Very Finnish Problems

Very Finnish Problems creator Joel Willans interviews the minds behind Midsummer Madness, a free Helsinki open-air Midsummer event for 2020. Jeroen Sebrechts and Claire Delhom discuss their personal journeys to Finland from Belgium and France respectively, and explain why Midsummer Madness is a licensed Moomin event, despite featuring zero trolls or Hattifatteners. Co-host Laura Suihkonen shares a very bleak movie recommendation. Contact: [email protected] Produced by Thomas Nybergh / Ink Tank Media Shownotes: Midsummer Madness Open Air Festival (Jun 19-20 2020): https://midsummermadness.fi/en/ The Finnish Sauna Association’s Primer on sauna culture: https://www.sauna.fi/in-english/finnish-sauna-culture/ Laura’s recommendation: The Joker (2019): https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/joker_2019 Jeroen’s recommendation - go check out Hungarian movies: https://hungarytoday.hu/thursday-top-ten-movie-time-best-hungarian-movies-53259/ Joel’s recommendation - The Guardian Weekly’s journalism: https://www.theguardian.com/weekly Claire’s recommendation - "The Moomins, The World of Moominvalley" by Philip Ardagh and Frank Cottrell Boyce: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36473933-the-moomins

In this episode, Joel Willans, author of the Very Finnish Problems books, discusses journalist Erika Benke’s amazing journey from communist Hungary to the BBC World Service and her recent stories on Finland. Topics include stories on how the climate crisis is tackled northern Finland, and the country’s recent limited trials of Universal Basic Income. Co-host Joe Konderla and Erika present their recent experiences of how London has been utterly ruined by overcrowding. Contact: [email protected] Produced by Thomas Nybergh / Ink Tank Media Shownotes: Episode 12 of our show features in-depth discussion with a Finnish wilderness explorer: https://inktank.fi/vfp-ep-12-northern-light-joonas-linkola/ Erika’s summary of the Finnish Universal Basic Income trials: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nPQM54oPMg The town of Ii: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ii,_Finland Joel’s recommendation - Very Brexit Problems merchandise: https://verybrexitproblems.com/ Erika’s recommendation - Death in Ice Valley, the BBC’s and NRK’s true crime podcast on a mysterious, potentially espionage related death in Bergen, Norway: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p060ms2h Joe’s recommendation - his own blog on life in Finland: http://www.thefinniot.com

Joel Willans, author of the Very Finnish Problems books, learns how the polluting textile industry is facing much-needed renewal thanks to Finnish innovation. Emmi Berlin from Jyväskylä based wood pulp fiber/textile startup Spinnova brings us unsettling details on the dead ends of fast fashion, while providing an alternative that just might keep us clothed for decades to come. Co-host Joe Konderla points out teachable moments in a UK program which caused the scrapping of perfectly usable Ford Escorts. Contact: [email protected] Produced by Thomas Nybergh / Ink Tank Media Shownotes: Joel’s latest book - More Very Finnish Problems: https://www.gummerus.fi/fi/kirja/9789512407507/101-very-finnish-problems/ Spinnova’s technology: https://spinnova.com/our-method/technology/ Episode 6 of our podcast features more musings on the textile industry and fast fashion: https://inktank.fi/very-finnish-problems-episode-6-rinna-saramaki-ethics-clothing-industry/ UK Vehicle scrappage scheme wasted perfectly good cars: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vehicle_scrappage_scheme Emmi’s recommendation - Stacey Dooley’s documentary on fast fashion: https://www.timetimer.com/ Joe’s recommendation - Facebook Marketplace for secondhand-oriented shopping: https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/ Vaaterekki - Helsinki-based clothes lending service: https://www.vaaterekki.com/