Presentation of an evaluation of the Academy of Finland

Erik Arnold and Katharina Warta were at the Ministry of Education and Culture in Helsinki on Tuesday (1 March 2022) to present an evaluation of the Academy of Finland.

The objective of the evaluation was to produce a comprehensive view of the activities of the Academy of Finland based on international and national expertise and to find means for improving the Academy’s impact, operation and structures. Overall conclusion is that the Academy is working well, given the budgetary and policy constrains within which it functions, but that these constraints need to be addressed if the research and innovation system in Finland is once more to be well governed and can therefore allow the Academy to make a fuller contribution. The government needs a way to regain systemic perspective, and to decide how and to what extent it will tackle the societal challenges by thinking in terms of systemic transitions in addition to stable innovation systems. The current activities in government towards achieving the 4% target and reforming research and innovation funding are encouraging signs that this perspective can be regained, and a new dynamism injected into Finnish research and innovation policy. Based on the analysis and conclusions the evaluation gives recommendations to the government, to the Ministry and the Academy, and of the future role of the Academy

Read the full report here.

Watch the presentation here (the English part starts at -1.22.06).