FinnFests are annual nationwide celebrations of Finnish culture in the United States.
These festivals have a tradition of 16 years.
This year’s celebration will be the second time the festival takes place in Seattle, Washington, on the beautiful campus of the University of Washington.
The theme of FinnFest USA ’99 is Roots and Wings.
The planners want to place equal emphasis on the rich heritage of Finland and today’s Finland with its many accomplishments in arts, music, sports and technology.
One way of highlighting technology is FinnFest’s Virtual Finland computer room, located in room 106B of the Husky Student Union Building (HUB), the primary venue for this year's festival.
People with all levels of experience can use the room for finding information about Finland, its language, culture, people and anything else that is Finnish.
There will be 18 computers connected to the Internet for FinnFest participants to use in exploring the World Wide Web through the Virtual Finland web pages (http://www.finnsnw.com) that contain numerous links to sites pertinent to Finland.
The Virtual Finland web pages will highlight Finnish technology and Finns who are visible in the modern world of information technology.
FinnFest participants will also be able to sample Finnish software such as children’s games and language tutorials, and partake in informative sessions on using the Internet.
The room will be open for all FinnFest registrants during the festival.
Some time slots will be set aside especially for particular interest groups.
The early morning hour will feature Aamu-uutiset, Morning News, for people who are still relative neophytes to the world of the Internet.
They can listen to the news of the Finnish Broadcasting Company, or read the newspaper in their or their relatives’ hometowns.
Genealogy buffs will be able to test some of the information they hear in lectures about genealogy resources available on the net.
The Virtual Finland Home Page will be maintained for the remainder of the year so FinnFest visitors can refer to it after returning home.
Next to the Virtual Finland room is a Finnish Trade, Technology and Innovation Exhibition organized by the Northwest Finnish American Chamber of Commerce (FACC-NW).
The basic format is large (120 cm x 240 cm), freestanding panels for posters, pictures, diagrams, text and possible product samples.
FACC-NW volunteers, ready to hand out additional company and product literature, will staff this display full-time.
These two exhibitions will be a unique opportunity for Finnish companies and organizations to showcase their products and services in America.
There will also be exhibits provided by Tekes – Finland Technology Center. Visitors with a serious interest in Finland’s technological accomplishments can get copies of High Tech in Finland – 1998 publication provided by Sitra - Finnish National Fund for R&D.
For additional information on the Finnish Trade, Technology and Innovation Exhibition contact FACC-NW Vice President Pertti Winter, tel. (425) 455 5969, e-mail winter.pertti@ekono.com.
