Distinguished university community members awarded in JYU's annual celebration

The traditional annual celebration of the Ģ��ֱ�� was held on 8 March, 2023. At the event, various awards were presented to distinguished researchers and teachers from the University. The Jyväskylä University Foundation granted nine awards of €3,000 each. In addition, annual award from the Ellen and Artturi Nyyssönen Foundation (€5,000) was bestowed.

Published

8.3.2023

	The Good Teacher Award was granted to University Teacher Toni Taipalus from the Faculty of Information Technology. The nominations from students and the Student Union noted Toni’s expertise and his dedication to his students and teaching. Taipalus teaches courses on databases.
The Good Leadership Award was given to University Researcher Maarit Lehti from the Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences. Maarit has developed a training management approach in a systematic and goal-orientated manner. She has turned the laboratory center into a community where everyone can trust each other.
	The Good Dissertation Award was given to Olli-Pekka Nuuttila, PhD in sport and health sciences. In his doctoral dissertation on training and testing, he studied the effects of different types of endurance training and endurance training periods on recovery and performance in athletes. The work is valuable for the research community in the field as well as to other users of the research data.
The Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Corporate Collaboration Award was granted to Professor Marja Tiirola (the Department of Biological and Environmental Science). In 2018, Marja Tiirola and Veli-Mikko Puupponen founded their start-up company, BiopSense. The company’s main product is an innovative approach to cell-free DNA isolation. BiopSense cooperates with various hospitals, and it offered analyses of coronavirus tests during COVID-19 and expanded its operations to diagnostics services.
	The Developer of Teaching Award was granted to University Teacher Salme Korkala (the Centre for Multilingual Academic Communication MOVI), Educational Planner Hannele Rajaniemi (the Institute of Educational Leadership) and University Teacher Eleni Moens (the Centre for Multilingual Academic Communication MOVI). The members of the teaching team have investigated the use of technology in teaching development and shared innovative solutions during webinars for the benefit the entire university community. They have trained teachers in hybrid working and teaching practices and in using new tools.
The Science Communication Award was given to Professor Sanna Karkulehto from the Department of Music, Art and Culture Studies. Karkulehto is the editor-in-chief of the online publication Wisdom Letters. The publication contains articles on sustainable development, sustainability transitions and planetary wellbeing. It includes practical recommendations for use in decision-making and education. Karkulehto is also the editor and author of numerous scientific and non-fiction books.
	The Scientific Breakthrough Award was granted to University Lecturer Antti Sihvonen from JSBE. The assessment of new ideas is an integral part of the product development process and determines which ideas are developed further. Sihvonen’s article breaks down intuition, systematic analysis, and sensemaking into concrete activities that evaluators can use in the analysis of new ideas.
The Influencer Award was granted to Professor of Practice Martti J. Kari from the Faculty of Information Technology. In times of crisis, Kari has given his expertise to society, which is a combination of academic and practical work experience in the field of security and intelligence. His expertise contributed to the financial aid granted by the Ministry of Education and Culture for the strengthening of education and research at JYU.
	The Community Builder Award was granted to Development Manager Minna Heikkilä (University Services/HR) and Education Manager Jani Kurhinen (Avance/EMBA). Kurhinen and Heikkilä have created the JYULead training programme, which has promoted the university’s sense of community and provided a perspective to moving forward on the path outlined in the university’s strategy. Over 160 supervisors participated in the training programme.
The award of the Ellen and Artturi Nyyssönen Foundation was granted to Assistant Professor Tuomas Orponen from the Department of Mathematics and Statistics. Orponen is a productive researcher who has achieved significant international visibility. His research focuses on geometric measure theory and fractal geometry. Orponen’s research has helped to solve several well-known problems and in the development of new research methods.