The Donner Institute

The Donner Institute for Research into Religion and Culture is a private research institute connected to the Åbo Akademi University Foundation. We gather researchers, students and cultural agents and provide a meeting point for research on religion and culture in Finland and in the Nordic countries. We work to strengthen the visibility of research and create spaces where new knowledge can be born.

News

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The Donner Institute’s Research Prize to Miitta Järvinen

We congratulate Dr Miitta Järvinen on receiving the Donner Institute Research Prize 2026! You can read about her research and...

2026 Grants for Postdoctoral Project Planning

The Donner Institute announced a new grant call in June. The grants are intended for the planning of postdoctoral projects...

New colleagues at the institute

On Tuesday, we welcomed our new colleagues, John Björkman and Andrea Franchetto, who began their positions at the Donner Institute....

Research & publications

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Donner Institute Research Prize awarded to Miitta Järvinen

The Donner Institute for Research into Religion and Culture in Turku has decided to award its 2026 Research Prize to Dr. Miitta Järvinen. Järvinen's research focuses on migration and diversity, issues of considerable societal relevance. Järvinen is being recognized for the book We Are Between Migrants and Finnish Culture: Educators and Diversity in Finnish Education for Adult Migrants (Turku: University of Turku, 2026). The work was submitted as a doctoral dissertation in the Study of Religions at the University of Turku. Järvinen's research is situated at the intersection of study of religion, migration studies, gender studies, and education. The dissertation...

Approaching Religion 16/1 – Social Identity Across Time: Interdisciplinary Applications

The new issue of Approaching Religion explores social identities. Religious identities are interwoven in complex ways with ethnic, cultural and...

Approaching Religion 15/2 on the Witching of Art History. How to Approach Women, Art and Esotericism

The new issue of Approaching Religion, ‘The Witching of Art History’ examines how women and artists beyond gender binaries have navigated...

The Donner Institute Research Prize awarded to Andrea Franchetto and Bjarke Stanley Nielsen

The Donner Institute for Research into Religion and Culture has decided to award its 2025 Research Prize to Dr Andrea...

Events

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Thu
26.11.

Seminar: Popularizing research

Save the Date - The Turku Hub for Research on Religion invites researchers and students to a seminar on popularizing research.

Book of the month

Handbook of Contemporary Religion, Film, and Television. 2026. Carole M. Cusack and Venetia Laura Delano Robertson (eds.), Brill. Since the turn of the millennium, research...