Happy Tuesday!

This newsletter is one of the last ones we are publishing for this spring semester, the final letter being published on Tuesday 27 May. That does not mean there isn't a lot of things to catch up on, so be sure to fully check the feed out weekly until that!

Have a nice week everyone!

Kind regards,

Joona Rantala | Coordinator of International Affairs, Joensuu Campus

ISYY Council Meeting 15 May at 5 pm

ISYY Representative Council will hold a meeting this week on Thursday 15 May at 5 pm. You are welcome to follow the meeting in classrooms or via the livestream on ISYY's YouTube channel.

In the meeting, the Representative Council will discuss, among other things, the selection of delegates to the SYL’s General Assembly, supplementary budget proposal and how to elect student representatives to the University Collegiate Body.

The meeting is held in rooms N100 (Natura, Joensuu) and SN201 (Snellmania, Kuopio). The meeting notice can be found on the ISYY website.

North Karelia Pride Parade and Park Festival on Saturday 17 May 

ISYY is participating in the Pride parade and in cooperation with Pohjois-Karjalan Seta ry and Fiktio ry organising the Park Festival in Joensuu on Saturday 17 May!

Equality and transparency are important values for ISYY. ISYY encourages all its members to take part in the Pride parade and park festival, as well as to wear student overalls to form a rainbow.

The parade starts moving at 3 pm from the yard of art museum Onni and ends at 4 pm at the Ilosaari park, which features a picnic, music, Drag workout and, of course, great company. ISYY and Qirjava ry have their own area in Ilosaari that brings together all students. In the picnic-area you can find ISYY’s glitter make-up station where you can decorate yourself with glitter for the evening's Pride party.

The first 150 students at the ISYY’s picnic-area will be given ISYY's Pride-Hemmo overall patch as a memory.

ISYY Executive Board signed Seta ry joint statement calling for a ban on conversion therapy.

Parliament has approved the Rikkomaton (Unbroken) citizens’ initiative, which proposes legislative action to prohibit conversion practices in Finland.

– Conversion therapy is a form of psychological violence and must not be tolerated. The government must now act to defend human rights and democracy, Noora Saramäki, Chair of the ISYY board, comments.

The statement is pusblished in Finnish on Seta’s website.

Return your Survival Package on Friday 6 June at the latest!

You can return your Survival Package any day before the deadline within ISYY office opening hours. The offices are closed from 2 of June onwards, but Joona will be present to receive packages on that week every day from Monday to Friday, 11 AM - 3 PM. Just knock on the door!

You will be refunded the deposit of 30€ if the package is returned complete, in good condition and clean. If someone else is returning the package for you, inform Joona in advance and keep in mind that the deposit is given to the one returning the package in cash. Any broken, dirty, or missing items will be deducted from the deposit!

What did you think of the Survival Package? Give us feedback and help us improve the service: Survival Package feedback form.

Few days left to design the cover of ISYY's next student calendar

Does your heart beat for graphic design? Do you want fame and fortune? We have a chance for you to shine! Let loose your creative self and design the cover of the ISYY Student Calendar for the academic year 2025–2026. The winning design will be the cover of our next student calendar, which will be available to collect in approximately mid-August 2025.

The winner will receive a 100 euro gift card to S-Group (can be used in markets like Prisma and S-market, in restaurants, hair salons, hotels etc. that operate under the S-Group). The winner will be contacted personally via email. The user rights of the winning design will be forfeited to ISYY.

Send the final design with your contact info (name, email, phone number) via e-mail to ISYY's Communications Specialist (tiedotus(at)isyy.fi) no later than 15 May 2025.

Eurovision Viewing Parties cancelled

ISYY board decided in its board meeting on 7 May 2025 to cancel the ISYY Eurovision viewing parties on both campuses due to low attendance, and feedback received from the events.

The purpose of the viewing parties was to offer students an opportunity to gather around music and culture, and board aims to organize a new alcohol-free music-themed event at a better time in the fall.

ISYY Club Meetings

All club meetings (except Academic & Historical Dance Joensuu & JEIS) are held weekly in ISYY's meeting room in Haltia-building, 2nd floor (Yliopistokatu 7).

More information and a full list of ISYY's clubs in Joensuu can be found on ISYY's webpage: ISYY Clubs in Joensuu

• Magic The Gathering Guild meeting Mon 3 pm - 8 pm
• Academic & Historical Dance Joensuu Mon 6 pm - 8 pm (Educa, E200)
• Joensuu's Exchange and International Students Mon 4 pm - 6 pm (Aurora, AU206)
• LUOMIO! Literary Arts club Tue 6 pm - 8 pm 
• JOOJAKU meeting Wed 4 pm - 8 pm
• Joensuu Board Gamers meeting Thu 3 pm - 8 pm
• ISYY Chess Club meeting Fri 4 pm - 8 pm

SYKETTÄ in summer 2025

All summer activities are put together on SYKETTÄ website. You can participate in all activities with both SYKETTÄ stickers.

In summer sports calendar:

• Stairs outdoor gym workouts
• Summer classes of JoenVoLi
• Instructed cycling tours
• Ball sports turns at Mehtimäki hall and Länsikatu school
• Portti54 and Aurora gym are open throughout the summer

Tikkarinne gym is closed 16.6.-10.8.2025. Joensuu Areena gym is open according to the opening hours of the Areena.

Transfer of new SYKETTÄ website 26.-28.5.2025

SYKETTÄ Joensuu will launch a new website and mobile application at the end of May. The website will be transferred between 26.-28.5. Three days have been reserved for the transfer, but the new website and mobile application may be in use earlier. All users' information will be automatically transferred to the new website and old users will not need to register again. You can log in with your old, familiar username.

Kilometrikisa cycling competition has kicked off!

SYKETTÄ is participating in the Kilometrikisa cycling competition, which will be held between 1.5.-30.9.2025. UEF Joensuu campus and Karelia UAS students and staff members are welcome to attend SYKETTÄ Joensuu team!

Kilometrikisa is a light-hearted competition where every team member will record their cycling kilometers and the team with the highest number of kilometers will win. Join the SYKETTÄ Joensuu team as we aim for a new record!

UEF info session on 28 May 2025

Welcome to a UEF info session on Wednesday 28 May 2025 starting at 9:00. The topics of the UEF info session include new openings in research, innovation and research training, as well as the development of academic leadership at UEF and calls for applications for unit head positions. 

The event will be attended by Rector Tapio Määttä, Vice Rector for Research Jussi Pihlajamäki and Vice Rector for Education Laura Hirsto, as well as Director of Administration Tuomo Meriläinen. 

A link to the event is available on UEF Intranet News. You can ask questions and provide comments in advance or during the event in the UEF info session community in Viva Engage. 

A recording of the info session will be published after the event on Viva Engage.

Several exceptions to library opening hours in May

Joensuu Campus Library is closed on Thursday 22 and Friday 23 May 2025 due to library’s development and staff wellbeing days. However, the facilities are available to customers with a personal 24/7 access badge. 

Due to Ascension Day, all library offices will close on Wednesday 28 May 2025 as early as 1 pm and will be closed on Thursday 29 May 2025.

The slightly narrower opening hours of the summer will take effect at all library offices from Monday 26 May 2025. You can find them, and the exceptional opening hours mentioned above, on our website. 

In April 2025, the City of Joensuu and Joensuu's Elli organized a hackathon idea
competition to find new ideas for improving student housing

The winner was the Vivunity team, whose idea was to enhance co-living by developing a tool to find suitable roommates.

Now we want to test the idea in practice, so we are looking for three students to live in an apartment provided by Elli for June and July, selected using Vivunity's algorithm. Elli offers the apartment free of charge for 2 months, after which it is possible to continue living with a regular rental agreement. The apartment is furnished, and the residents will also receive some extra benefits during their stay.

Apply to join the experiment by filling out the form to find the best possible roommates.

We believe that comfort starts with good neighbors. Apply by May 18th!

The sunny spring weather brings back the YUFE Academy, offering free lectures, workshops, and sessions by YUFE Alliance universities.

This round includes online and onsite events, pan-European conversations on key competences, and a panel on trust in the EU judiciary.

The main hybrid event, "Skills of Critical Thinking," will be held at four partner universities, with the University of Eastern Finland (UEF) in Joensuu hosting the main event alongside SciFest. Other events will be co-hosted by the Universities of Essex, Maastricht, and Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń.

On 22 May at 16:00 (Finnish time), Professor Heidi Hyytinen (UEF) will give a lecture on critical thinking skills, followed by a workshop and a European-wide idea exchange. Register via the YUFE Virtual Campus to participate and receive materials.

May exchange application period still open!

In May, students may apply for exchanges during spring 2026. Application period is open until 3:00 PM, 15 May 2025.

Included in the application period are Erasmus+ Nordlys, YUFE, bilateral and ISEP exchanges. More information about applying is in Kamu’s calls for applications.

More information about student exchange options is in Kamu’s Study Abroad pages.

Apply and see the world!

Kesän avaus / Summer opening 23.5. - 24.5.

The Summer Opening event 23.-24.5. at Joensuu Market Square marks the beginning of the summer season in North Karelia.

During this two-day market event, various tourism operators from our region, North Karelian villages, as well as numerous tourist destinations with their operators, businesses, summer theaters, and summer events, will be presenting themselves.

Weekly Feed is the English language newsletter of the Student Union of the University of Eastern Finland (ISYY). You are receiving this letter on your email because you are a member of ISYY and are studying at Joensuu campus or because you have joined the mailing list yourself. 

Weekly Feed provides you with current information on matters related to the Student Union, UEF or other organisations close to students, such as FSHS. In addition, the newsletter provides you with information on events taking place at campus or the campus city.

Weekly Feed is published on Tuesdays during the academic year, with the exception of holidays and a few other days. If you do not want to receive the newsletter anymore, you can unsubscribe the letter via the unsubscription link  located on the top of the letter. 

You will find more information on ISYY's newsletters  and data protection on ISYY's website.