FIME’s interns for Fall 2023 Sofia Nyberg and Sara Kosonen began their work in Beirut in the beginning of August and September.
Sofia recently graduated from the University of Helsinki Intercultural Encounters master’s program as a Master of Theology. She has been focusing on religion, conflict and dialogue and did her bachelor’s in human geography. Within her studies she mainly focused on internal migration and post-conflict reconstruction, and her master’s thesis analyzed on-going post-conflict reconstruction efforts in Iraq and their interrelation to intervention and internal displacement.
– I am excited to be in Beirut to work at the Finnish Institute in the Middle East and to get to know the institute and the local culture better. In 2021 I attended an online course organized by FIME on the topic of post-conflict reconstruction and case studies from the Middle East. This course set the foundation for my master’s thesis research.
During Sofia’s internship she plans to continue studying Arabic, get introduced to the diverse Lebanese environment and share the experience of everyday life in Lebanon.
Sara is studying for a master’s degree in international relations at Tampere University. She has dedicated her studies especially to Peace and Conflict Research. In her studies, she has been interested in superpower politics and their role in conflicts. Furthermore, she is doing research on motivations different countries have in supporting conflict-driven states with crisis management operations. Regarding this topic, Sara is interested in finding out the impact that crisis management operations have in Middle Eastern societies and within the lives of local people.
Sara is interested in studying languages and getting to know new cultures in order to understand the perspectives that people from different backgrounds have on society, politics and life in general. Her goals for the internship period are studying Arabic and having a close look at the Lebanese lifestyle. She is also looking forward to learning about Lebanese politics, the economic situation and the future prospects for the country. Her aim is also to sharpen the idea of her master’s thesis and collect material and references for that.
– I’m very enthusiastic about the opportunity to work at FIME, to get a close look at the work the institute does and at current research on the Middle Eastern countries. The best thing is to be able to work here in Beirut and follow the development of the country and local life
Sofia Nyberg & Sara Kosonen
