VENUE 

Ylä-Kolintie 39, FI-83960 Koli, FINLAND
Tel. +358 205 64 5654
Venue on Google Maps

The venue for the Koli Forum is the Heritage Centre “Ukko” in Koli National Park. The National Park is located close to the Russian border in Eastern Finland not far from the regional centre Joensuu, a one-hour flight from Helsinki.

Koli has been chosen as the location for the Forum because of its particular significance in Finnish culture as a symbol of national identity. The panorama opening up from the Koli hills over Lake Pielinen is one of the most famous of Finnish national landscapes. The view has inspired many distinguished Finnish artists. The scenery is said to have provided the Finnish composer Jean Sibelius with the inspiration for his fourth symphony. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Koli was a place of pilgrimage for many Finnish painters. The painting Autumn Landscape of Lake Pielisjärvi (Eero Järnefelt 1899) became a symbol of Finnish autonomy and independence. 

The Koli region is also one of the oldest destinations for nature tourism in Finland, and today the Koli National Park is one of Finland's most visited national parks. In 2007 the park was awarded the “European Charter for Sustainable Tourism in Protected Areas” certificate issued by the Europarc Federation. 

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