People

Here we introduce the project staff and the academic board.
Miika Tervonen

Miika Tervonen leads the Gatekeeping the Nation (GATE) -project. He is a university researcher at the Centre for European Studies at the Faculty of Social Sciences of the University of Helsinki, and his research focuses on histories of migration, minority politics and borders, as well as on nationalism and historiography.

Besides GATE-project, Miika is the team leader of the subproject Migration and the narratives of Europe as an 'Area of freedom, security and justice' in the Centre of Excellence in Law, Identity and European Narratives (Eurostorie). Additionally, he is currently working on a book called Writing the Past White: Nation, Race and Coloniality in Finnish National Histories.

Matti Välimäki

Matti Välimäki is a postdoctoral researcher in the GATE-project. Matti's areas of expertise include the development migration politics and legislation, forced migration, and public officers’ practices regarding foreigners. In addition, he specializes in science communication and research on political communication and political parties.

Matti is also a part of the Centre of Excellence in Law, Identity and European Narratives (Eurostorie), as a reasearcher in the subproject Migration and the narratives of Europe as an “Area of freedom, security and justice”.

Louis Clerc

Louis Clerc is a professor in contemporary history at the University of Turku. Louis' research interests include international history, Finnish foreign policy, public and cultural diplomacy as well as propaganda. In the GATE-project, he examines the role of consulates and diplomacy in Finnish deportation policy. 

Expertise and research interests:

  • International relations and foreign policy
  • diplomacy and public diplomacy
  • Propaganda

Louis Clerc's contact info on the University of Turku website.

Mette Kivistö

Mette Kivistö is a research assistant in the GATE-project. Currently she is studying a Master's degree in Social Research at the University of Helsinki. In her studies, Mette has focused especially on border and migration research.

Academic Board

Juhana Aunesluoma, Professor at the University of Helsinki, Finland. 

Synnøve Bendixsen, Professor at the University of Bergen, Norway.

Peter Gatrell, Emeritus Professor at the University of Manchester, United Kingdom.

Andrew Geddes, Professor at the European University Institute.

Jouni Häkli, Professor at the University of Tampere, Finland.

Johanna Leinonen, Academy Research Fellow at the University of Oulu, Finland. 

Eveliina Lyytinen, Senior Research Fellow at the Migration Institute of Finland.

Liza Schuster, Reader at the City University of London, United Kingdom.

John Torpey, Professor at the City University of New York, United States.

Hanna Tuominen, University Lecturer at the University of Helsinki, Finland.