The 'Global Me' Project – which aims to teach school children about global problems such as Human Rights abuses, poverty and HIV in developing countries has now come to Oulu.

Oulu is to be overrun by midgets, according to immigration authorities. Pygmies recently ejected from their home in the Unda district of western Brazil met a Finnish crane-driver who suggested that Oulu was a nice place to live, and that they might be good at air guitar. Instead of resuming their slash-and-burn farming in another part of the rainforest, the entire Bulabula tribe will arrive in Oulu airport this Tuesday April 1.

Finnish-culture expert Richard Lewis claims that Finns are a ‘Cultural Lone Wolf’ because they are in Europe but they employ what Lewis calls ‘Asiatic communication patterns,’ typified by the use of body language and distinctive noises instead of words. Edward Dutton investigates the noises of the Finns.

A survey conducted during 2006 and 2007 has ranked Oulu the top province in Finland for interaction between development and vocational education.A total of 188 vocational institutes took part in the survey, which was commissioned by the Ministry of Education. The worst results were found in the province of Eastern Finland, while the best individual region was Kainuu in Oulu province.

Towns in northern Finland will soon experience a shortage of skilled workers and are already starting to look abroad to fill the gap, reports Oulu's Kaleva. Nearly every municipality needs nurses and practical nurses; Kainuu wants more metal workers; especially sought after are male teachers with Finnish language skills.

Kempele's shopping centre Zeppelin is offering summer jobs to local Kempele business students over a period of ten weeks. The store and the class first cooperated in December 2007 when students were recruited to organise programs for their Christmas opening.

E-concerthouse, a music distribution portal, has opened a digital note library that anyone can use free of charge. The library has been produced by the School of Music at Oulu University of Applied Sciences (formerly Polytechnic) and is maintained by the university's library. The collection of notes is at least initially based on the private collection of Kari Kuosmanen, one of the university's lecturers.

The historic Merijal candy factory in Tuira is being demolished to make room for new expensive apartments. Construction of seven new buildings starts in April. The first buildings will have views of Hietasaari.

The international media is full of reports on the growth of ‘fundamentalist Islam.’ European politicians have expressed particular concern about its rise amongst marginalised Muslim immigrants in countries such as Britain – with its 2005 Islamic terrorist bombings – and the Netherlands where the maker of a controversial film about Islam was murdered in 2004.

Many foreigners in Finland start looking for work by sending their CV and a covering letter to a possible employer and are amazed when that company simply doesn’t bother to write back at all. But according to many Finns interviewed for 65 Degrees North, simply sending a letter or an email is not the way that things are done in Finland.

”I’ve fallen in love with a leprechaun!” exclaims Hilary Swank, snogging Irish hubbie Gerard Butler in a small but chic Brooklyn apartment. Seconds later, over the cleanest, most wholesome counter imaginable, a priest and a mother-in-law announce that Gerry is dead – of a brain tumour.

The latest birth of a new nation is that of Kosovo (February 17, 2008). For many it is cause for great celebration; for some it is the loss of a spiritual homeland. Ilmi Dibrani, who was interviewed for this article (see also previous Bysis article), is simply thankful to be alive.

Edward Dutton meets Unnop Khungrai to talk about his Thai Bistro ‘Pailin.’Unnop Khungrai welcomes me into his bistro with offers of food and coffee telling me that, ‘This is traditional in Thailand when there’s a guest.’ A decorated picture of the Thai king – the longest reigning monarch in the world – hangs on the wall next to the counter.

Oulu University’s national nanotech initiative FinNano is rapidly advancing on the international scene. Its record-size delegation was highly visible at Nanotech 2008, the world's largest nanotechnology exhibition, in Tokyo.

‘I’ve never seen so many female priests together in one place before in my life!’ commented one senior male pastor at Sunday’s celebrations for women priests in the Oulu Diocese. Hosted by the Bishop of Oulu and his wife at Oulu’s ‘Bishop’s Palace’, the party was thrown to mark twenty years since Finland first ordained female clergy. It was packed with women priests –and their husbands – from all around the Diocese which stretches from Lapland down to Kokkola....

Traffic at Rotuaari has been a problem for the city for some time now. Kaleva reported on the new plans to reclaim it for its original use. Hundreds of cars use the pedestrian area in the Oulu centre for various purposes. There are the deliveries, taxis and just drive-through traffic. Between 257 and 307 cars were counted on one Tuesday and one Thursday in January 2008.

Northern Ostrobothnia is experiencing a tough beginning to the year when it comes to recruiting in certain sectors, reports Kaleva. In January 52 jobs were found hard to recruit for whereas the number was 27 a year ago.

In an effort to act environmentally and encourage customers to choose the paperless option for their broadband invoices, Sonera announced that it would start charging customers one euro for each paper invoice. Many customers subsequently complained to the Consumer Agency about Sonera’s planned charges. After considering the matter, the Agency has now resolved to back the customers and has expressed its disapproval of Sonera’s plans.

According to a national transport survey, men use public transport less than women. Children, teenagers, and women of all ages use public transport regularly. Oulu bus service Koskilinja’s traffic chief Mika Paakkari was quick to confirm the results of the survey. “Most of our passengers aren’t men.”

New parking arrangements around Oulu airport are causing problems for both drivers and airport staff, reports Oulu newspaper Kaleva. From February 4, the round car park facing the airport terminal was reserved exclusively for hire cars, disableds, and taxis, but most passengers and their families have ignored warning signs and continued to park in the circle.

On 26th February, a cold mid winter evening, Oulu Expat City organised their fifth skiing event . . . to learn the basics of skiing. Fifteen enthusiastic participants were eager to try it out. First, the skiing instructor Janne told us about the equipment and how to use wax on skis. Choosing the right kind of skis, skiing shoes and right size of ski poles was the first challenge: then it was time to start.

Technophiles need more roads to the internet than flies in summer: outdoors, no wires, no setup times, global roaming – anything to feel like Julie Andrews with a laptop. Life is complicated when you can’t be bothered to actually meet someone, post a letter, or look up an item in an Oulu shop. Matti Mc Cambridge tests the latest in wireless internet connections.

“Ever come across mämmi?” The traditional Finnish-foreigner question is particularly pertinent at Easter. A dish with a very ‘special’ appearance, Finns not only consume the stuff but use it for fun – to test foreigners, for example. Nearly every innocent exchange student is made to try it, followed by an article or two in Kaleva chronicling their reactions.

Esko Männikkö has received the 2008 Deutsche Börse Photography Prize, which is awarded annually to an international photographer who has made a significant contribution to the medium during the past year. Männikkö was presented with the £30,000 (about $60,500) prize during a ceremony on Wednesday, March 5th. Männikkö lives and works in Oulu.

A new European Union directive will substantially increase the cost of driving licences in Finland. From 2013 onwards you may have to renew your licence as often as every fifth year paying the full renewal cost each time.Eija Maunu, Senior Adviser at Traffic Safety Unit of the Ministry of Transport and Communications, says that at least in the heavy vehicle classes for trucks, busses and professional driving (C, D and E), the requirement will be to renew the licence every five years.

Airline Oy Wingo xprs Ab will continue its flights between Oulu, Tampere and Turku with a slightly changed timetable. The new timetable will take effect on March 31st and continue until October 26th. The airline has decided to adjust the flight times to make it easier for passengers to remember the morning and evening flight times.

Edward Dutton interviews English hairdresser Kevin Carter, who found work in Oulu fairly fast.Kevin Carter’s reasons for coming to Oulu are difficult to argue with. Working in a fashionable hairdressers in London and Brighton (where he’d even cut the hair of the odd pop star), Kevin had been cutting a Finnish women’s hair for a while when he asked her out. After dating for a few years, ‘she found herself pregnant and wanted to have her child back home because she thought it was a safer place!’

This movie starts with a camera capturing a sweeping view of Central Park from a very chic Manhattan apartment. We meet Rob and Beth who are living the high life and having fun. As they record each other on a hand held camera we are introduced to the film’s gimmick: a big screen home movie for the YouTube generation.Cut to a party four weeks later at another funky apartment. Rob’s family and friends are giving testimonials to camera and wishing him well with his new job in Japan.

The movie version of Stephen Sondheim’s musical tells the story of Benjamin Barker, aka Sweeney Todd, who became England’s most famous barber for all the wrong reasons. The action begins with Todd’s return to the dreary streets of Victorian London following 15 years wrongful imprisonment at the hands of a bent judge (Rickman) who raped his wife and stole his daughter for good measure.

It took nine days for a Spanish adventure bicycle rider Juan Menendez Granados, 25, to reach Oulu after he embarked on his adventure in Helsinki. On his journey to Oulu he spent a few nights in his tent and met with quite a few other biking enthusiasts. His usual daily trek has been about 70 km. The Spanish rider from Pravia in northern Spain intends to continue through to Lapland and reach Nordkapp in Norway in a month’s time.

Leap Day was a popular wedding day in the Northern Ostrobothnia Magistrate in Oulu. Altogether 17 couples were wed on February 29th. Eila Keränen and Anna-Liisa Jounila of the Ouku Registry Office conducted the ceremonies. Jounila expressed slight surprise at the sudden interest in getting married on Leap Year Day.

Universities in eight Arctic countries have signed an agreement for cooperation in research, education and student and teacher exchange. The agreement also encompasses cooperation with businesses and international marketing.

Edward Dutton interviews farmer Eero Pisilä and is impressed by what he has to sell. ‘Really, I’m just open to ideas!’ laughs Eero Pisilä. ‘Whatever people want to make this place into . . . it’s all ready.’ The potato farmer and general potato entrepreneur is talking about the eight hectares (sixteen acres) – including a former school that has been converted into a conference centre-cum-guest house – that somehow came into his possession when he purchased a factory near Pudasjarvi, around an hour’s drive from Oulu. ‘Me and my wife try not to come here very often so that...

For many years now the City of Oulu has stated that its official strategy is to be ‘Multicultural.’ Multiculturalism has been promoted as something that makes Oulu life ‘richer’ and the idea of ‘diversity’ has been automatically hailed. There is ‘Multicultural Youth Work’ at the Walda Centre, a Multicultural centre called Villa Victor and a diversity adviser interviewed for this website. In November 2006 there was even a ‘March for Multiculturalism’ through Oulu City Centre. But now – just as in Britain and France – some Oulu people are beginning to openly question the supposed benefits of ‘Multiculturalism.’

The traditional teaching students’ festival brought young revellers to town over the weekend, writes Dan Murphy Residents need not have been concerned about the bands of twenty-somethings in bright overalls and silly hats swigging beer in Oulu’s streets over the weekend. That was just the people who will shortly be responsible for educating Finland’s young people letting off a bit of steam.

The culture crowd will take over the youth centre premises at old Nuku. The youth centre has now left the building and the centre at Hallituskatu 7 has officially been renamed Valve. The new name is said to reflect a good mood, courage, high spirits and broadmindedness, says Arja Huotari, the head of the culture house Valve.

A 30-year old Oulu man has been caught for selling a stolen dog. The man had answered an ad from a woman in Puolakka who wanted to buy a Chihuahua dog. The man sent photos of the dog to the buyer and the sale was agreed over the phone.

Sonera has decided to start charging customers for paper invoices. This initiative has sparked an unusually large number of customer complaints to the Consumer Agency. So far dozens of people have complained about Sonera’s plans because they feel that it is excessive to be forced to pay for a paper invoice, says Katri Väänänen from the Consumer Agency.

What's love got to do with it? What's love but a second-hand emotion?Take the “love” out of Tina Turner’s hit song and replace it with “Turkey.” Here in Oulu, if the nation of Turkey merely evokes a second-hand emotion (indifference, in this case), that’s understandable. Let’s face it, the “can-do” city of tar is nearly 4 000 kilometers away from Turkey, most of which rests on another continent. Yet, such indifference is sadly unfortunate. Therefore, it is my hope that this column may serve to extirpate some of it, or in the very least, to shed some...

‘It’s not rude to pester here!’ laughs Elisangela Heiderscheidt but she’s partly serious. ‘Don’t believe people when they say you half to learn Finnish! You can get something! You just have to move your ass!’ The Brazilian former chemical engineer has been in Oulu since October 2006 and remembers being directly told by the employment office, ‘You won’t get a job if you don’t speak Finnish.’ If signed up for one of the employment office’s ten month long intensive Finnish language ‘Mamu’ course but couldn’t get onto one.

Oulu Criminal Court handed down a fine on Monday to a teenager guilty of making murder threats to an Oulu school.

Opens February 15 at Finnkino The latest offering from the Coen Brothers (Fargo and Brother Where Art Thou is certainly not one for the fainthearted. Directors Joel and Ethan Coen Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin, Tommy Lee Jones, Kelly MacDonald Woody Harrelson. This film goes straight for the jugular, literally. In the opening scene psychopath Anton Chigurh (Bardem) is sitting in a police station waiting to be charged when we see him slowly get up and use his handcuffs to garrotte the deputy sheriff. Throughout this grisly ordeal the focus is on Anton’s face. It is...

Oulu University Hospital (OYS) has a serious problem with mildew according to a report on the website HospitalHealthcare.com. According to the newspaper, Oulu is one among a number of Finnish hospitals with a mildew problem and there are fears that airborne fungi could cause chronic illnesses in both patients and staff. At Oulu University Hospital some patients have been moved in response to their complaints about the smell of mildew.

The Union of Salaried Employees (TU) has been handed a heavy fine by the Finnish courts following its ‘illegal activities’ in protest against the large-scale laying off of workers by the pulp and paper manufacturer Stora Enso in order to prop up its Oulu branch.

Oulu’s Criminal Court handed Oulu man Tommi Kankare a three year prison sentence on Wednesday for a serious assault which has been described as ‘brutal’ in the Oulu press. The sentence, imposed on Kankare after he was found guilty of beating a man so badly with a street brush that it shattered his skull, has been described as ‘unbelievable’ by posters on the Kaleva website who have even questioned the competence of the Finnish courts. One poster wrote simply, ‘Finland is a shit country.’