Borderland - Securing the Future. Security Eastern Finland event 19. Nov 2024

Jukka Kopra

Opening Speaker

Mr. Jukka Kopra is a Member of Parliament since April 2011 and chairperson of the Defence Committee of the Finnish Parliament since 28.6.2023. Among his other current positions as a Member of the Parliament are the memberships of of the Speaker’s Council and the Subcommittee for Administration and Security as well as deputy memberships of the Finance Committee and the Finnish Delegation to the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly. In addition Mr. Kopra is the Vice Chair of the Finnish Delegation to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly.

Mr. Kopra represents National Coalition Party from the Electoral District of Southeast Finland. Prior to becoming a member of the Parliament of Finland, Mr. Kopra worked as an entrepreneur. He holds a Master of Science degree in industrial engineering from LUT University in Lappeenranta, Finland.

Tero Vihavainen

Keynote Speaker

Tero Vihavainen leads the Finnish Space Office and serves as Secretary General of the Finnish Space Committee. They represent Finland in the EU Space Programme, the EU Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA), and the European Space Agency (ESA). Working as a Chief Specialist for Space Policy at the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment, they bring extensive experience in R&D and business development in safety-critical systems, space, and defense. Their mission is to make Finland the world’s most advanced space-operating environment, benefiting society as a whole.

Jyrki Saarinen

Keynote Speaker

“Light guards and protects us”

Modern defense and security are based on photonics, the science and technology of light: fighter jets and laser guns to cameras in satellites and drones; night vision and tracking&guidance systems to VR/AR headsets.

Professor Jyrki Saarinen from Center for Photonics Scienes, University of Eastern Finland UEF speaks about Photonics Center, the home of Photonics Joensuu, a cooperative community of companies and service providers, researchers, students, events, and decades of experience.

Attached to the UEF campus in Joensuu, at the heart of business, leading photonics research and technology, Photonics Center offers companies the experts, facilities, and joint equipment needed to grow and develop their business. Its seamless cooperation with research, education, and business facilitates innovations, prototyping, advanced manufacturing & measuring, as well as large-scale industrial project coordination and customized research.