SWFES Project Team Flags for Cooperation with the Volunteers (SWFES 3/3)

International projects at Southwest Finland Emergency Services are mainly ran by a project team of three people. This team, Development Manager Torbjörn Lindström, Planning Officer Miikka Toivonen and Communication Officer Maria Nykyri, was knitted together during the 3,5 years of already finalized HAZARD project. SWFES’ engagement in international projects has increased during the past few years – and in this development, Torbjörn has played a significant role. Currently, SWFES is involved in five ongoing international projects. 

“The OIL SPILL project is a special one for us since the third sector has such a strong role in it,” Maria describes. “Volunteers are a very valuable resource in rescue operations. The volunteer fire brigade network in our operating area is a strong proof about it. The brigade forms an important pedestal of our rescue system’s foundation”

Maria, a communication professional who has worked several years for the rescue services, participates in OIL SPILL as a communication specialist. She takes part in project meetings and exercises and disseminates project events and results. She reveals that organizing a communication and networking event together with the Danish Civil Protection League is in the making as well.

Torbjörn and Miikka represent the Finnish rescue authority in OIL SPILL. Torbjörn is one of the five Fire Chiefs in Command, within the on-call system in the SWFES, and Miikka occasionally serves as on-call Executive Fire Officer. As on-call rescue authorities, they both take part in oil spill response.

For Torbjörn, who participates in the OIL SPILL project management, the most interesting aspects of oil spill response are cooperation between authorities and volunteers, management systems and issues related to logistics.

As the leader of Work Package 3, Miikka is in charge of the joint exercises, training cooperation, and staff exchange. In practice, his work is about organizing and coordinating project events and activities – such as the upcoming Vellamo 2020 Joint Exercise. These tasks include lots of cooperation and interaction with Project Partners, different authorities, volunteers, and other stakeholders. 

“OIL SPILL has gotten good feedback in SWFES, and we are really looking forward to Vellamo 2020 in June,” Mikka explains. “It provides an interesting opportunity to exercise oil spill response together with our Swedish, Danish and Lithuanian colleagues for the first time. As a bonus, we get to practice the Host Nation Support as well.”

The project team is unanimous when it comes to the advantages of participating in OIL SPILL. They see the development of all kinds of cooperation and networking between authorities, NGO’s, and other stakeholders – whether it is in training, preparedness, emergency situations, or recovery – as the greatest benefit. The team also appreciates the possibility to get new perspectives on the organization’s procedures from outside, and, here, responsive interaction with the partners is essential.

Text: Maria Nykyri / Southwest Finland Emergency Services