Jyväskylä – Human Technology City in the heart of Finland

Jyväskylä is a dynamic, youthful and lively city, which on the basis of its specializations promotes itself as the Human Technology City. The City of Jyväskylä is the seventh largest city in Finland with 130 000 residents; it is famous for its achievements in science and technology, its high-quality cultural activities and beautiful natural environment.

Jyväskylä was established in 1837. From the very beginning the city has been closely associated with education. Teacher training in particular has long traditions here. Nowadays Jyväskylä is home to students in many different fields. Almost thirty per cent of the population consists of school-goers and students.

Local educational establishments are located close to one another and engage in various forms of cooperation – for this reason the city is like one large campus.

The traditionally strong industrial branches, machinery and automation, printing and communication and wood processing are flourishing fields of industry in the Jyväskylä Region. Special expertise is also to be found in the fields of paper making, energy and environmental and information technologies. These are complemented by growing new sectors such as wellness and nanotechnology. A number of international companies, including Metso, UPM-Kymmene, M-Real and Vapo are located in Jyväskylä.

Collaboration between higher education and business is the foundation for new entrepreneurial activity.

Jyväskylä possesses a highly popular multidisciplinary university with a total of seven faculties. The University of Jyväskylä is home to the Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences, whose influence on the emerging field of wellness technology, aimed at promoting people’s health and general well-being, is considerable. The Agora Center, a meeting place for people and technology, is an important research center at the university of Jyväskylä. The aim of the Agora center is to develop technology that serves human needs from the human perspective.

Jyväskylä is a great city for those on foot, since key services in the city centre are located within walking distance of each other. The real gem is the pedestrian precinct, the lively heart of the city, which serves as a venue for events and as a general rendezvous for residents and visitors alike. The region’s inhabitants are friendly and possess an excellent service attitude. Price levels in Jyväskylä are clearly more favourable than in and around Helsinki, the state capital.