It is hard to believe that our journey together is over. We spent over two weeks together so it takes a while to adjust to the new normal. It was certainly a memorable trip and being part of it almost feels like a dream. We got to see so many things and learn stuff you would never hear in school. Some things you just have to experience yourself and we all feel privileged to have been part of the 39th overseas excursion of Lämpövoimakerho.

Setting out on this journey, we expected to learn about the energy infrastructure, the problems and plans of the future energy production as well as the culture of the two island nations. We visited 9 companies and organizations and, although all the visits didn’t play out as we had planned, we learned a lot. We got insights on some of the most interesting technologies to come as well as the reliable carbon free energy sources we already enjoy today. Furthermore, we also got to educate our hosts as well. Perhaps next time someone visits Hellisheiði geothermal power plant, they can hear about the notorious geothermal holes in Otaniemi reaching further depths than any of those in Iceland, for example.

It was also interesting to make our own observations related to energy in our destinations. Knowing that energy is cheap in Iceland is a different thing than seeing how – to our Finnish eyes – warm water is wasted and reading about the abundance of wind turbines in UK is less exciting than spotting them while travelling on a bus, train or plane. Sometimes there were also a heated discussions on the transportation infrastructure and the possibilities of moving by foot or by bike which, in all our destinations, pale in comparison to home sweet home.

After this post, you can still expect to see our excursion magazine with more reflection on our destinations, the excursions and the culture. But before that we would still like to thank all the companies that have supported our study trip abroad. It is important to look beyond the country boundaries as the problems our field of studies is facing are global and a part of the solution can be found anywhere. Therefore, it also important that there are companies and organizations who are willing to support trips like this.

Thank you to all our sponsors!