Cultivating Transdisciplinary and Transnational Imaginations: Art, Nature, and Education in Study Tours to Finland

This 60-minute workshop explores how international study tours can foster transdisciplinary and transnational ways of thinking in undergraduate students. Drawing on recent experiences with students from education, visual communication, architecture, creative writing, and industrial design programs, we examine how immersive, project-based learning in Finland enabled students to expand their disciplinary boundaries and develop new modes of creative inquiry.
In collaboration with key cultural and educational institutions—including the Kuopio Art Museum (2024), the Jyväskylä Art Museum (2025), the University of Applied Sciences in Kuopio, and the University of Jyväskylä—we co-designed learning experiences that integrated local landscapes, artistic practices, and academic dialogue. These partnerships allowed students to engage with the unique sociocultural and environmental context of Finland, reflecting on the intersections of art, nature, and pedagogy.
Through site-specific projects, students navigated complex global and local issues while working across disciplines and national perspectives. This workshop will share pedagogical strategies, challenges, and insights from these tours, inviting discussion on how educators might meaningfully embed transdisciplinary and transnational learning in experiential education.