Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE)

The Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE, www.syke.fi/en-US) is both a research institute and a centre for environmental expertise of Finland. SYKEs research focuses on changes in the environment, and seeks ways to control these changes. Expertise is based on long-term environmental monitoring, wide-ranging research results, and highly-qualified staff. SYKEs research programmes assess environmental problems from a multi-disciplinary perspective, by integrating socio-economic considerations into scientific research. SYKE serves as the national centre for environmental data in Finland, and its information systems are widely used for environmental monitoring, environmental modelling, forecasting and impact analysis. The institute employs about 600 persons. The key scientists have been involved in many EU/FP7 and national research projects, and have access to large databases and modeling systems.SYKE has also a large GEO-department.

SYKE has been the main institute coordinating the establishment of the LifeWatch infrastructure in Finland, and is coordinating the Finnish LTER-network (www.syke.fi/projects/lter). The institute is currently coordinating the OpenNess EU/FP7-project on ecosystem services (www.openness-project.eu), and is also coordinating several national projects on biodiversity and ecosystem service research and modelling (e.g. www.syke.fi/projects/climes).

SYKE would wish to contribute to:
- development of tools for a national LifeWatch system
- develop modelling systems for biodiversity and ecosystem service research
- validate results using intesively studied LTER research sites