Donation from Finnish Fire Protection Fund enables a new professorship in rescue and crisis management at Tampere University

The new professorship in Rescue and Crisis Management is based in the Faculty of Management and Business, within the unit of administrative sciences. The professorship examines rescue services and crisis management from a public administration and leadership perspective, focusing on their role in society’s overall security system. Research focuses on the organisation and leadership of rescue services, decision-making and risk management, as well as fire prevention in both normal conditions and situations involving disruptions and crises.

Finnish Fire Protection Fund’s funding covers a significant part of the professorship for a five-year period and together with Tampere University’s own funding, enables the development of a long-term research and education framework. The grant supports a new, open and impactful research direction that complements the traditionally technology oriented research in the fields of safety and rescue services.

Research supporting practical development

The professorship is closely linked to the activities of the SEG research group in security governance, which focuses on preparedness, crisis management and societal resilience. At the same time, it supports Tampere University’s strategic research profile in security studies. Research is conducted in collaboration with authorities, rescue services and other security actors to ensure that research-based knowledge directly supports the practical development, decision-making and preparedness of rescue services.

From a societal perspective, the professorship strengthens the strategic development of the rescue sector, the prevention of accidents and fires, and multi-actor crisis management. It also enhances society’s ability to respond to changing and increasingly complex security risks and promotes overall societal resilience.

Building long-term impact in the rescue sector

The Finnish Fire Protection Fund supported professorship is among the first of its kind in Europe. It brings rescue and crisis management more firmly into the research and education of public administration and management and creates new opportunities for multidisciplinary collaboration between the social sciences and technical fields.

“With this grant, Finnish Fire Protection Fund aims to create conditions for long-term and impactful research that promotes fire prevention and the development of rescue services. The aim is for the professorship to strengthen competence, education and the use of research-based knowledge within rescue services, and to support the development of the sector beyond the funding period.”, comments Johanna Herrala, Secretary-General of Finnish Fire Protection Fund.