Browsing by Subject "ympäristö"

The focus of this thesis is on environmental agency in two different video games, The Sims 4 Eco Lifestyle and Final Fantasy VII Remake. The research questions aim to answer how the player can act as an environmental agent in these two games and what are the key differences between these games. The study is executed in a form of qualitative two-case case study with the help of close reading. With close reading eight different types of agencies that form the typology of this study, will be analysed in order to answer the research questions. The data for this thesis was collected by playing both games and taking notes by following close reading. The notes were then analysed with the different types of agencies. The results showed clear overlapping of the types of agencies, and it could be said that environmental agency can be used better in the game when the overlapping is happening. The agencies complemented each other and made the possible learning process in the game more fulfilling. The main difference between the game seems to be that The Sims 4 Eco Lifestyle as a life simulation game offers more diverse possibilities for environmental player agency. The studies about environmental games are mainly focused on serious games and not so much on commercial games. Video games hold great potential to engage people in environmental things especially with the help of player agency. It offers the player the ability to make meaningful choices and if they are structure well, the player can see the consequences of their agency which serves as an effective feedback which could lead to positive learning. In this case, the environmental agency in the game could be transformed into real-life environmental agency. As video games have become more immersive and their environments more realistic, it could be worth considering that separating virtual environment from the real-life one might not be necessary anymore. Therefore, games like The Sims 4 Eco Lifestyle and Final Fantasy VII Remake could serve as an example of how environmental agency within them could be harnessed into wider use.

Tutkielmassa tarkastellaan sosiaalityön koulutuksen ja ympäristöasioiden suhdetta. Lisääntyneiden globaalien ympäristöongelmien takia myös sosiaalityölle on tullut painetta huomioida ympäristökysymykset alalla. Sosiaalityön koulutuksessa asiaan ei ole juurikaan kiinnitetty tähän mennessä huomiota, vaikka koulutus on selkeä paikka vaikuttaa tulevien ammattilaisten asenne- ja arvomaailmaan esimerkiksi kestävän kehityksen edistämiseksi. Ilman koulutuksen muuttamista arvojen muuttaminen käytännön työssä on vaikeaa. Asiaa on käsitelty teoreettisesti ekososiaalisen transformaation käsitteen alla. Käsitteellä viitataan siihen, että pelkkä ympäristökysymysten lisääminen kursseille tai opetussuunnitelmaan ei riitä muuttamaan vallitsevia käytäntöjä riittävästi, vaan asenteiden ja arvojen muuttaminen vaatii syvemmälle menevää transformatiivista oppimista. Ekososiaalisuus viittaa paradigman muutokseen sen osalta, että ihminen aletaan nähdä osana luontoa ja maapallo holistisena kokonaisuutena. Tutkielma nivoutuu osaksi rakenteellisen sosiaalityön teoriaperinnettä, liittyen etenkin kriittiseen teoriaperinteeseen dekolonisaation ja paikallislähtöisen tiedon teorioiden kautta. Tutkielmassa tutkitaan ekososiaalisen sosiaalityön ja sivistyksen viitekehysten kautta, miten ympäristönäkökulmaa on käsitelty aiemmassa sosiaalityön koulutukseen liittyvässä tutkimuksessa ja miten aineistossa on käsitelty ympäristöaiheiden lisäämistä tai ekososiaalista transformaatiota sosiaalityön koulutuksessa. Tutkimuksen menetelmänä on käytetty scoping-katsausta, jonka avulla on voitu arvioida ajankohtaisesta aiheesta tehdyn tutkimuksen laajuutta, sisältöä ja mahdollisia tutkimuksellisia aukkoja. Tutkimusaineisto on haettu vuodesta 2010 eteenpäin julkaistuista tieteellisistä artikkeleista, aineistoon valikoitui lopulta 18 artikkelia. Aineisto on analysoitu aineistolähtöisen temaattisen analyysin avulla. Sosiaalityön ja ympäristöasioiden välisestä aineiston analyysista nousi kolme teemaa: eri näkökulmat ympäristöön sosiaalityössä, ympäristöoikeudenmukaisuus sekä sosiaalityön modernistinen perusta ja holismi. Sosiaalityön ja koulutuksen osalta aineistosta erottuivat institutionaaliset muutokset yliopistojen toimintaan ja pedagogiset sisällöt. Pedagogisten sisältöjen osalta puolestaan nousi esille jako integratiivisiin menetelmiin (sisällön lisääminen jo olemassa oleviin kursseihin) ja transformatiivisiin menetelmiin (koko opetussuunnitelman muuttaminen ekososiaalisen näkökulman mukaisesti). Lisäksi aineistosta kerättiin käytännön esimerkkejä eri menetelmistä opettaa ympäristönäkökulmaa sosiaalityössä. Aineiston perusteella sosiaalityön haaste ympäristöasioiden huomioimiseksi alan koulutuksessa on sosiaalityön vahva modernistinen arvopohja (esim. luonnon ja ihmisen erottaminen toisistaan, individualismi, kapitalismi, usko jatkuvan kasvun talousmalliin ja teknologisiin ratkaisuihin). Aineiston perusteella modernismia paremmin ekososiaalisen transformaation mukaiseksi arvopohjaksi sopisi paikallislähtöisen tiedon kanssa yhteneväinen holistinen näkökulma, jossa painotetaan esimerkiksi ihmisen olevan osa luontoa, yhteisöllisyyttä, merkityksellisyyttä ja vaihtoehtoisia talousmalleja. Sosiaalityön koulutuksen osalta monissa aineiston artikkeleissa korostettiin sitä, että pelkkä ympäristöasioiden lisääminen kursseille tai opetussuunnitelmiin ei tule tuottamaan tarpeeksi syvää muutosta tulevien sosiaalityöntekijöiden asenteissa ja arvoissa ympäristönäkökulmien osalta, minkä takia koulutus vaatisi ekososiaalista transformaatiota. Tällöin koko opetussuunnitelmaa tulisi uudistaa niin, että ekososiaalisen transformaation mukaiset arvot heijastuisivat koulutuksen sisällössä, mutta aineiston perusteella transformatiivisen muutoksen toteuttaminen on vaikeaa ilman ylemmän tason poliittista ja taloudellista myötävaikuttamista.

The study investigated whether energy poverty exists in Finland, and if so, under what conditions. The aim was also to investigate the reasons behind geographical differences. In addition to the geographical analysis, the study focused on the differences in electricity consumption between socio-economic groups. The aim was to investigate the differences in electricity consumption for different variables and how to tackle the globally growing energy poverty in Finland. The study aimed to find out whether energy poverty is associated with inequality in Finland. The research method was statistical analysis of household electricity consumption. The research style was descriptive statistical analysis. The study combined three different datasets and mainly used Excel to process and analyse the data. All Finnish households were used as the observation unit in the analysis of the results. The energy poverty threshold used in the study is 10% of electricity costs as a share of household disposable income. The results highlighted the importance of the type of dwelling when adjusting household electricity costs. The study found a strong correlation between electricity costs and energy poverty. This was also evident when examining regional differences, with low density residential areas emerging significantly as an area at risk of energy poverty. Geographically, these areas were located in Northern and Eastern Finland. Another significant finding from the results was the concentration of energy poverty in the lowest income bracket. However, the other income groups were very evenly distributed, as shown, for example, by the fact that energy poverty was also found in the highest income group. A key finding of the study was that the causes of energy poverty in Finland and around the world are different. In Finland, unlike in other countries, the impact of the type of housing on energy poverty was particularly pronounced. The results of the study suggest that energy poverty will have a multiplier effect on inequality, which will be more pronounced in areas with low population density. Further research on this topic would be important to explore the link between inequality and energy poverty in more detail.

Food literacy is a noteworthy topic to be studied due to food’s considerable environmental and health effects. When food literacy and its characteristics are known, food literacy can be used as a tool to improve people’s health and the condition of the environment. Thus, this thesis aims to reveal the extent of food literacy among Finnish upper secondary school students. In this context, food literacy emphasises food-related environmental and health knowledge. Environmental knowledge is understanding of the global environmental impact of food. Health knowledge, on the other hand, is the familiarity with the relationship between excessive meat consumption and Finnish common diseases along with beliefs regarding diets and food products as a source of protein. This thesis also aims to identify to what extent does the food literacy differ based on gender, study year and living area. This study was performed as a quantitative sample survey and the data was collected using an online Typeform -questionnaire. The questionnaire reached respondents from many different Finnish localities, mainly from cities. The final data consisted of 1320 individuals and it was analysed using IMB SPSS Statistics 24 software. The following methods were used to analyse data: frequency analysis, an Independent Samples t Test, a One-way ANOVA, and a Post-hoc LSD test. Gender, study year and living area were used as grouping variables to examine the differences between groups. The results show that the students named school as the main source of food literacy. Moreover, the results indicate that awareness regarding food production, dietary health and proteins increase significantly from the first to the third study year. The students acknowledged food production causing environmental problems and that the share of food in the consumer’s climatic impact is considerable. Nevertheless, the students underestimated the climatic impact of cheese and they were unaware of the more specific characteristics of food’s environmental impacts. They also had food-related environmental misconceptions considering packaging, transportation and meat consumption. Moreover, approximately half or more of the students were aware of the connection between excessive meat consumption and the increased risk of distinct common diseases. Most of the students acknowledged a versatile vegetarian diet as being a healthy choice. The study also reveals that female students had notably higher dietary health knowledge than male students. This Master’s thesis study mainly supports the findings of previous studies on food-related knowledge. The results elucidate the extent, characteristics, gaps and misconceptions of students’ food literacy. These findings may be utilized to improve school education on food literacy, alter misconceptions and fill the gaps of knowledge in pursuit of improving the health of people and the condition of the environment.

This study addresses the ways in which environmental challenges and power relations are manifested through tourism in the easternmost province of Panama, Darién. Historically, the area of Darién has remained relatively isolated from the rest of the country and tourism in the area is of small-scale. However, the high biodiversity and natural resources have drawn increasing attention, thus resulting in tensions and competing interests between different stakeholders. Local perceptions of tourism bring insight about how people make sense of and engage with touristic activities, and how geopolitical and ecological discourses contribute to environmental inequalities. The theoretical background draws from geopolitical ecology, which states the role and impact of the environment in the shaping of political space and power relations. The research is based on 37 thematic interviews and participant observation carried out during a one-month ethnographic fieldwork in Darién. The findings indicate that tourism has contributed to exposing the environmental challenges in Darién, but also caused controversy over the use of resources for tourism. Tourism brings forward power relations and demonstrates that different players are in an uneven position. The results show that tourism in Darién has been influenced by its remoteness and the nowadays largely misleading assumption of its unstable security situation. Darién faces a broad range of environmental problems, resulting mainly from the State´s weak presence and poor environmental policies. However, tourism has been locally able to enhance environmental awareness and interest towards conservation. Different tourism actors have unequal possibilities in making use of natural resources depending largely on their wealth and social networks. Further geopolitical interests appear through territorial issues and questions concerning land ownership. The findings indicate that by looking at tourism, many underlying tensions related to existing social inequalities, power relations and distribution of ecological benefits can be revealed.

EN:n parlamentaarinen yleiskokous PACE antoi syksyllä 2021 suosituksen ministerikomitealle laatia Euroopan ihmisoikeussopimukseen lisäpöytäkirjan, jotka takaavat oikeuden turvalliseen, puhtaaseen, terveelliseen ja kestävään ympäristöön. EN:n ministerikomitea suositti seuraavana vuonna jäsenvaltioita pohtimaan puhtaaseen, terveelliseen ja kestävään ympäristöön liittyvän oikeuden sisältöä ja vaikutuksia ja tarkistamaan kansallista lainsäädäntöään ja käytäntöään varmistaakseen, että ne ovat ko. suosituksen mukaisia. Kesällä 2022 YK:n yleiskokous hyväksyi oman päätöslauselmansa, jossa tunnustettiin vastaava oikeus ympäristöön ihmisoikeudeksi. Työssä käsitellään tämän viimeaikaisen kansainvälisen kehityksen suhdetta mahdollisia vaikutuksia kotimaiseen valtiosääntöön. Suomessa perus- ja ihmisoikeusjärjestelmä muodostuu kotimaisesta perusoikeusjärjestelmästä, EU:n perusoikeusjärjestelmästä sekä kansainvälisistä ihmisoikeussopimuksista. Suomessa perusoikeussuojan tulisi lähtökohtaisesti olla parempi kuin mihin kansainväliset ihmisoikeussopimukset velvoittavat. Päätutkimuskysymykseni on, miten Suomen perustuslaki perusoikeusnormistoineen täyttää mahdollisen uuden eurooppalaisen, oikeudellisesti sitovan ihmisoikeuden puhtaaseen, terveelliseen ja kestävään ympäristöön ja muun relevantin kansainvälisen kehityksen vaatimukset. Vastaan tutkimuskysymykseeni selvittämällä, mitä kansainvälisissä lähteissä on sanottu ihmisoikeuksien ja ympäristön suhteesta ja niihin liittyvistä valtioiden velvoitteista. Kyseistä suhdetta on käsitelty suoraan tai välillisesti lukuisissa kansainvälisissä sitovissa ja ei-sitovissa instrumenteissa niin YK:ssa kuin Euroopan neuvoston piirissä. Toiseksi selvitän PL 20 §:n sisältöä käymällä läpi perustuslain esitöitä sekä eduskunnan perustuslakivaliokunnan lausuntokäytäntöä ja korkeimman hallinto-oikeuden ratkaisukäytäntöä. Työssä selvitetään myös tarkemmin, minkälaisia merkityksiä muun muassa PACEn ehdotuksessa EIS:n uudeksi lisäpöytäkirjaksi mainituille adjektiiveille (turvallinen, terveellinen, puhdas, kestävä) on kansainvälisessä oikeudessa annettu, ja vertaan sitä PL 20 §:n sisältöön. Vertailun perusteella arvioin, onko kotimaisessa valtiosäännössämme suojeluaukkoja ottaen huomioon kansainvälisen kehityksen Peruselementeiltään ympäristöperusoikeutemme vastaa pitkälti viime-aikaista kansainvälistä kehitystä. Eräitä sisällöllisiä eroja kansainvälisten lähteiden ja PL 20 §:n väliltä on kuitenkin löydettävissä. Merkittävimmät niistä liittyvät haavoittuvien ryhmien suojaan, ihmisoikeuspuolustajiin ja ympäristöoikeuden periaatteiden hyödyntämiseen.

Tässä tutkimuksessa tarkastelen poroelinkeinon ilmastonmuutokseen sopeutumista ja sitä miten tieto vaikuttaa illmastonmuutoksen ymmärtämiseen ja sitä kautta siihen sopeutumiseen. Tutkielmassani kestävät käytännöt korostuvat kun esimerkiksi maankäyttöä suunnitellaan ilmastonmuutoksen kontekstissa. Aiemmat tutkimukset osoittavat, että ilmastonmuutos uhkaa varsinkin pohjoisia alueita. Lisäksi poroelinkeinon sopeutumismahdollisuudet ovat riippuvaisia monesta muuttujasta. Poroelinkeino sopeutuu ilmastonmuutokseen, jos se on mahdollisimman häiriöttömässä tilassa, mutta sen sopeutumista hankaloittavat muun muassa suurpedot ja muu maankäyttö. Keräsin tutkimusaineistoni haastatteluista, työpajatyöskentelystä ja Poroparlamentista. Aloitin haastattelut helmikuussa 2016 ja haastattelin yhteensä 10 henkilöä. Haastattelin Tunturi-Lapin ympäristöhallintaan osallistuvien organisaatioiden edustajia. Haastateltavia oli Ympäristöministeriöstä, Maa- ja metsätalousministeriöstä Paliskuntain yhdistyksestä ja Saamelaiskäräjiltä. Aineistoa on kertynyt lisäksi työpajakeskusteluista ja Poroparlamentin esitelmistä. Tarkastelen tutkimuksessani, miten tärkeää on toisten toimijoiden ymmärtäminen kestävän toiminnan takaamiseksi. Eri toimijat kohtaavat samojakin uhkia aina kuitenkin itsenäisinä systeemeinä, mutta systeemien vaikuttaessa toinen toisiinsa, olisi ymmärrettävä näitä eri tapoja kohdata esimerkiksi muutoksia ympäristössä. Siksi maankäytön suunnittelussa tiedon merkitys korostuu alueella, jossa maankäytölle on toisistaan poikkeavia intressejä. Kysynkin, miten eri organisaatioiden edustajat puhuvat kestävyydestä ilmastonmuutoksen kontekstissa. Tiedon epävarmuus ja ajan merkitys korostuvat ympäristöpäätöksenteossa Lapissa. Tutkimuksessani päädytään johtopäätökseen, että erilaisilla tiedoilla on merkitystä ilmastonmuutoksen ymmärtämisessä. Ilmastonmuutos näyttäytyy tietojen yhdistämisen mahdollistajana. Luonnon merkitys Lapille on olennainen osa lappilaista imagoa. Luonnon merkitys lappilaisten hyvinvoinnin, taloudellisen, mutta myös kulttuurisen kestävyyden ylläpitäjänä tulee ilmi niissä keskusteluissa, joita kävin eri organisaatioiden edustajien kanssa. Tutkielma herättää kysymyksen siitä, miten luontoarvot turvataan kiihtyvässä kilvassa luonnonresursseista. Minkälaiset ovat poroelinkeinon mahdollisuudet jatkaa olemassaoloaan muuttuvassa ympäristössä ja miten eri toimijat voisivat ymmärtää toisiaan, myös luontoa paremmin ja säilyttää itsensä tulevaisuudessa?

The aim of this master’s thesis was to quantify the net benefits when 7 % of Finnish adults shift from their average diet to a low carbohydrate diet (VHH), a very low carbohydrate diet (EVHH) or a diet based on Finnish nutrition recommendations (SUOSITUS). The low carbohydrate diets were based on 84 food diaries that were collected by an online survey. The diet shifts were conducted by social cost-benefit-analysis (CBA) including environmental and health impacts in monetary values. The environmental impacts included changes in greenhouse gas emissions and nutrient emissions into Baltic sea while the health impacts included changes in myocardial infarction and stroke incidence related on consumption of fruits and vegetables, and in colorectal cancer incidence related on red and processed meat. The net benefits were quantified also in a scenario when the energy intake in VHH, EVHH and SUOSITUS were lower and the diets lead to 15 kilograms weight reduction and to normal weight. In the weight loss scenario the changes in colorectal cancer and type 2 diabetes incidence related on overweight were included in addition to other impacts. In the non-weight loss scenario when 7 % of Finnish adults shift to VHH, EVHH or SUOSITUS diet, the total net benefits were respectively -3,7 million, -10,8 million and 7,3 million euros per year. The net benefits of environmental impacts dominated: in VHH, EVHH and SUOSITUS cases they were -6,5 million, -12,9 million and 3,3 million euros. The largest difference between diets resulted from consumption of meat and milk products. In weight loss scenario, the net benefits from VHH, EVHH and SUOSITUS cases were 11,2 million, 5,8 million and 20,6 million euros per year and the benefits of reduced incidence of type 2 diabetes dominated: in all cases they were 10,0 million euros. In conclusion, the sift to the diet based on Finnish nutrient recommendations resulted in the highest positive net benefit. The net benefits of sifting to the VHH and EVHH diets were positive only if when these lead to significant weight loss. However, many potential impacts and factors (e.g. saturated fat, dietary fiber) were not included in this study. Further research is needed.

This research will study commercial field students' relationship with nature and how it affects their sense of responsibility. The aim is to find out what the students' relationship with nature is like, whether it has a connection to a sense of responsibility and whether the background factors have an effect on the relationship with nature. The issue is topical, as life on Earth is threatened by many environmental problems, such as climate change, the loss of biodiversity and the over-consumption of natural resources. As a result of urbanization, people can somehow become estranged from nature. We need more information about the background factors of our relationship with nature and the connection with a sense of responsibility. Maybe that will help us to maintain our relationship with nature and take responsibility for our environment. Based on previous research, it seems that the more distant a person experiences nature, the less he appreciates it and wants to take care of its well-being. The relationship with nature is always a subjective experience; an individual experiences his relationship with nature differently depending on the experiences, feelings and attitudes towards being in nature and towards it.In the study, I used the Nature Relatedness (NR) Scale to measure the nature relationship. Responsibility refers to a person's responsibility for the effects of his or her actions on, for example, the environment and society. This study focuses on a sense of responsibility; how a person feels responsible. The sense of responsibility was measured with the Responsibility scale (RS). The study was carried out in collaboration with the Ruralia Institute of the University of Helsinki. The data was collected in the autumn 2020. Students were told that the purpose of the survey was to research their relationship with nature and their views on the use of state hiking areas and national parks. Data was collected from 246 Finnish business schools students with the electronic survey. In the analysis of the data, the average sum variables were created from the responses of the survey in order to obtain figures describing the nature relatedness and responsibility for each respondent. The correlation between the nature relatedness and the sense of responsibility was then examined using linear regression. Background variable analyzes were performed using the Mann-Whitney U test and cross-tabulation. The study found a positive correlation between the nature relatedness and the sense of responsibility, making students with a stronger nature relatedness also feel more responsible. Background variable studies revealed that women have a slightly better level of nature relatedness than men. In addition, respondents born before the 1990s were found to have a higher level of nature relatedness. However due to the small number of respondents in older age groups, no more precise conclusions could be drawn. The results are similar to those obtained in previous environmental studies. Although a correlation was found between the nature relatedness and the sense of responsibility, the sense of responsibility does not necessarily tell anything about responsible behavior. New ways should be found to explore the connection bet-ween the sense of responsibility and behavior towards nature. More information would also be needed on how various background factors, such as childhood residence, will affect on the relationship with nature. As people's relationships with nature develops throughout life, information on the cause-and-effect relationship between nature relatedness and responsibility could be used even more in the environmental education of not only children but also adults, too.

Objectives: The objective of my research was to describe the experiences and insights of pre-school and primary school teachers concerning visual arts as a content and subject area. The objective was also to describe and understand children's opinions of visual arts' teaching. In addition I observed the differences and similarities of teachers' and children's opinions. Methodology: My research was a qualitative research with characteristics of hermeneutical research tradition. I pursued an understanding research method while observing my research phenomenon, visual arts, in pre-and primary school teaching. Theme interview was the main information gathering method. I experienced the theme interview to enable natural and i conversation-like approach to the research topic. The research material was gathered from Kivistö-Aviapolis and Tikkurila areas in the city of Vantaa. I interviewed four pre-school and four primary school teachers, and four pre-school and four primary school aged children. Four municipal daycare centers and two primary schools participated to the study. Findings and Conclusions: The preschool teachers experiences concerning visual arts focused on the playful manner by which to learn and combine visual arts to the other content areas. Primary school teachers on the other hand integrated the visual arts to other subject areas such as environmental education. Primary school teachers experienced that time pressure made the teaching of the visual arts difficult. According to my research, there is not enough time to teach visual arts in every day settings. All of teachers who participated to the study experienced creativity and the development of imagination as the main content of the visual arts. Despite of this, visual arts manifested more as producing of visual art than as experience seeking activity in the pre-and primary school teaching. The usage of visual media was scarce in the teaching. According to my results, over half of the teachers do not use visual media in their visual arts teaching and therefore do not help the children to understand and interpret visual language. The opinion that visual arts' position has been diminished was shared by all of the teachers. Hence more time and hour frame was hoped for. Pre-and primary school children experienced the visual arts as a pleasant subject and study area. Children liked to work in a way that enabled them to use their creativity. The research results for the children show children's' holistic way to learn and gain experience in various learning environments.