Strengthening Resilience Through Human Agency

UAS Journal provides once a year researchers, developers, and partners within the University of Applied Sciences network an opportunity to publish articles on topical issues that do not naturally form a specific theme. For this open issue 2026, we initially called for submissions related to national defense, comprehensive security, and preparedness, anticipating that the volume of such specialized content might not suffice for a dedicated theme issue. We were proven wrong.

The abstracts and articles submitted for this issue demonstrate that the UAS sector is aware of the shifted security landscape in Europe and globally. With agility, both degree-oriented programs and R&D projects have identified opportunities to enhance expertise and integrate into broader networks for national defense—ranging from ”hard-core” technologies to the reinforcement of psychological crisis resilience. Comprehensive security, technological solutions, cyber threats, and crisis management are particularly visible in Master’s degree offerings. Furthermore, study places have been allocated to students from diverse educational backgrounds.

If anything, this issue proves that Universities of Applied Sciences are prepared to act swiftly and maintain a highly positive stance toward defense cooperation. Given that the UAS community comprises nearly 200,000 students, teachers, and support staff, their operational choices and the effective utilization of their potential are of significant consequence. We are, as HEI institutions, able to admit that technology and system-driven processes alone are insufficient to resolve crises? Hence, it is vital to promote the capacity of both students and staff to act under pressure, withstand disruptions, and recover from them? One must, however, ask if we do sufficiently encourage the use of personal experience, a sense of justice, and common sense?

Honoring Human Agency

According to the German sociologist Hartmut Rosa (2026), modern individuals are often rendered powerless, their behavior constrained by algorithms, templates, and the rigid menus of digital applications. While these provide predictability and simplify economic measurability, they come at a high price: the individual no longer experiences themselves as an active agent, but as an executor of a faceless protocol. In such systems, personal judgment, discretion, and intuition lose their significance. Human well-being declines when there is no room for maneuver and when one feels reduced to a mere performer of bureaucratic requirements.

”Life means action,” Rosa states in his book Situation und Konstellation. Therefore, preparedness and the strengthening of resilience within Universities of Applied Sciences are also questions of our underlying view of humanity: on whose terms do we expand or constrain the agency of a student or an employee?

The importance of individuals and volunteerism is emphasized both in defending our society and in surviving disruptions. As Adjunct Professor Teija Sederholm (2025) reminds us, every Finn has a constitutional obligation to participate in national defense. An attitude that strengthens the functional capacity, knowledge, skills, and safety of every citizen forms the bedrock of societal resilience. As ordinary citizens are increasingly framed as vital security actors in official discourse, the role of Universities of Applied Sciences should increasingly focus on bridging theory and practice to foster human growth toward active agency. Both students and staff should be viewed as learning, capable beings fit for moral choices, rather than as ”cogs in a machine” or fillers of compartmentalized tasks. According to Rosa, this approach also enhances well-being at work and study.

Fragmentation: Asset or Liability?

It appears evident that all Universities of Applied Sciences have joined broader networks related to national defense or security. Häme UAS and Metropolia are members of the Digital Defence Ecosystem (DDE) and the Define (Defence Innovation Network Finland) ecosystem founded by the City of Riihimäki. Savonia UAS, in collaboration with the City of Kuopio, has established the Centre for Comprehensive Security to strengthen the resilience of civil society. Turku UAS hosts the Cyber and Hybrid Resilience research group, applying research to practice to counter hybrid threats and prevent cybercrime. Laurea has launched the Unified Security research program, predicated on the interdependence of internal and external security in an ever-changing environment. Furthermore, nearly all Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences hold bilateral cooperation agreements with the National Defence University and numerous international partners.

While each institution has chosen its focus areas based on regional needs and educational profiles, the resulting landscape may seem like a fragmented collection of well-intentioned and justified initiatives. Pasi Hario (2025) has suggested that an understanding of comprehensive security emerges at the intersection of these diverse research focuses and approaches.

In contrast, Sweden has adopted a significantly more strategic approach. Three years ago, they established Campus Totalförsvar (Campus Total Defence), a joint initiative of 37 universities and colleges designed to strengthen expertise through education and research. The goal is to facilitate collaboration between the academic world, authorities, industry, and civil society within a single network. While Finland operates largely locally, Sweden emphasizes a unified platform to create a collective voice for the higher education sector in matters of total defense.

While the idea of a unified campus sounds commendable—reflecting the Swedish culture of consensus—large coalitions can suffer from inertia and rigidness. We do not yet know whether the fragmented Finnish model will ultimately prove to be an advantage or a disadvantage. Nevertheless, the Swedish solution and its outcomes warrant close observation. Our national will to defend is exceptionally high, and Universities of Applied Sciences reach the post-secondary youth demographic more effectively than perhaps any other institution. That is a formidable strength.

Untapped Potential

As Teija Sederholm (2025) has noted, Finns are deeply interested in voluntary national defense. Our citizens are eager to learn and reinforce their existing skills, as evidenced by high participation rates in defense-related training. A vast number of motivated individuals dedicate their free time week after week to organizing defense education and events.

There is significant untapped potential within Universities of Applied Sciences if the interest of women in voluntary national defense could be integrated into UAS studies—perhaps in cooperation with the National Defence Training Association of Finland (MPK). It is worthwhile to read the recent report by the Women’s National Emergency Preparedness Association: “What are Finnish women prepared to defend?” (2025). In this field, empirical data is far more valuable than mere intuition.

The articles, reviews, and commentaries in this issue are organized into three categories:

• The technological Core: Articles describing the defense industry core, including dual-use technologies and mobile robotics.
• Resilience: Projects related to comprehensive security and methods for strengthening the human psyche in crisis situations.
• Current Affairs: Two topical articles unrelated to the primary theme but of immediate interest to our readers.

Finally, the issue includes shorter commentaries and reviews highlighting the roles of our partners and reminding us how national defense is intertwined with the values and culture we hold dear.

With this issue, we hope to spark vibrant discussion, inspire joint events, and contribute to changing the world for the better, one action at a time.

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