Finland

In the hands of innovative chefs, Finland's local ingredients come into their own at new Helsinki restaurants, writes Leisa Tyler.

In years gone by, Nordic food was considered as glum as northern Europe's winter sun. Perhaps spurred on by the success of what is being dubbed "new Nordic cuisine" and the trailblazing kitchen of Rene Redzepi and his Copenhagen restaurant Noma, or perhaps influenced by the locavore movement sweeping the restaurant world, the cuisine from the far northern reaches of continental Europe is experiencing a revolution.

Discarding imported products and the borrowed culinary styles of France and Italy - traditionally very influential in Nordic countries - chefs have been turning their focus inward and rediscovering the bounty of their own gastronomic heritage.

Summer is a natural phenomenon, yet it is also a state of mind: The world is again full of possibilities, joys and pleasures. The change is dramatic. Mother Nature, who so recently lay dormant and frozen under a blanket of snow, bursts into wild blossom as summer arrives.

The onset of summer is also reflected in people. They can finally cast off their heavy winter clothes. Shoulders long hunched together against icy winds can finally relax; steps become lighter and faces brighter. The Finns make the most of their summer.

Read more about Finnish summer:http://bit.ly/10aPfvr

In Finland, May Day is not complete without tippaleipä, a funnel cake only sold around May Day, and a glass of sima, a home-brewed soda made with lemon and honey.

The national holiday is a celebration of "worker's day," but it also marks the arrival of spring and the end of yet another long, dark winter. For kids,Vappu is all about visiting the outdoor May Day markets in the city, where knickknacks of every type are sold, from whistles to big helium balloons.  

A new report by the United Nations Children’s Fund, on the well-being of children in 35 developed nations. Finland scores the highest.

The Marinetek Group and Sito are currently constructing Finland's first floating village! The lightweight floating villas are equipped with energy-saving systems and technologies, and they were designed to withstand extreme winds and wave conditions. Located in Pori, the project is aiming for LEED certification and it will comprise a total of 16 houses when completed.

Finland is turning to venture capital financing as it searches for ways to jolt the economy out of a recession without jeopardizing its AAA rating.

The northernmost euro member wants to attract investors for a new 1 billion-euro ($1.28 billion) program and help startup companies without adding to its budget deficit. Finland is promising that investors who buy into the venture will take the lion’s share of potential profits. The program will also target growth companies.

“The debt crisis caused investors to retrench from this riskier startup funding,” Petri Peltonen, head of the enterprise and innovation department at Finland’s Economy Ministry, said in a telephone interview. “We’re now trying to attract private investors to take more risk that will help boost economic growth and create jobs.”

Why the U.S. emphasis on "teacher effectiveness" won't by itself really improve schools.

Finland’s Pasi Sahlberg is one of the world’s leading experts on school reform and the author of the best-selling“Finnish Lessons: What Can the World Learn About Educational Change in Finland?” In this piece he writes about whether the emphasis that American school reformers put on “teacher effectiveness” is really the best approach to improving student achievement.

Snow, Cold and Nokia: the three words I most often hear associated with Finland.

Yet the Nordic Country -- full of swathes of untapped wilderness, quirky and creative design and up-and-coming cuisine -- has a lot more that meets the eye, especially in the summer.

I was lucky enough to spend an idyllic August exploring -- by foot, train, plane, and bikes (free in cities such as Helsinki with a deposit). But if you only have a week, there's still a trove of highlights that can be enjoyed.

In honor of Mother's Day, Save the Children presents 14th annual State of the World's Mothers report. It is a report that ranks the best and worst places in the world to be a mother. Learn more, access archives and download the report. FINLAND - NR 1 ! The BEST!

THE BEST & WORST PLACES TO BE A MOTHER

The chances a mother and her baby will survive help determine Save the Children’s annual rankings of the best and worst places in the world to be a mother. Education, income and political representation of women are the other factors. 

Read more: http://bit.ly/12cP0yU

Humans have been fascinated by this unpredictable, eerie light show for centuries. But it’s amazing how little we know about the science behind it.

The thermometer on the car is reading -22C. Outside, we are standing in snow up to my knees. We’re in a region called Inari in Finnish Lapland, inside the Arctic Circle, the nearest town is some kilometres to the south of us. You would be forgiven for thinking you were in Narnia, next to a frozen lake and surrounded by snow-topped pine trees. I can see more stars then I have ever seen before and some of the constellations such as Cassiopeia are difficult to spot, the sky is so free from light pollution. Which is supposedly the ideal place to do what I am doing; I’m one of a small group of people in search of the Northern Lights.

The Helsinki Department of Education has dismissed a teacher at the Alppila middle school over an incident in which the teacher forcibly removed a pupil from the school's cafeteria who was causing a disturbance. The incident has aroused a debate about the right of teachers to use physical force.

Researchers at the Arcada University of Applied Sciences, Helsinki, have developed a new cost-efficient technology to produce separation membranes for the purification of water, at less than half the previous cost.

Soiled or salty water can be made potable by current technologies, but these are either costly or unreasonably energy-intensive. The most promising, but also the costliest, alternative is offered by separation with nanoporous membranes.