Bioenergy lecture at Nipissing University

Nipissing University welcomesDr. Lasse Okkonen to campus on Wednesday, September 14, for a special lecture onAlternative Energy - BioPower in the EUand Finnish-Canadian Opportunities.
The lecture takes place from 5 – 6 p.m. in room H106.

Okkonen, from North Karelia University in Joensuu, Finland, is visiting Nipissing as part of the EU-CAN BioPower Transatlantic Exchange Partnership between Nipissing University, College communautaire du Noveau-Brunswick, North Karelia University of Applied Sciences and Slovak University of Agriculture. 

He will discuss comparisons of Nordic and Central European markets and identify opportunities for Finnish-Canadian cooperation in bioenergy.

This event is free and welcome to all to attend.

The emphasis of Okkonen’s work has been on sustainable energy development in the northern peripheral areas of Europe. In 2008-10, he coordinated the Northern Periphery Programme project, PELLETime – Solutions for competitive pellet production in medium size enterprises. His research work has mostly focused on the systems approach of natural resource utilization and renewable energy.

The EU-Can Bio-Power: Transatlantic Empowering the Skills, Knowledge and Know-how in Teaching and Learning Bio Energy Entrepreneurship project, is only one of 10 projects funded through Human Resources Skills for Development Canada in the 2010-13 competition.

The partnership between Canadian and European Union institutions is meant to increase awareness of the important subject of wood based bio energy as a renewable energy solution, as well as promote the positive impact of sustainable development. The project utilizes a multidisciplinary approach including technical aspects of wood based bio energy with a particular focus on the shared knowledge among the partners and the promotion of bio energy as a standard of development. The partner institutions will foster improved, better integration of bio energy practices by involving companies active in the field and preparing their future employees with the latest best practice techniques.

Over a two-year period, 18 Nipissing University students will be eligible for this exchange program, each receiving a $4,000 travel stipend. 

For information about the program and how to get involved, please contactKaren Strang,acting director of international initiatives at Nipissing.