood. Regional differences should be considered, as no area can do everything; each can find its own strengths. Airaksinen pointed out that even darkness or cold can be turned into a product, as has been done in Inari. A development idea can come from anywhere: an individual entrepreneur, a university, or a public actor.
According to Erkkilä, Northern Ostrobothnia is Finland’s leading energy region and therefore holds extensive potential. Salo expanded the list, mentioning natural resources, raw materials from agriculture, forests, and even silence. Salo does not consider Northern Ostrobothnia a resource periphery; from the region’s point of view, Portugal with its copper reserves might be seen as one. In Finland, more ore concentrate is imported for further refining than exported.
Erkkilä also highlighted the importance of location. It affects not only exports, but also security of supply. Northern Ostrobothnia is a gateway to the West. The main transport flows can be secured through efficient road and rail networks and the airport, but attention should also be paid to smaller roads in remote areas that are crucial for logistics.
According to Kotavaara, while individual municipalities may be small, together they have a significant population base. The region has strong commuting patterns, as municipalities efficiently exchange labor within a broader employment area.
According to Salo, the university must ensure that basic research continues independently and as freely as possible. Applied research should then be carried out in collaboration with companies. If a model can be created where applied research generates new business and startup activity, it would provide an operational economic backbone for the academic community and strengthen its credibility in the business world.
Erkkilä pointed out that regional actors would benefit from using knowledge produced by the university. As an example, he mentioned data gathered at the Kerttu Saalasti Institute on where university graduates settle. Such information would be valuable for municipal strategy and for decisions on how to retain graduates in the region.
In her closing remarks, Nivala City Mayor Päivi Karikumpu emphasized that for decisions supporting regional vitality, it is essential for the city and its partners to have access to research-based knowledge. According to Karikumpu, the Kerttu Saalasti Institute is an excellent partner for the Nivala region. She welcomed the study on where graduates settle and noted that it is also important to attract exchange researchers to cooperate with the city and local stakeholders.
The Institute also conducted a valuable study on the production potential of biogas plants, regional availability of biomass, and transport costs. It demonstrated through research that Nivala is an excellent potential location for a biogas facility. This is already reflected in international investment.
The City of Nivala is also co-funding a new research group through the project Value Added Through Sustainable Energy Business. According to Karikumpu, the knowledge produced by this group will also be utilized.
The Kerttu Saalasti seminar served as a reminder that northern success is built on knowledge, cooperation, and the courage to renew. The 25-year story of the Institute shows that when research and practice go hand in hand, results are created that have regional as well as global impact.
Text and photo: Minna Kilpeläinen, MA, MEd, Communications Specialist, University of Oulu Kerttu Saalasti Institute
Watch highlights from the seminar on Facebook.
Watch the seminar recording on the University of Oulu’s YouTube channel in Finnish.
In Kerttu Saalasti Institute's blog we write about the topics of the Institute's research groups, micro entrepreneurship education and the Institute's general topics. The authors are researchers, experts and members of networks.
Our topics are: micro entrenepreneurship, future manufacturing technologies, regional excellence, micro entrepreneurship education