Wif Stenger
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Articles by Wif Stenger
What to know about Finland's spiking tick population and TBE cases
There are a record number of ticks in Finland’s forests, parks and meadows this year – while the number of cases of tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) has doubled. According to Ilari Sääksjärvi, a professor of biodiversity research at the University of Turku, Finland’s tick population is growing rapidly, partly thanks to the warming climate.
Times may be tough, but these Finnish firms are booming
Investors rushed to buy stocks in Finnish drugmaker Orion as it reported better-than-expected profits on Friday. The Espoo-based pharmaceutical firm saw its share price leap by nearly 10 percent on the Helsinki Stock Exchange. That followed the release of Orion's second-quarter results, which showed revenue up by more than a quarter while operating profit rose by nearly 70 percent compared to a year earlier.
Digital crooks don't take holidays: AI-powered cyberattacks on the rise
You may be on vacation – but not so data crooks who may be scheming to attack your small business or organisation. Cyberattacks targeting Finnish victims have increased by 35 percent compared to June last year, according to a report released by the cybersecurity company Check Point Software Technologies on Friday. Anssi Kärkkäinen, Director General of National Cyber Security Centre Finland (NCSC-FI), is sceptical of that figure, but says that there are plenty of bad actors at work 24/7.
With horns and black lace, metalheads gather for Helsinki's record-setting Tuska fest
Headliners at Helsinki's Tuska festival included veteran US band Megadeth, which has ties to Finland, as well as acts from Japan, Switzerland, Germany and the Nordics. Fans up front for Jyväskylä band Lost Society. Image: Jussi Mankkinen / Yle Finland has a reputation as a hotbed of heavy metal, with Helsinki’s Tuska festival the biggest annual gathering of fans.
Soon you can book direct train trips between Finland and Sweden
Finland’s railway system has been essentially a walled garden, with nearly 6,000 kilometres of tracks sealed off from the outside world. That will change in early August. Tickets go on sale next Tuesday for the first Finnish cross-border train trips in more than five years – and the first to Sweden in 34 years. The direct rail link between the northern Finnish town of Tornio and its Swedish neighbour, Haparanda, will resume in August. Finnish VR trains last plied the route in 1992.
Finland’s immigrant mix is changing sharply
The numbers and origins of people moving to Finland have changed significantly since the onset of Covid in 2020 and Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The country’s immigration policies have meanwhile tightened since the nationalist Finns Party joined the right-wing government of Prime Minister Petteri Orpo (NCP) in 2023. "Immigration from Asia has increased a lot since the pandemic began," says Markus Rapo, a senior statistician at Statistics Finland.
Review | Songlines
Rating: ★★★★★★★★ View album and artist details Artist/band: Vilma Jää Label: Lördag / Jäähile July/2026 Fiddler-vocalist Vilma Jää learned to perform eerie, high-pitched Karelian herding calls as part of her master’s degree research into Finno-Ugric vocal techniques, along with the hehetys voice-breaking technique of Viena Karelian joik.
Finland-Sweden rail link set to open in August
The cross-border rail link between Tornio and its Swedish neighbour, Haparanda, is set to begin in August. Transport Minister Lulu Ranne (Finns) said that she is "very hopeful" that the traffic will start on 10 August, based on a timetable from the transport agency Traficom. "We are working hard to overcome any remaining obstacles and have the Public Service Obligation (PSO) contract on the traffic signed as soon as possible," she told Yle News on Monday.
Finnish startups in Nato accelerator hope to ride the dual-use tech wave
Russia's assault on Ukraine has made clear the threat to European civilian populations – and the crucial role of technological innovations in defending them. As a result, the EU has committed to spend 800 billion euros on defence over the next four years. That is bringing heavy demand for dual-use innovations that have both defence and civilian applications. And many startups whose products may have military applications are avidly seeking entry into the field.
Review | Songlines
Rating: ★★★★★★★ View album and artist details Artist/band: Rahu Label: CPL-Music May/2026 This is a super-tight Latvian acoustic dance band whose sets range from Talking Heads and Neil Young covers to a revved-up African-American spiritual and a Bob Wills country chestnut. The core of their repertoire is bluegrass fused with Latvian folk songs and polkas, with a spritz of klezmer for good measure.
Review | Songlines
Rating: ★★★★★★★★ View album and artist details Artist/band: Maria Kalaniemi & Pekko Käppi Label: Åkerö Records May/2026 The Kalevala, a 19th-century Finnish epic, inspired this mostly improvised dialogue between two of the country’s foremost folkies. Maria Kalaniemi has been a leading accordionist for over four decades, while Pekko Käppi has done much to revive the ancient jouhikko (bowed lyre).
Finland gains direct rail link to Europe this summer
Starting this summer, railway afficionados will be able to make a record-long train journey within the EU. And for those seeking the old-time romance of the rails, the key to the new route is a evocatively restored station in Haparanda, Sweden, dating back to 1919. When a long-awaited rail link opens between northern Finland and Sweden, it will be possible to travel some 5,000km by train from Portugal's Algarve to Kolari in Lapland – Finland's northernmost station.
Thursday's papers: JEF leaders in Helsinki, sword attack in Lapland, wartime EV boost
Helsinki police warn of traffic disruptions as President Alexander Stubb hosts a summit of leaders of the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) countries, Helsingin Sanomat reports. The JEF is a British-led rapid response force of 10 countries, including the five Nordics and the three Baltic states as well as the Netherlands. The leaders are to arrive at the Presidential Palace between 11:15am and noon, with some expected to make brief comments.
Three new public saunas opening in Helsinki archipelago this summer
A trio of new saunas will open to the public on islands in Eastern Helsinki this summer. The city of Helsinki has leased three islands with saunas to the Helsinki-Uusimaa Outdoors Association (Uuvi), which will make them available to the public. The agreement covering Läntinen Neitsytsaari, Malkasaari and Kotiluoto extends until 2031. Uuvi operated the Läntinen Neitsytsaari public sauna last year on a trial basis.
Should all kids learn English as their first foreign language? Finland's second-largest city grapples with a hot-button issue
The city of Espoo has postponed a controversial scheme that would require all Espoo schoolchildren to study English as their first foreign language. The plan by the city administration is aimed at discouraging so-called school shopping, i.e. parents trying to get their kids into non-local schools that they see as more desirable. Supporters argue that that practice, in turn, leads to greater segregation and inequality at public schools.
Foreign minister hails "window for long-awaited change in the Middle East," meets with EU and Moroccan leaders
Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen (NCP) visits Morocco on Sunday after meeting with fellow EU foreign ministers to the weekend’s dramatic events across the Middle East. Her advisor confirmed to Yle News that the trip to Morocco would go ahead despite the rapidly unfolding developments and flight disruptions. Before the meetings, Valtonen commented on the US and Israeli attacks on Iran as well as Tehran’s counterattacks, noting that Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had been confirmed dead.
Finnish producer scores second Grammy Award
Finnish producer Jonas W. Karlsson won a Grammy award early on Monday morning, Finnish time. Karlsson won in the Best Contemporary Instrumental Album category for his work as one of the producers of Brightside, the second album by Asian-American electroacoustic violin/cello duo ARKAI. He also worked on the 2024 debut album by the Juilliard-trained pair, whose sound is reminiscent of Finnish metal-cello trio Apocalyptica.
Worried about the climate? Concrete action can help, study suggests
Concern about the state of the climate is linked to symptoms of depression and anxiety, but symptoms are less common in those who take action, a new study indicates. A youth protest in front of the Parliament building in 2024. Image: Sasha Silvala / Yle Concern about the climate is linked to symptoms of depression and anxiety, but these symptoms decrease when people act to benefit the climate, especially when accompanied by experiences of empowerment and hope.
Yle's new satellite images reveal: Russia upgrading Soviet-era garrison in Petrozavodsk
Russia has begun to clear out a Soviet-era garrison in Petrozavodsk. There are plans to build new barracks in the area, allowing a significant expansion of Russian troops near the Finnish border. Satellite images obtained by Yle reveal for the first time that Russia has begun to renovate a Soviet-era garrison area in Petrozavodsk, which has been mostly empty since the 1990s.
Renewables surpass nuclear as Finland's biggest power source
Total electricity consumption in Finland grew moderately last year, with an increasing share of it generated by wind power. According to the Finnish energy industry association, Finland consumed 85 terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity last year, with imports accounting for less than 6 TWh. Finland enjoyed Europe's third-cheapest electricity prices in 2025, with negligible production from traditional fossil fuel sources.
Finland's changing winters: What can we expect?
Rubber boots rather than skis or skates are becoming the winter norm through much of Finland, experts say. How will the evolving season affect us in the future? Skating on the Saimaa Canal in South Karelia last February. Southern Finland is approaching the end of the year with hardly any snowfall so far — and that's the new normal, says Anna Luomaranta, head of the Extreme Weather and Climate Change Group at the Finnish Meteorological Institute (FMI).
Wednesday's papers: SDP's rising popularity, Kela chief's sick leave and STT's robot reporters
The main opposition Social Democratic Party (SDP) has further strengthened its lead as Finland’s most popular political party, according to an opinion poll published by the daily Helsingin Sanomat on Wednesday. The left-leaning party has been led by Antti Lindtman for just over two years, since his predecessor Sanna Marin stepped away from politics. The SDP has been the most popular party in most polls since September 2024. Since then, its support has grown to its highest level in nearly 20 years.
Oli kerran ryytimaassa…
Rating: ★★★ View album and artist details Artist/band: Pekko Käppi & K:H:H:L Label: Svart Records January/2026 Pekko Käppi has helped revive the jouhikko, an ancient Finnish bowed lyre, by producing over 10 albums featuring the instrument since 2009, including six with rock quartet K:H:H:L. The band could be, for Käppi, what Crazy Horse is to Neil Young – and indeed their name also refers to mad horses.
Wednesday's papers: Russian gas cutoff, chubby Nordics, Emma Thompson's love for Karelian pies and ice swimming
The EU has reached a preliminary deal to phase out natural gas imports from Russia, according to Helsingin Sanomat. The Danish Presidency of the European Council and representatives of the European Parliament made the announcement early Wednesday morning. Finnish MEP Ville Niinistö (Greens) was the European Parliament's chief co-negotiator in the process, along with centre-right Latvian MEP Inese Vaidere. Niinistö praised the "historic" agreement.
Friday's papers: Orpo leadership challenge, grocery store happy hours, 'Black Fraud Day' warning
A poll published in the daily Helsingin Sanomat suggests rumblings of discontent with Prime Minister Petteri Orpo within the ranks of his own National Coalition Party (NCP). The vast majority of NCP supporters – 76 percent – expressed the wish that Orpo would face a challenger at the party's annual conference next June. Only 44 percent said that Orpo should carry on as party leader.
Finland's language training "not accessible to everyone" - but still the biggest stumbling block for immigrant jobseekers
Finnish has been rated as one of the most difficult languages to learn – and this is often cited as the biggest barrier to finding work in the country for people of foreign background. "This is not only an issue of employment," says Johanna Kiuasmaa, international and integration coordinator for the Western Pirkanmaa Employment Region.
Wednesday's papers: EU imports of Russian LNG at record high, English "no threat to Finnish", first snowstorm hits Lapland
EU imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Russia continue to rise, reports the Swedish-language daily Hufvudstadsbladet. Overall, the EU imports of Russian fossil gas as a whole have decreased by around 70 percent since Moscow attacked Ukraine in 2022 – but imports of LNG from Russia increased by seven percent in the first six months of the year compared to the first half of 2024, according to the London-based Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA).
Star conductor Salonen nominated for 3rd Grammy Award
Finnish conductor and composer Esa-Pekka Salonen could score his third Grammy Award in Los Angeles in February. The US Recording Academy announced its nominations late Friday, with Salonen nominated in the Best Orchestral Performance category. The nod comes for his recording of Igor Stravinsky’s Symphony in Three Movements with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra. The album was recorded live in its home city in late 2023.
Wednesday's papers: Tax breaks for data centres, Italian restaurateur's bureaucratic frustration and a cat's €9,000 in damage
Prime Minister Petteri Orpo (Kok) tells the business daily Kauppalehti that the government will consider tax breaks for data centres, which he says are "needed in Finland". The PM commissioned a report on how to attract international data centres to the country from former Elisa CEO Veli-Matti Mattila, who submitted the plan on Tuesday. The PM said he broadly agrees with Mattila’s proposed roadmap, which calls for "significant", long-term electricity tax relief for high-value-added data centres.
What's happening to Finland's lakes and rivers? Urgent action needed to protect declining species, researchers say
Researchers are sounding the alarm about a decline in plant and animal populations in Finland’s inland bodies of water. More than half of underwater species have become rarer in some areas, including some previously common species, say researchers at the Finnish Environment Institute (Syke). "In areas with intensive land use, negative impacts are clearly visible.
Friday's papers: Finland to host EU Eastern Flank conference, Stubb's pep talk to students, and the worst village road
Tampere daily Aamulehti reports that Finland will host the EU’s first Eastern Flank conference in Finland on 16 December. Prime Minister Petteri Orpo (NCP) made the announcement after the EU summit in Brussels on Friday night. The meeting will most likely be held in Helsinki. The guestlist is not finalised, but it will include at least all of the EU's eastern border states: the three Baltic states plus Poland, Romania and Bulgaria.
Friday's papers: Putin heads to the EU, suspected train stabbing, frosty weekend roads
Finnish tabloid Ilta-Sanomat (IS) previews a planned meeting between US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, in the Hungarian capital, Budapest. Trump said the meeting will take place within the next couple of weeks, aimed at ending Russia's war of aggression in Ukraine. Hungary was probably chosen as the venue for the presidents' meeting for practical reasons, IS writes.
Kotka to Derry: Stubb approves Finnish leg of European route E16
On Friday, President Alexander Stubb signed off on an amendment to a European roads agreement allowing European motor route 16 (E16) to be extended across Finland. The Transport Ministry is now preparing legislation to formalise that moves, which is largely symbolic – but will likely lead to more EU funding. The designated E16 road now runs across Northern Ireland, Scotland, Norway and Sweden. However, there are no passenger ferries between the countries, except within the UK.
Wednesday's papers: Gaza protest outside PM’s house, 13-year-old leads police in car chase, and remembering a women's rights trailblazer
Prime Minister Petteri Orpo (NCP) heads to Copenhagen on Wednesday for two days of European meetings, after cancelling a public event on Monday due to a fever. However he may have been awakened early on Wednesday by protesters outside his home, reports the Tampere daily Aamulehti. Aamulehti wrtes that demonstrators gathered in front of his official residence, Kesäranta in Helsinki’s Meilahti neighbourhood, before 6am.
Tuesday's papers: Airport drones, Palestine recognition and radioactive mushrooms
Flights from Helsinki to Copenhagen are cancelled on Tuesday morning due to unidentified drones over the Danish capital's Kastrup airport, reports the daily Helsingin Sanomat. Both Oslo and Copenhagen airports were closed for several hours overnight due to drone sightings, although the two airports have since reopened. The Finnair flights to Copenhagen were scheduled to take off at 6:35am and 11:15am.
Anoushka Shankar and Timo Lassy at the Helsinki Festival
Anoushka Shankar doesn’t play jazz, but it was part of the mix in her last show of the summer, on a glowing evening at the Helsinki Festival. She and her quartet conjure up an uncategorisable, improvised instrumental music that draws on jazz, rock, ambient, minimalism and, naturally, Indian music, including the Hindustani classical music that she learned from her father, Ravi.
Smiles of a Summer Night
“This tune is so complicated that I’d sweat even if it was below freezing in here,” says standup bassist Antti Lötjönen with a grin. He’s standing in the steamy attic of a nineteenth-century tram depot, beads of perspiration on his forehead. Lötjönen, probably Finland’s most-recorded jazz musician, is hosting an evening of group improv featuring a revolving cast of more than 20 of Helsinki’s most out-there jazz, folk and experimental musicians and singers, plus a dancer.
Reviewed: Enji - Sonor | Jobim & Bonfá - Black Orpheus
On her fourth album, Mongolian-born, German-based vocalist Enkhjargal “Enji” Erkhembayar plays it safer compared to her more experimental earlier albums and a live show I caught last summer when she stretched her warm voice toward soaring vocalise, drawing on the Mongolian long-song tradition. Here, the sound is pleasant but more conventional easy-listening vocal jazz, somewhere between Norah Jones and Arooj Aftab.
Encryption-breaking and beyond - Finland to lead EU defence project on quantum technology
Finland has been named to lead an EU project on the use of quantum technology for defence purposes. This includes quantum computers, which are still under development but could be vastly more powerful and rapid than standard computers. The EU venture, which was proposed by Finland, is dubbed Quantum Enablers for Strategic Advantage (Quest). It was unveiled on Wednesday as part of the latest set of 11 projects under the EU’s Permanent Structured Cooperation (Pesco) programme.
Review | Songlines
Rating: ★★★ View album and artist details Artist/band: Áššu Label: Nordic Notes June/2025 Joik vocalist Ulla Pirttijärvi is among northern Finland’s strongest Indigenous voices. Pirttijärvi combines her powerful singing with West African influences in her trio, Áššu. The name means ‘Glowing Embers’, and that sense of warmth permeates the group’s second album.
April Jazz, Espoo, Finland
New York alto saxophonist Lakecia Benjamin charged right out of the gate with her “warmup tune” Trane – which was even more hair-raising than the version on last year’s Grammy-shortlisted Phoenix Reimagined live album. She’s on a tour named after the live album, and repeated much of it, even beginning her set with the same introduction, word-for-word. Still, this show never felt rote or routine.
Review | Songlines
Rating: ★★★★ View album and artist details Artist/band: Frigg Label: Bafe’s Factory May/2025 After 25 years of travelling the world, fiddle juggernaut Frigg rolls like a well-oiled machine – albeit with a few surprises. Now a six-piece, Frigg have welcomed members of a legendary clan of Kaustinen fiddlers dating back to the 1800s: Esko Järvelä of JPP and his sister Alina Kivivuori, along with her husband, sometime jazz musician Juho Kivivuori, on bass and guitar.
Review | Songlines
Rating: ★★★ View album and artist details Artist/band: Uusikuu Label: Nordic Notes May/2025 Uusikuu could just be the house band at the cosy local tavern of your dreams, with warm, relaxed vocals backed by accordion and fiddle, playing beloved standards and originals that sound like they should be standards. Two Finnish expats started the band near Stuttgart almost 20 years ago.
Business lobby: Finland must stick to climate target to ensure economic growth
In recent months, Finance Minister Riikka Purra (Finns) and several agricultural and transport groups have criticised Finland's legally mandated commitment to seek carbon neutrality within the next decade. Now the country's biggest business group, the Confederation of Finnish Industries (EK) has pushed back on calls for a looser climate policy. The EK reconfirmed its commitment to the 2035 target, suggesting that it is crucial to marketing Finnish firms' cleantech offerings abroad.
Review | Songlines
Rating: ★★★★ View album and artist details Artist/band: Ánnámáret Label: Uksi Productions April/2025 The Indigenous Sámi tradition of joik chanting thrives in many styles across the Sápmi region of northern Norway, Sweden and Finland, including wordless improvisation somewhere between yodelling, ululation and scat singing. Contemporary Sámi musicians have fused joik with genres from pop and rock to hip-hop and electronics.
Guevara: “We need flexibility in adult education policy, not rigid structures”
“Given the diverse nature of post-schooling education, we need flexibility in adult education policy, not rigid structures,” argues Robbie Guevara, President of International Council for Adult Education and Associate Professor at RMIT University in Melbourne.
Uwe Gartenschlaeger: Adult education is essential to tackle societal challenges
“If we want to live in peace and democracy, if we want to give everybody a fair chance not to be left behind, we need lifelong learning and adult learning,” says Uwe Gartenschlaeger, President of the EAEA. EAEA President Uwe Gartenschlaeger has a strong message to practitioners in adult learning and education: you’re essential. Adult educators face a lot of challenges around the world – and so do their societies.
Krishna Nagaraja: Finding a home amid polskas, baroque and metal rhythms
“I tend to connect people. Because I play the viola, that gives me this status as connector in an orchestra. I have to listen to both sides of the story, the bass and the treble,” says musician and composer Krishna Nagaraja. This role as a connector is not restricted to an orchestral context, though. Nagaraja recognises it in various settings – across styles and genres.
Flow Festival 2024, Helsinki
Jazz has been part of the multi-genre Flow Festival’s DNA since it was launched in 2004, featuring memorable shows by the likes of Pharoah Sanders, Brandee Younger, Kamasi Washington and Roy Ayers. The festival and the groovy Five Corners Quintet – both splicing retro and future sounds – were started around the same time by Tuomas Kallio, who remains at the festival’s helm. The band recorded with Mark Murphy and backed him at the second Flow before its members went off to active solo careers.
Isaiah Collier & The Chosen Few: The Almighty
Like a newly minted presidential candidate, Isaiah Collier brings an unexpected surge of energy, positivity and vision into 2024. The Almighty follows two releases last year: a final collaboration with late, great trumpeter Jaimie Branch and the direct-to-disc Parallel Universe, recorded just after this ambitious set – each on a single day. The writing, playing, arranging and overall vision here make this a strong contender for album of the year.
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