Laura Tarkiainen: Keeping New Money on Board: How Emerging Wealth Elites Engage with the Nordic Welfare Model

Laura Tarkiainen conducts research on poverty and wealth in Finland. She has wide experience into exploring how we can use popular culture in studies of social work, and has been engaged in researching in researching activation, welfare deservingness and basic income.

In this seminar, Laura presents findings from her current research project titled Keeping New Money on Board: The New Nordic Wealth Elites and the Future of the Welfare Model led by Associate Professor Hanna Kuusela. The project explores how new wealth elites in the Nordic region perceive, support, or challenge the welfare state, and examines the institutions and practices surrounding their wealth.

Laura will share key insights from interview studies (100 +) with two influential groups in Finland:

• Welfare profit-makers, who have accrued wealth through the for-profit health and social care sector.
• Philanthropists, who have made significant financial contributions or legacy gifts to causes such as NGOs, foundations, and higher education.

The presentation sheds light on how these elites relate to the Nordic welfare model and the implications for its future.

Laura Tarkiainen works as a University Lecturer, Tampere University, Finland. She is a visiting scholar at the School of Social Work from October to November 2025.