Water is one of the crucial elements for our survival, communication and societal development. People cannot live without clean water and therefore it is of utmost importance that aquatic systems are kept uncontaminated and that effective water cleaning methods are developed.
However, at the same time we have created circumstances which are increasingly threatening to our waters. Today’s agricultural and industrial sectors put a strain on our environment; not least the aquatic environments, where a vast majority of wastewater and other pollutants end up. One consequence of this is an increased occurrence of blue-green algae. This issue contains an article on a new method being developed for eliminating these poisonous algae.
A majority of all transports still take place on the sea, and harbours are both politically and financially significant for cities around the world. Nevertheless, current sea transportation has to handle the modern day logistical challenges and the ever more strict demands imposed on it as a result of environmental concerns. Åbo Akademi University has started a new research project in cooperation with two top universities in the USA, aiming at creating new solutions for the transport industry. The project is presented in more detail in this magazine.
Åbo Akademi University holds a broad-based competence in various issues pertaining to water, conducting research on sustainable solutions for global and local problems. Our solid knowledge within marine biology is particularly focussed on the sensitive marine environment of the Baltic Sea.
The university is located in a geographically unique setting close to an archipelago consisting of more than 20,000 islands – the Turku Archipelago, which has been established as a UNESCO biosphere reserve, while our campus in Vaasa is set in the Kvarken marine region, Finland’s only UNESCO world heritage site. You are warmly welcome to visit us!
Head of Communications?/?Editor-in-Chief