In my first days in Finland, autumn 2014, I stayed in a small city on the eastern side, Joensuu. The city’s name translated in English literally means “River’s mouth”, as it is situated at the mouth of Pielisjoki, a fast-flowing river that connects the two largest lakes in North Karelia – Pielinen and Pyhäselkä – which are parts of the Greater Saimaa. I remember the day when my tutor, Marianne, walked me around the city and introduced briefly the Finnish as well as Karelian culture. I stood in front of a huge wooden building next to the University of Eastern Finland (UEF) and asked her about it out of curiosity. 

Pic1: The map of Joensuu city

Pic2. The European Forest Institute is located next to UEF.

“It is the European Forest Institute. Forest is at the heart of Finland, and you will realise that we are a green country when you view the scenery from the peaks of Koli”, Marianne calmly answered with a strong Karelian accent in her English. 

I did not ask Marianne for more information, although I have always been a curious boy. Back in those days, I was shy and quiet. I felt insecure and inferior thinking about my poor English and the farming background of my family. I did not dare to speak up and ask “what”, “how” and “why” to my teachers, to classmates, and to my tutor. The 19-year-old me was always wondering, but all I did was being silent, trying to understand everything people said. One year later, in summer 2015, I had a trip to Koli National Park with some international friends. Only when I stood in one of the Koli peaks and looked at the horizon did I realise a gorgeous land, a country of nature and covered by an endless green. At that moment, I remembered Marianne’s words “Forest is at the heart of Finland”. 

Pic3: The scenery viewed from one of Koli National Park

One day, I walked on the bridge that connects two parts of Joensuu, staying for a while to observe the running-away sun at the end of the river. Sunset viewed from Pielisjoki is a breathless beauty. Suddenly I was disturbed by a constant noise – the train departed from the nearby railway station. It was not a normal passenger train but a chain of many connected railroad cars, which were full of wood. One, two, three … ten, eleven, twelve, … I started to count. The increasing number of train cars totally amazed me. “Oh my goodness, this train is damn long. It must be over 50 meters. No, perhaps 100 meters, or even longer.” I confirmed quietly to myself. The giant wooden building of the European Forest Institute, the vastly green scenery from Koli peaks, and now the continuous railroad cars full of timber in front of my eyes. I suddenly realized the significance of forests to Finland and the Finnish economy. “It must be something big”, I thought. 

My thinking was right. In a bigger sense, the forest sector covers forest management and the growing, harvesting and selling of timber. Upon further research, I’ve learnt that there are also many activities and livelihoods associated with this field, such as businesses providing services to forest owners, nature tourism and forest research work. According to the Natural Resources Institute, the forest sector is one of the biggest industries in Finland, contributing to over 4% annual GDP and employing directly 64,000 people. There are many impressive economic indicators of this industry, but probably the most astonishing fact I learned is that the forest industry shares up to 20% value of all Finland’s commodities exported in 2017. (Forest.fi) But folks, I will not continue with those boring statistics, which you all can find after surfing around for a while with Google. 

I just want to tell you how I understand the forest and gradually feel the forest. I discovered that I shared some characteristics of a Finn on a sunny day in Paris, where my fiancé and I spent the summer holiday. Partly explained by Netflix’s character Emily, Paris is always hasty, crowded, and the city never ceases to amaze you with its architecture, culture of fashion, and its people. However, for some reason, I told her I missed Finland. At that time, we had already been in Paris for over a week. I was a bit surprised when she had exactly the same feeling. To be honest, we missed being in Finland’s forest picking blueberries and mushrooms, or just being there for a walk and breathing the air. In the middle of the colorful Paris, I missed the green Finnish forests so much. 

Time passes by, my journeys in Finland go on one after another, and I found myself becoming a Finnish citizen, an international-background Finn that loves, cares and appreciates the forests. Is it because I have lived here long enough, or just because I’m too nature-oriented? – I don’t know, but one thing I know for sure is that among international people in this country, I’m not the only one. 

P/s: Next time, when you’re in a sauna, just look for a while and you will notice that most of the products you use are from Finland’s forests. And I’m sure you love all of them 🙂 

Main Author: Loc Dinh Nguyen