The Alumni of the Year award is given annually to a graduate of the University of Turku who has contributed advancement of Finnish society and the University of Turku or has demonstrated other exemplary activities for the benefit of the community. The Award is presented at the University of Turku's anniversary celebration at the end of February.
The Alumni of the Year has acted in a positive and exemplary manner for the benefit of the University of Turku, Finnish society, the alum’s associated community or organization. The recognition aims to promote the social interaction of the University of Turku and strengthen the university's alumni activities. Alumni of the Year is selected by the Rector of the University of Turku.
Deputy Director Kristi Raik is the Alum of the Year 2024
The Alum of the Year 2024 of the University of Turku is DSocSci Kristi Raik, Deputy Director of the Estonian International Centre for Defence and Security. Raik studied political science at the Faculty of Social Sciences of the University of Turku, graduating as a Master of Social Sciences in 1998. She completed her doctorate in social sciences from the University of Turku in 2004. Raik has had the Title of Docent in international politics at the University of Turku since 2014.
Raik has had a distinguished and versatile career in different international policy research positions in Finland and Europe. She has worked at the Estonian International Centre for Defence and Security since 2018 and has been its Deputy Director since 2023.
The justifications for her selection as the Alum of the Year state that Raik has had a prominent expert role both in Finland and in the international arena in the analysis of Russia’s war on Ukraine and its consequences for security policy. Raik has an excellent knowledge of Finland, but she also analyses matters from an Estonian perspective and in a broader European context. Raik is the author of numerous scientific publications, reports and analyses on European foreign and security policy issues.