We do multidisciplinary project cooperation with working and business life. We improve wellbeing, competitiveness and training and develop new products, services and operating models to meet the needs of operators in our region.
GameON
The GameON project aims to help unemployed individuals and those outside the workforce, aged 16 to 54, find their way back to employment and improve their well-being through gaming. The project focus on strengthening participants’ digital skills, enhancing their social abilities, and assisting them in discovering new career paths.
Theme: gaining work skills and well-being through gaming
Duration: 1 April 2024 – 30 June 2026
Contact: Kimmo Pakarinen, tel. +358 44 785 6034, kimmo.pakarinen@savonia.fi
Balance to work
We promote working-age professionals in early childhood education, care, cleaning and food service in the North Savo region, and we support the balance between work and free time, and we strive to prevent and reduce burnout at work.
Theme: promoting endurance at work and the balance between work and free time
Duration: 1 September 2023 – 28 February 2026
Contact: Merja Ala-Kotila, tel. +358 44 785 6057, merja.ala-kotila@savonia.fi
Together for Inclusion – Mieliteko 2.0
We promote the ability to act and work, inclusion and mental wellbeing of the individuals who are unemployed, non-working,or otherwise at a vulnerable position in Northern Savonia, aged 16 to 64.
Theme: promoting inclusion and mental wellbeing
Duration: 1 October 2023 – 30 September 2027
Contact: Tanja Moilanen, tel. +358 44 785 6971, tanja.moilanen@savonia.fi
The Pathways to Community Adaptability in Elderly Work
Our goal is to build alternative paths for elderly care organizations to transition to community management.
Theme: developing community orientation in elderly work
Duration: 1 August 2023 – 31 August 2025
Contact: Satu Pirskanen, tel. + 358 44 785 6480, satu.pirskanen@savonia.fi
Measured and guided exercise service for the elderly respiratory and circulatory systems for those with diseases
We increase exercise and everyday activity in the long term, improve functional capacity and quality of life, and evaluate the effects of the intervention on the use of health services.
Theme: randomized and controlled exercise intervention for elderly people from Northern Savonia with diseases of the respiratory and/or circulatory system. Research project.
Duration: 1 September 2023 – 31 July 2026
Contact: Marja Äijö, tel. +358 44 785 6425, marja.aijo@savonia.fi
Cultural Diversity for Study Paths
We promote the application of groups underrepresented in higher education – for example, immigrants and Romani people – to higher education, as well as supporting attachment to the community in the Eastern Finland region.
Theme: multiculturalism and equality
Duration: 1 October 2023 – 30 September 2026
Contact: Mirka Niskala, tel. +358 44 785 6972, mirka.niskala@savonia.fi
NeuroChallenge
We increase information on issues affecting brain health and create new innovations to support aging and brain diseases.
Theme: brain health of the elderly
Duration: 1 January 2023 – 31 December 2026
Contact: Antti Kotimaa, tel. +358 44 785 6449, antti.kotimaa@savonia.fi
WellbeingVerse Services
The aim is to help organizations develop Metaverse comprehensive solutions to solve the challenges in the health and welfate sector.
Theme: Metaverse including Extended Reality (XR), Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Wearable Technology (WT), with key elements being three-dimensional virtual worlds, avatars, virtual objects, and digital twins.
Duration: 1 April 2025 – 30 June 2027
Contact: Kimmo Pakarinen, tel. +358 44 785 6034, kimmo.pakarinen@savonia.fi
RoboMoveAI
We improve the intelligence and mobility of autonomous systems, increase the efficiency of applications, and expand their use in natural resource and rescue sectors.
Theme: autonomous systems uses and possibilities
Duration: 1 April 2025 – 31 December 2026
Contact: Maskulainen Paavo, tel. +358 44 785 5626, paavo.maskulainen@savonia.fi
The Nuoren elo
Kela’s Nuoren elo course is a new rehabilitation service intended for young people aged 16–29 who have been diagnosed with depression or anxiety disorder. The course provides young people with information about depression or anxiety disorder, as well as support for coping with everyday challenges and discovering their strengths and resources. The course supports the young person’s functional capacity, transition to studies or working life.
Theme: Implementation, effectiveness, and development needs of the Nuoren elo course
Duration: 1 January 2025 – 31 March 2027
Contact: Anu Kinnunen, tel. +358 44 785 6184, anu.kinnunen@savonia.fi
VAASI – Developing Professional Competencies for Demanding Residential Care for Children and Youth
We scan, strengthen, and renew expertise in demanding substitute care in collaboration with substitute care workers and experts by experience.
We develop digital learning modules that enable all child protection professionals to update and enhance their skills.
Theme: strengthening expertise in substitute care within child protection
Duration: 1 August 2023 – 31 March 2026
Contact: Riitta-Liisa Kumpulehto, tel. +358 44 785 6890, riitta-liisa.kumpulehto@savonia.fi
Work and Mental Wellbeing – Mieliteko 2.0
We aim to improve psychological safety in work communities by increasing trauma awareness among leaders, supervisors, and employees. Increased trauma awareness helps remove the stigma associated with trauma, enabling more open discussions about trauma and its effects, which in turn enhances work endurance and the well-being of the work community.
Theme: psychological safety in work communities, increased trauma awareness
Duration: 1 January 2024 – 31 May 2026
Contact: Katariina Moilanen tel. +358 44 785 6266, katariina.moilanen@savonia.fi
NEXT-VET Neurofeedback and Exergaming Vocational Education
NEXT-VET project enhances student well-being in vocational education by integrating exergaming and neurofeedback. It aims to improve cognitive and physical health, engagement, and learning outcomes. The expected outcomes include validated tools, educator training modules, and implementation guidelines.
This is an Erasmus+ KA220 project wich includes partners from the Netherlands, Finland, Germany, Spain, and Portugal. The Amsterdam-Flevoland Vocational school from Holland manages the project.
Theme: neurofeedback, exergaming, wellbeing, education
Duration: November 2025 – October 2028
Contact: Salla Lommi, tel. +358 44 785 6668, salla.lommi@savonia.fi
M3DTech – Technological transformation in Medical Sciences through Virtual Reality for Innovations in Higher Education
The project aims to modernize medical education by integrating Virtual Reality Learning (VRL) into healthcare curricula. The project develops VR-based modules aligned with industry needs and establishes an infrastructure and training for VRL adoption. It also focuses on enhancing collaboration among universities, healthcare professionals, and industry stakeholders. The consortium includes partners form Albania, Kosovo, Spain, Lithuania and Finland.
Theme: digitalization, VR, healthcare and curricula modernization
Duration: 36 months
Contact: Paola Kontro, tel. +358 44 785 6934, paola.kontro@savonia.fi
STEP – Supporting Trauma-informed Higher Education Practices
The project aims to develop a trauma-informed teaching framework and material to strenghten educators´s kills. This will improve the pyscological safety, inclusion and academic success of students.
Theme: mental health, trauma-informed practices in higher education
Duration: October 2025 – September 2027
Contact: Pirjo Pehkonen, +358 44 785 6475, pirjo.pehkonen@savonia.fi
Safely at Home
The aim is to identify the home fire safety and risk of falling among home-dwelling elderly in order to safety measures can be correctly anticipated and targeted in the future. Living safely at home helps support the resilience of the service system.
Theme: eldery care at home
Duration: August 2025 – December 2026
Contact: Maria Luojus, +358 44 785 6083, maria.luojus@savonia.fi