Hanna Kristiina Lämsä is the Executive Director of the Association of Cultural Heritage Education in Finland, an NGO. She graduated with a Master’s degree in Philosophy from the University of Helsinki. She also studied at the Università degli studi di Firenze, Université Paul Valery, Montpellier, and the University of Turku.
Her non-academic studies include a Specialist Qualification in Leadership and Management. Her professional career in the cultural heritage education field started at the National Board of Education in Finland, where she worked as an editor, web-editor and a producer.
This was followed by various positions at the Association of Cultural Heritage Education in Finland, established in 2006, where she gradually went from being a secretary to project officer and finally to executive director. In 2018 she was the Project Manager of the European Year of Cultural Heritage at the Finnish Heritage Agency.
She is active on social media and has also provided various commentaries and policy statements as well as other writings in the field of cultural heritage, education and sustainability.
In her capacity as executive director and project manager, she has innovated and managed various cultural projects, aimed at engaging the children and youth with cultural heritage. Under her term, the Association has grown from a new-comer to an influential actor in the cultural heritage sector in Finland and increasingly also at European level.
The organisation works cross-sectorally in order to enhance cultural rights, especially of children and youth, their participation in cultural heritage and their cultural competence. In addition to leadership and management and communication skills her expertise covers cultural sustainability, education and learning, youth engagement and policy-making.
Currently, the Association is leading the Erasmus-cooperation project called Future Narratives.
She is a member of the Board of Europa Nostra Finland, as well as a member in the steering group of the Cultural Heritage Strategy in Finland. She has a wide network of professionals and organisations working with Cultural Heritage and children and youth in Finland and other parts of Europe.