The University of Eastern Finland leads the Environmental Collaboration and Conflict Resolution (ECCR) network and a course series of the same name, both of which promote collaboration among higher education institutions in education and research on environmental collaboration and conflict mediation. More than 500 researchers, students, and various environmental stakeholders, including organisations, ministries, and companies, have been involved in the network and ECCR courses over the years.
“The facilitation of constructive and long-term environmental collaboration requires methodological expertise and listening skills. Collaboration and conflict mediation skills should be seen as civic skills, just like first aid skills,” says Professor Irmeli Mustalahti, Director of the ECCR network at the University of Eastern Finland.
Every year, over 50 international participants and teachers from over 10 countries attend the ECCR course, either in person or online. Over the past decade, training has been organised in Finland, Denmark, Mexico, Uganda, Tanzania, and Indonesia. This year, the ECCR 2026 course will be held at the University of Eastern Finland’s Joensuu Campus on 17–21 August, focusing on collaborative environmental governance and environmental conflict mediation.
Part of the UEF Summer School, the course is offered by the subject of environmental policy. The themes of the five-day intensive course include environmental collaboration and mediation methods related to natural resource conflicts, as well as citizen participation in governing and protecting natural resources.
In addition to researchers from the University of Eastern Finland, the course teachers include members of the ECCR network from Portland State University in the United States, the College of Business Education (CBE) in Tanzania, Universitas Muhammadiyah Yogyakarta in Indonesia, and UNESCO’s biosphere reserve network, which, in Finland, includes the North Karelia and the Archipelago Sea Biosphere Reserves.
“In addition to researchers and master’s- and doctoral-level students, representatives of environmental organisations, the private sector and various ministries from countries including Finland, the Netherlands, Indonesia, Tanzania and the US also attend this annual course,” says Ida Herdieckerhoff, the coordinator of the ECCR network at the University of Eastern Finland.
This year course focuses on concrete ways to mediate conflicts between different actors and introduces various collaborative and participatory methods and their application in environmental collaboration, particularly mining-related challenges and opportunities. The course includes an excursion to the Pampalo gold mine in Hattuvaara, Ilomantsi.
“A collaborative approach to natural resources governance, one that addresses environmental, economic and social needs, is essential for building sustainable and long-term solutions. Such an approach must be promoted in international forums and at the national level. However, it is equally important to act locally, as many environmental conflicts are inherently local. Training opportunities, such as the ECCR course series, can help develop the expertise needed to advance collaboration at all these levels,” notes Senior Researcher Ubaldus Tumaini of the College of Business Education (CBE) in Tanzania.
The next Environmental Collaboration and Conflict Resolution course will be offered online in the spring semester of 2027, under the auspices of the UniPID network and offered by the subject of environmental policy at University of Eastern Finland. Tanzania will offer the next in-person course in the autumn of 2027. Currently, the Ministry of Education and Culture of Finland funds the ECCR network.
