Professor of Environmental Law and Head of the UEF Law School Tapio Määttä (53), LLD, has been appointed as the new Academic Rector of the University of Eastern Finland. The university’s Board made the appointment on 1 October.
When making the decision, the Board placed specific emphasis on Määttä’s diverse and extensive understanding of the university’s activities and structures, his achievements in the development of education, as well as his skills to collaborate across faculty and discipline boundaries.
“Määttä’s experience and achievements are best in line with the qualities required of the university’s Academic Rector. He has profound understanding of the world of research funding and its challenges, as well as of the needs for development in modern academic education. He is also an outstanding communicator and a distinguished teacher,” Lea Ryynänen-Karjalainen, Chair of the UEF Board, says.
Tapio Määttä has served as Professor of Environmental Law since 2000, first at the University of Joensuu and later at the University of Eastern Finland. Määttä has served as Head of the Department of Law and Vice Dean of the Faculty of Law, Economics and Business Administration of the University of Joensuu, and as Head of the Law School of the University of Eastern Finland.
Määttä obtained his Master of Laws degree from the University of Lapland in 1993, and his Doctor of Laws degree from the University of Helsinki in 1999. He has held several research and teaching positions, led various research projects and served in expert roles in legislative drafting.
A total of nine persons applied for the position of Academic Rector, and six of the applicants were interviewed.
Määttä will start as the university’s new Academic Rector on 1 January 2020. The Academic Rector works in partnership with Rector Jukka Mönkkönen. The division of responsibilities between the rectors will be agreed upon later.
For further information, please contact:
Chair of the UEF Board Lea Ryynänen-Karjalainen, tel. +358 50 337 712
Academic Rector (from 1 January 2020 onwards)
Professor Tapio Määttä, +358 50 575 1589
