Minna-Kerttu Vienola

Biography

In my research, I am interested in the grounding (i.e. philosophical) questions of the possibilities of public discussion as a shared learning experience. The research is motivated by the sustainability problems of democratic societies, as public discussion is a central constituent of democratic societies, and learning is needed in order to renew the democratic society as the world changes.

My theory background is in phenomenology, mostly in Maurice Merleau-Ponty's and Edmund Husserl's works. I utilize their works for investigating the learning process in public discussion as the process of sedimentation of affects, and the possibilities and hindrances of this learning process in public discussion. I define my field as political philosophy of education, as my research is politically motivated and approaches public discussion from the perspective of learning possibilities.

My academic background is in philosophy and in education. I have studied in the Universitiy of Helsinki, University of Tübingen (Germany), and in the University of Jyväskylä.