Speakers

Keynote speakers

Yrjö Engeström

Professor of Adult Education

Yrjö Engeström is a professor of adult education and director of the Center for Research on Activity, Development and Learning (CRADLE) at the University of Helsinki. He is also professor emeritus of communication at the University of California, San Diego. Engeström applies and develops cultural-historical activity theory as a framework for the study of transformations and learning processes in work activities and organizations. He is widely known for his theory of expansive learning and for the interventionist methodology of developmental work research. His books include From Teams to Knots: Activity-Theoretical Studies of Collaboration and Learning at Work (Cambridge, 2008) and Learning by Expanding: An Activity-Theoretical Approach to Developmental Research (Cambridge, 2014).

Annalisa Sannino

Professor of Education

Annalisa Sannino is a professor of education and leader of the research group RESET (Research Engagement for Sustainable and Equitable Transformations) at Tampere University. Professor Sannino develops and brings into use conceptual tools and interventionist methodologies from cultural-historical activity theory to foster collective analyses of major societal challenges. These analyses are carried out together with stakeholders and practitioners. RESET’s Change Laboratory research in the fields related to the eradication of youth homelessness in Finland are attracting national and international attention and are consolidating the collaboration of the research group with numerous organizations at the local, city-level and national level.

Speaker

Taveeshi Gupta

Director of Research

Dr. Taveeshi Gupta is the Director of Research, Evaluation and Learning at Promundo-US. Her expertise lies in understanding the role of gender norms in perpetuating violence against women and children, creating inequitable home and workplace environments, and reinforcing inter-generational transmission of harmful gender identities for boys and girls. At Promundo-US, she manages the global portfolio of research projects. She has co-authored the State of the World’s Father’s report in 2019, co-authored the Paid Leave in the Pandemic report in 2020, led the Bullying Crisis report in 2018, and co-authored several other technical reports on child marriage in Georgia and adolescent sexual and reproductive health in Rwanda. Taveeshi has been trained in rigorous mixed methodological research and is widely published. Before joining Promundo-US, she worked as an independent consultant with Overseas Development Institute, UNICEF ROSA, Plan International, and Harvard’s Kennedy School in a variety of contexts globally, particularly South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. She has a BA and MA in Psychology from University of Delhi, and a PhD in Developmental Psychology from New York University

Kohlberg Memorial Lecture

Anne Birgitta Pessi

Professor of Practical Theology

Anne Birgitta Pessi has been a professor of practical theology at the University of Helsinki, Faculty of Theology, since 2012. She is a member of the Finnish Academy of Science and Letters since 2012. Pessi holds the title of a Docent both in Theology, church and social studies (University of Helsinki) and in Sociology, empirical and welfare sociology (University of Eastern Finland). Before becoming a professor Pessi worked from 2005 to 2013 as a Fellow (from 2008 to 2013 as a Academy Research Fellow) in the Collegium for Advanced Studies, University of Helsinki. For the last four years she worked also as the Deputy Director of the Collegium.

Pessi has been awarded several international and national academic prizes, such as the prestigious Nils Klim prize (in 2008) and the Jutikkala prize (in 2013). Her dissertation gained awards (e.g. by the International society for third-Sector Research, in 2006). Pessi has several national academic positions of trust; for instance, at the University of Helsinki, she is a member of the Scientific Council (2013-2014) and a Board Member of the Network for European Studies (since 2007). Pessi is a member of several international and national academic societies, such as International Society for the Sociology of Religion, European Research Network on Philanthropy, International Society for Third-Sector Research, and Society for the Scientific Study of Religion. She also serves in several national positions of trust in public sector and in NGOs. Pessi directed several multidiciplinary projects: CoPassion, “The Revolutionary Power of Compassion” (www.copassion.fi), from 2015 to 2017, CoCare “Cooperation in Care – meaning systems, chances, and conflicts” from 2014-2018, and RiTS “Religion in Transforming Solidarity”, in 2008-2011.

Pessi’s research interests cover particularly compassion, altruism, meaningfulness, volunteering,  civil society, togetherness, church social work and experiences of good life, as well as individualized religiosity and experiences of the sacred. Her publications include, for instance, over 40 referee journal articles, and over 200 titles. Currently Pessi works, together with her two research teams, on analysis of the power of compassion in corporate business and the public sector as well as on content and reader experiences of self help literature and the construction of self in this genre.