Poland risks undermining efforts to revive fisheries in the Baltic Sea, Swedish representatives in the European Parliament have warned.
In a letter sent to the Polish government, the five Swedish MEPs who sit on the parliament’s fisheries committee have asked whether its aim of achieving a better balance between the interests of the fishing industry and environmental concerns will mean removing emergency measures to address past mismanagement of the Baltic Sea fisheries.
The measures were first implemented in 2019 and have been accompanied by drastically reduced quotas, in some cases closing fisheries entirely on the advice of biologists.
Poland currently holds the rotating presidency of the European Council, which sets the direction for the 27-member bloc. In an address to the fisheries council last month, the country’s fisheries minister said Poland was committed to sustainable fisheries practices, as well as protecting economic opportunities for fishermen.
Source: SR
LKAB has appointed Magnus Karlsson as its new chief financial officer. In his role as CFO, Magnus will serve as a member of the group management team. He begins in the position at the start of the third quarter.
Magnus most served as CFO for commercial operations at Scania. Prior to that, he held several financial leadership positions in areas such as controlling, treasury and accounting.
Connect with Magnus on LinkedIn
Mari Parkkila of the GeroNursing Centre at the University of Oulu has received a €30,000 grant from Päivikki and Sakari Sohlberg Foundation for her doctoral-dissertation research.
The aim of the research is to describe the competence of nurses in restorative care of older patients in geriatric hospital wards and the effectiveness of nurses’ educational intervention on older patients’ need for healthcare services and readmission.
The goal is also to produce information for the development of nursing work on restorative care of older patients in hospitals and health centers wards. The education is developed in the GeroNursing Centre, and it is based on scientific knowledge and is online training.
The GeroNursing Centre (GNC) is a centre of research and expertise at the University of Oulu, providing research, education and networks for both the successful aging of older adults and the well-being at work of health care professionals. The GeroNursing Centre represents the best-available evidence-based expertise and practices in the field.
Amid Swedish fears of Russian expansionism in the Baltic, local authorities in Ystad say they are preparing for a situation in which they receive refugees from Bornholm.
Ystad is a Swedish council, but it is the mainland port for the primary ferry serving the Danish island.
The Swedish military considers Bornholm, along with other Baltic islands, as targets of potential Russian attacks, and that has led Ystad council to include refugees from the island in its civil-defence planning.
Police on Bornholm are responsible for co-ordinating civil defence. In the event of an attack, they say their directions would come from Copenhagen, but Ystad officials have called for co-ordination at the council level with Bornholm.
Source: Ystad Allehanda / TV2/Bornholm
The number of overnight stays on Bornholm grew marginally in 2024, but more visitors outside of the summer season and an increase in the number of visitors from non-core markets suggests that the island’s second-largest industry may be poised for growth in the years to come.
End-of-year statistics published by Destination Bornholm, the island’s tourism board, show the number of overnight stays rose at an annual rate of 0.1% in 2024, to 1,691,257.
Denmark and Germany remained the two largest markets for Bornholm’s 4.1 billion kroner (€550 million) tourism industry. Though fewer Danes and Germans are visiting during the July-August high season, the decline has been somewhat made up by an increase in the number of visitors in shoulder seasons. The result is a tourism season that now spans from March to December.
Destination Bornholm highlighted significant—if small—increases in the numbers of visitors from emerging markets, including France, Italy, the UK and America, that it reckons could make up for the high-season decline.
Leena Rantasalo has been appointed as vice-president, communications and brand for VTT. She moves to the position after having headed VTT’s internal and external communications, media relations and the communications team since 2018. Previously, she headed development of VTT’s culture.
In her role as vice-president, Leena will lead and develop VTT’s strategic communications and brand, in alignment with the company’s business goals and strategy, reputation management and crisis communications and capabilities.
As a vice-president, Leena is a member of VTT’s commercial-operations leadership team.
Connect with Leena on LinkedIn
Finnish and Swedish authorities are investigating a possible breach of the C-Lion 1 undersea cable linking Finland and Germany, Yle, a Finnish news outlet, reports.
The location of the break is reported to be near the island of Gotland in the Swedish economic zone, where a number of subsea cables have been damaged in recent months.
The cause of the break was not immediately known, and it may be due to the previous damage done the cable, a source told Yle.
The C-Lion 1 submarine cable, operated by Cinia, a Finland-based firm, was last damaged on Christmas Day. Finnish authorities believe that break was caused by the Eagle S, an oil tanker suspected of acting on Moscow’s orders. The same cable was also damaged last November.
Source: Yle
Pirjo Juntunen has joined BusinessOulu as a key account director for social and health services. With extensive experience collaborating with companies and partners in workforce and economic development, both domestically and internationally, Pirjo brings a wealth of knowledge to the BusinessOulu team.
In her new role, Pirjo will focus on supporting businesses, assisting them with business development, growth strategies and navigating change. She is also committed to aiding companies in recruiting skilled personnel and enhancing employee competencies.
Pirjo holds a degree in social sciences and has completed an executive MBA. Her professional background includes leadership and specialist positions, where she has demonstrated a solution-oriented approach and a passion for fostering business growth.
Arenijus Jackus has been appointed as the new chair of the supervisory board of RB Rail AS.
Arenijus Jackus brings a wealth of expertise to his new role as chair. Holding a master’s degree in transport engineering economics and management from Vilnius Gediminas Technical University, he has been deeply involved with the Rail Baltica project since its inception. Currently serving as the Chief Rail Baltica Lietuva officer at LTG, Arenijus has dedicated over 14 years to leadership roles within the public sector.
His extensive experience spans strategic planning and finance, EU-investment administration, project implementation, international relations and EU affairs, gained during his tenure at the ministry of transport and communications, which began in 1997.
Beyond his government roles, Arenijus has held prominent governance positions, including chair of the management board at Kaunas Airport, member of the supervisory board of LTG Infra and board positions with Klaipėda State Seaport Authority, Oro Navigacija and Rail Baltica.
His appointment marks the continuation of the rotational leadership structure that ensures equitable representation among Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, the three member states of the Rail Baltica joint venture.
Connect with Arenijus on LinkedIn
Tomi Hugg recently began as the new director of design services at Innokas.
An industry veteran in design engineering, Tomi brings over 20 years of experience in heavy industry from companies of various sizes. Working for Oulu-based Innokas marks his first venture into a company that specialises in medical and other safety-critical technologies
“All the new people and technologies have inspired me to get started,” he says of the transition. He also notes a strong balance between familiar systems and exciting new opportunities that he is eager to explore.
“The deep technological expertise at Innokas across industries was a major reason for my decision to apply,” Tomi says.