2013
Open Door to the Office board members: Jari Marjelund (president), Lars Melakoski (vice-president), Juho Nikko, Marja Pentikäinen, Alexander Proctor, Hammu Varjonen, Sofia Westerlund
In 2013, EYP Finland took two important steps forward: we established a central office in Helsinki and increased the reach of our activities by founding our fifth Regional Committee in Northern Finland. Establishing an office and hiring permanent staff to support the incredible work done by the volunteers of EYP Finland had been long-term strategic goals, and the first office – at Uudenmaankatu 15, Helsinki, officially opened in May with a minor celebration – was a first step in this professionalisation. (For one, former and incumbent presidents and other volunteers were 10
happy to no longer store EYP Finland’s possessions in their – or their parents’ – apartments.) Extending our activities to Finland’s northern regions was another significant improvement. Though the majority of our participants and active volunteers would still live in the south, the new Regional Committee provided the necessary framework for more structured participation in the region. The 19th National Session was also the easternmost event in the history of EYP Finland, head-organised by Saga Eriksson and Tim Backhaus in Joensuu.
