State awards research led by Hanna Ylöstalo for broadening the economic discourse
The 2025 State Award recipients share the common purpose of making the invisible visible. The Committee for Public Information (TJNK) notes that the awardees give voice to the marginalised, challenge dominant structures and invite the public to view the world with curiosity, empathy and critical thinking.
For Hanna Ylöstalo’s research group, this means inclusive and accessible discussions on the economy.
TJNK praised the research group for not bypassing inequality in its various forms as they critically examine the prevailing economic ideologies and power relations.
“The public debate on the economy and economic policy is often narrow and male-dominated, which tends to reduce the economy to market-based monetary transactions, leaving out vast areas of economic activity,” Ylöstalo explains.
By contrast in feminist economic theory, the research topic is also understood as reproductive labour i.e. work and activities that sustain societies and economies and ultimately support life itself.
“From the feminist perspective, the economy includes caring for people and the environment, education, cleaning, volunteer work, childbirth and childcare. Such work is undertaken as waged labour especially in the public sector, but it also involves much unpaid work,” Ylöstalo says and points out that mostly women do this work as both paid and unpaid labour. The work not only supports other economic activities but also creates value in its own right.
Ylöstalo, along with postdoctoral researchers Heini Kinnunen, Emma Lamberg and Inna Perheentupa, received the award for their book Feminismiä talouteen. Opas kriittiseen talouslukutaitoon (Gaudeamus 2024).
The Ministry of Education and Culture grants the State Awards for Public Information annually on the proposal of the Committee for Public Information.
Bringing research-based knowledge to the public
The book is based on the three-year Kone Foundation-funded research project which Ylöstalo led at the University of Turku.
Ylöstalo was appointed Associate Professor of Gender Studies at Tampere University in 2024. She earned her doctorate at the University of Tampere in 2012. Her dissertation is a study of the meanings given to gender and equality in gender equality work undertaken at workplaces.
The feminist economy book contributes to the field of feminist political economy where economic phenomena are analysed as inherently political. The economy is understood as a socially constructed system that shapes gender relations in society.
Ylöstalo emphasises that reaching a broad audience is not at odds with academic publishing. The awarded book is a peer-reviewed scientific study.
“We have written a scholarly book for the general public. Receiving the Public Information Award is incredibly rewarding because it was important to us to reach a wide audience. We do not simplify the message as we keep a tight hold on the concepts. The theories and research methods are all there, that is, everything that makes scientific research scientific is included”, Ylöstalo says.
The researchers explain the concepts to the readers and use, among other things, info boxes to summarise the information. Readers who want to engage in economic debate get key facts to support the discussions.
Photo: Jonne Renvall/Tampere UniversityEconomic debate must start from everyday life
Ylöstalo has been invited to speak about feminist political economy to NGOs and political organisations. Her research group aims to extend public debate and widely anchor their research to society. The researchers want to provide tools for critical thinking, enabling people to participate in economic discussions from their own perspectives.
According to Ylöstalo, the economy and economic policy are not just about abstract GDP figures or competitiveness.
"The economy is also about things like the salaries of early childhood education teachers, the coping of family carers and gender equality,” she says.
The book has been followed by a series of podcasts that have helped to promote the debate, which the Committee for Public Information also highlighted in their justifications for awarding the prize to Ylöstalo and the other researchers.
“I hope our research will inspire people to look at the economy through a feminist lens and encourage a wide range of stakeholders to join the discussion. At a time when gender studies are under a heavy attack in Finland, and especially globally, it is very reassuring to be recognised in this way. We are not holding back with the title of our book as we are really talking about feminism,” Ylöstalo notes.
She urges researchers to think more carefully about their audiences and who they want to reach and why.
“In communications, it is important to understand which media your target audience actually follows. I also recommend using personal networks. Research that engages with society is about inviting others into a dialogue by giving them new ideas,” Ylöstalo explains.
Feminist political economy is a spearhead at Tampere University
A new research project led by Ylöstalo explores the popularisation of feminism in Finland during the 2020s. She is also Head of Gender Studies at Tampere University.
One of the strategic themes of gender studies at Tampere is feminist political economy. Another growing area of interest among researchers is the intersection of this field with feminist ecology. The Committee for Public Information also refers to the environment in its justifications. The researchers are asking why environmental sustainability still fails to receive the value it deserves in the marketplace.
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The State Awards for Public Information celebrate excellence and timeliness in publishing significant scientific, artistic or technological information that has raised awareness and inspired the public debate.
The awards are the highest public information grants in Finland, and they have been awarded since 1968.
