Pekka Markus Sauri (born 31 May 1954 in

Helsinki Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the capital, primate, and most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of Uusimaa in southern Finland, and has a population of . The city ...

) is a

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

psychologist and a

Green League The Green League (VIHR, fi, Vihreä liitto , sv, Gröna förbundet), shortened to the Greens ( fi, Vihreät, sv, De Gröna), is a green political party in Finland. Ideologically, the Green League is positioned on the centre-left of the polit ...

politician. He is formerly the deputy mayor of Finland's capital city,

and chair of th
Procura⁺ Campaign
for sustainable procurement. Sauri became well known in Finland during the late 1990s for hosting a popular radio show ''Yölinja'' ("Nightline") in which he tried to help callers with their various personal problems. Sauri attended the Helsinki University, receiving his bachelor's degree in 1975, master's in 1977 and licentiate degree in 1980. In 1990 he got his

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

from the

Brunel University Brunel University London is a public research university located in the Uxbridge area of London, England. It was founded in 1966 and named after the Victorian engineer and pioneer of the Industrial Revolution, Isambard Kingdom Brunel. In June ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. In a feature interview, he described his nation, “Finland is one of the most successful societies on the planet. Of course, we have our share of negatives, but on the whole, it’s more or less a paradise on Earth: a pretty good Golden Cut between reliability and creativity.” He claims to have no higher political ambitions. Pekka Sauri has been active in the municipal

politics of Helsinki The City Council of Helsinki (, ) is the main decision-making organ in the local politics of Helsinki, Finland. The City Council deals with issues such as city planning, schools, health care, and public transport. The 85-seat Council's members a ...

since mid-1980s. From 1993 to 2003 he was an elected member of the city council. In 2001 he became the chairman of the city council, and in 2003 he was appointed the deputy mayor of Helsinki, being the first Green politician to achieve such posts in any Finnish municipality. He was the party secretary of the Green League 1990—1991 and the chairman 1991—1993. Sauri has not been elected to the

Finnish Parliament The Parliament of Finland ( ; ) is the unicameral and supreme legislature of Finland, founded on 9 May 1906. In accordance with the Constitution of Finland, sovereignty belongs to the people, and that power is vested in the Parliament. The ...

despite being a candidate several times. Sauri has written several books and his caricature cartoons have been published in many Finnish papers.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sauri, Pekka 1954 births Living people Politicians from Helsinki Finnish agnostics Green League politicians Alumni of Brunel University London