Dr. Johanna Ikävalko has a wide expertise in polar matters, but also in particular topics related to the environment and climate change. She has a title of Docent in hydrobiology (Univ. of Helsinki) and is a former sea ice ecologist. After her expeditions to the Arctic, Antarctic and the frozen Baltic Sea she has concentrated particularly on science policy, research funding and ensuring the impact of science-based knowledge – an ideal background for the Director of the Arctic Centre. Her professional background includes e.g. Ministry of Transport and Communications, Academy of Finland, Finnish Meteorological Institute and Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP) Secretariat. Johanna’s passion is to secure that top-level science is a vital basis for decision-making and a sustainable future of the Arctic.