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A CONDENSED CV OF DR. SEPPO AHO January 2007

Born in Pori, southwestern in 1946.

Residence Rovaniemi since 1978, married and father of two daughters

Education: Ph.D. in regional economics and planning, University of London 1978. Lic.Soc.Sc. (theme regional policy), 1977. Research studies at Helsinki and five foreign universities (1972-77).

Professional career: Vice Dean of the Faculty of Business and Tourism at the University of Lapland 2004- Director of Development from 2005 Senior Researcher Fellow 2000 to 2004 at Faculty of Business and Tourism at the University of Lapland and invited (part time) Professor of Tourism at Preston University (USA) 2000-

Partner representative of the University of Lapland in the Finnish University network for Rural Studies 2004-

Visiting Professor at the Universities of Torun (Poland) and Kaunas (Lithuenia) in 2006, Kleipeda in 2005, la Sapienza University of Rome 2003 and 2004, in Tallin (Estonia), Lueneburg (Germany) 2002 and Veszprém (Hungary) in 2002 and 2004, San Francisco (USA) in 1993.

Deputy director at the Department of Business, Economics and Tourism at the University of Lapland 2000-02

Professor of tourism , University of Lapland 1994-99 and Preston University, USA 2000- (Founder of the first university study program for tourism and the first Professor of this field in Finland)

Docent at the Faculty of Education, University of Lapland, 1981- Docent at the Faculty of Economics and Administration, , 1986-

Chief of the Lapland Research Unit, 1991-94 (specializing in working life, entrepreneurship and tourism in Northern areas)

Director of the Centre for Continuing Education, Univ. of Lapland 1989-90 (organizing several intensive courses for tourism and other enterprisers)

Senior researcher at the Research Institute of Northern Finland, Lapland Unit 1978-88 (reports on unemployment, entrepreneurship and structural changes of economy)

Acting assistant professor of development policies at the University of Joensuu, Northern 1 2

Karelia 1978

Teaching and research positions at the University of Helsinki 1976-77.

Ph.D. scholar at University College London 1972-75.

Assisting researcher & planner at Pentti Ahola´s Architecture Office and Kaupunkisuunnittelu Oy, 1969-70.

Secretary (part- time) of the Youth Section of the Finnish National Committee for UNESCO, 1969-71.

Project experience: Director (from 2005) of the EDM Master Program in arts and tourism, finances mainly from the ESR funds.

Founder and director of a research & development project on “Second homes in the Finnish countryside”, starting 2004.

Founder and director of a project concerning innovations in tourism, housing and networking in the Finnish countryside (started in 2003)

Founder and director of a large attractivity of Finnish regions -project clarifying migration motivation and preferences of people to locate, 2000-02

Chief researcher and co-ordinator in a five years´ EU project on tourism expertise in Finland (Matkailun osaamiskeskus) 1995 - 99

Project director in a EU & TEKES project on new information technologies in tourism Enterprises of Lapland’

Organizer of some very successful voluntary projects: ’Kyläkaivokampanja’ for building 25 village wells in southern Tanzania in 1983 and the first very successful marketing compaign of ’Lapland as the Santa Claus’ Land’ in Japan in 1986.

Several other smaller projects on tourism, enterprises, new jobs, unemployment and

Publications include twelve books and some 160 scientific and popular knowledge articles. Recent publications include books on attractiveness of Finnish regions, media technologies in tourism (2000) and on the formation of emotional experiences in tourism. Own theme article on the birth and development stages of touristic experiences (’matkailuelämysten synty ja kehitysvaiheet’) also internationally introduced and recognized.

The most recent publications relevant for the project:

Aho, S. & T. Saarelainen & L. Suopajärvi (2004) Creating the North by Innovations.

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In Innovations in the Nordic Periphery. Ed. by Nils Aarsaether. Nordregio. Stockholm.

Aho, S. Long-Seosonal and Polarized Development in the Top of Europe: The Case Study of Northern Finland. In Abwanderung, Geburtenrueckgang und regionale Entwicklung. Ed. by C. Dienel. Verlag fuer Sozialwissenschaften. Wiesbaden.

Other roles Editor-in-chief and special reporter of “Matkailu” - the oldest journal for travel and tourism in Finland 1999-2001.

The most popular theme paper at the IFITT (International Federation for Information Technologies and Tourism) Seminar , Dipoli, Espoo in May 2000.

Memberships in several research societies including IFITT (International Federation for

Chairman of the Research Society for Lapland 1984-87, vice chair 1980-83.

Tens of key note speeches and papers at a great number of international and national conferences over the last 25 years.

Founder and editor-in-chief of the Academic Newsletter of Finnish Tourism Research SAMU (1993-98).

Memberships in national and international expert groups (e.g. for OECD). Executive Member (from 1995) in ATLAS: a world-wide association for tourism, leisure

President of the Finnish Tourist Association 1999-2000, vice-president in 1998.

Lecturing capasity in four languages (Finnish, English, Swedish and German).

Vice-chairman of the cultural committee (kulttuurilautakunta) of the Rovaniemi city 1993-2000.

Networking experience Executive member of the Nordic Research Networks (covering, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden) on the themes (1) “Inniovations and Institutions” and (2) “Place Reinvention”

Founder of the Finnish Network of Academic Tourism Researchers in 1991 and co- ordinator of this group until the establ. of the Finnish Society for Tourism Research.

Founding Member of the Finnish University Network for Tourism Studies (FUNTS) 1992-

The national core person in Finland and European Executive Committee Member for Regional Science Association in the 1980s (establishing the Finnish network of this field

Secretary of the joint Nordic NordREFO Working Group for new technologies 1982-86.

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Organizer of several seminairs and conferences, both national and international within themes of entrepreneurship, innovation, tourism and working life.

Founding Member (1992) and Board Member (1993-99) of the Finnish University

Secretary of a NordREFO Expert Group on new technologies 1982 to 1984.

Recent new networks include themes of emotional experiences and place reinvention.

Examples of recent international activities:

Developer of international exchange relations for the University of Lapland at the Universities of Dresden, Gothenburg, Kleipeda, Lueneburg, Madrid, Petrozavodsk, Rome, Tallinn, Torun, Veszprem and Vienna.

The only Finnish speaker in the Conference programs of ¤ ’Cultural Heritage, Man and Tourism’ organized by Asia-Europe Foundation organized in Hanoi, Vietnam, 5 to 7 Nov. 2001 ¤ ’Leading Festivals and Events in Europe’, Conference in Bonn, February 2002 ¤ ’ Reinventing a Tourism Destination’ in Dubrovnik, Croatia, 18 to 21 Oct. 2002 ¤ ’Tourism and Entrepreneurship’ in Radenci, Slovenia, 6 to 8 Nov. 2002. ¤ Invited expert to the UNESCO Seminar in Havana, Cuba, 3 to 6 Nov. 2003. ¤ Invited expert to the EU Seminar on Cultural Tourism and European Integration, Luxembourg, 21 to 22 April 2005 ¤ Invited key note speaker in Grosseto (Italy), Tromssa, Iniö and Kuronia (Liettua) in 2006

Other foreign experience: An Invited Expert (from end 2006) in United Nations World Tourism Organization Expert panel assessing changes in tourism development.

As an OECD expert group member 1987-8 evaluations of regional development in eight countries. Five years´ living abroad (mainly 1972 to 1976), of which four years studying at five universities in five countries. Several shorter academic conference and study trips.

University Studies abroad in Sweden, Germanies, Britain, Chechoslovakia., Ttraineeship work in Sweden, USA, Hungary, Poland and Yugoslavia., Language studies in Sweden, Britain, Germany, Norway, Iceland and Russia.

Language knowledge excellent in Finnish and English, good in Swedish, fair in German and (to be activated) satisfactory in Russian.

Hobbies Rotarian activities, skiing, theatre, opera and other forms of culture in winter,

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farm life, carpenter´s work, swimming and photography in summertime.

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