CIRRUS network meeting 2025. Kristjan Mändmaa, Cindy Kohtala. Photo: Kristjan Mändmaa
Last week, EKA convincingly demonstrated its central role in leading Nordic and Baltic cooperation networks, as it was entrusted with the coordination of the KUNO network once again starting in 2027.
The KUNO Secretariat operated in the EKA International Relations Office from 2010 to 2015, during which EKA played an active leadership role in developing the network. The KUNO network has been led by Professor Kirke Kangro, Dean of the Faculty of Fine Arts, who has initiated numerous successful intensive courses and collaboration projects within KUNO.
From 2021 to 2025, the KUNO network was strongly led by EKA’s valued partner, the Vilnius Academy of Arts, whose Head of International Relations Lina Koseleva brought the network’s activities to a new level, strengthening ties and developing cooperation projects across the region.
EKA also has experience in organizing KUNO activities: from 18–24 October 2021, EKA hosted a KUNO network meeting attended by deans and speakers from Nordic and Baltic art academies. At the KUNO network meeting held on 10 October in Trondheim, EKA was represented as a strong and reliable partner by Kati Saarits, Project Manager for Fine Arts, and Lisette Sivard, International Relations Specialist.
In addition, EKA secured its leadership position within the CIRRUS network during the annual meeting at the Umeå Institute of Design last week, and also in the elections held on 10 October. CIRRUS brings together the leading art and design universities of the region. The network, in its current form, was established in 2013 by then Dean of the Faculty of Design Lylian Meister and Head of the International Relations Office Sandra Mell.
As a result of the elections, Ruth Melioranski, Senior Researcher at EKA’s Faculty of Design, will continue as the Head of CIRRUS for the next four years, and the Secretariat will remain in the EKA International Relations Office.
It is also a great pleasure that this year the renowned Swedish School of Textiles in Borås joined the CIRRUS network, further strengthening its significance in advancing design education in the region.
These achievements highlight EKA’s role as a strategic leader in Nordic–Baltic art education cooperation and strengthen the academy’s position on the international stage.
More information:
https://www.kunonetwork.org/
https://www.cirrusnetwork.info/
