The Student Union, rector and vice rector discussed Vapaan taiteen tila, harassment policies and the Gaza war
Rector Kaarlo Hildén and Vice Rector for Research Teemu Leinonen met with members of the Student Union Board of Uniarts Helsinki on Monday, 27 May 2024.
In the meeting, the parties discussed Vapaan taiteen tila, the development of the use of the space and future alternatives for it. The university has extended its funding for Vapaan taiteen tila until the end of 2024.
The rector, vice rector and members of the Student Union Board also talked about how the university’s guidelines for harassment cases should be clarified, how asking for and receiving help should be even easier and how important it would be to enable even anonymous reports concerning misconduct within the university community.
The parties also discussed the war in Gaza. They were unanimous that the humanitarian crisis in Gaza becomes more and more inhumane day by day. Regardless of the political stance one has on the crisis, the situation is unbearable. As the university has already previously stated, it strongly condemns all violence against civilians.
The Student Union expressed a question about the university’s connections to Israel. Rector Kaarlo Hildén informed them that the Academy of Fine Arts’ exchange agreement with an Israeli university has been suspended until the humanitarian crisis in Gaza has resolved and the cooperation agreement has been ethically evaluated.
The rector also let the meeting attendees know that the rector, vice rectors and academy deans have discussed the matter several times in executive group meetings this spring.
As part of these discussions, the university has looked into its affiliations with Israel in terms of investment activities and procurements. Uniarts Helsinki’s investment portfolio has no direct holdings in Israeli companies. In its investment activities, the university is committed to complying with the Principles for Responsible Investment, and a responsibility assessment concerning an investment is always included when presenting a new investment decision proposal. Universities’ procurements are guided by the Act on Public Procurement and Concession Contracts, which requires the equal treatment of tenderers. Tenderers are always required to provide information on their responsibility and ethicality.
The university management has actively contributed to making sure that the situation has also been discussed several times in the meetings of the Council of Rectors of Finnish Universities UNIFI. Discussions on the Gaza war have also been had with employees of the Ministry of Education and Culture.
The rector shared that the Uniarts Helsinki management has received various conflicting wishes concerning what the university should do considering the ongoing crisis. Reconciling various points of view calls for discussions. The topic will also be discussed in the joint unofficial meeting of the Collegium and the University Board on 3 June.