Risto Erkki Juhani Penttilä (born 17 March 1959,

Pori Pori (; ; ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Satakunta. It is located on the west coast of the country, on the Gulf of Bothnia. The population of Pori is approximately , while the Pori sub-region, sub-region has a population of a ...

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

) is a policy expert, former member of the Finnish parliament, Secretary General of European Business Leaders’ Convention, former Director of the (EVA) and current CEO of the pan-Nordic think tank Nordic West Office, an affiliate of the consulting house Miltton Group. In the 2009 European Parliament election, Penttilä, representing the National Coalition Party, got 50,858 votes, becoming a substitute member in reserve.

Education

* Doctor of Philosophy (International Relations), University College, Oxford 1989 * Master of Philosophy, University College, Oxford 1986 * Bachelor of Arts, Saybrook College,

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

1984 Penttilä was the first Finn to receive a Bachelor's degree from Yale. At University College, Oxford, he lived in the same room as

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...

before him and Chelsea Clinton after him.

Career

Penttilä was the CEO of Finland Chamber of Commerce from 2010-2017. He has also worked for McKinsey, the

World Economic Forum The World Economic Forum (WEF) is an international non-governmental organization, international advocacy non-governmental organization and think tank, based in Cologny, Canton of Geneva, Switzerland. It was founded on 24 January 1971 by German ...

and Oxford Analytica. He has been a columnist in the

International Herald Tribune The ''International Herald Tribune'' (''IHT'') was a daily English-language newspaper published in Paris, France, for international English-speaking readers. It published under the name ''International Herald Tribune'' starting in 1967, but its ...

, the

Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and also published digitally that focuses on business and economic Current affairs (news format), current affairs. Based in London, the paper is owned by a Jap ...

, and Taloussanomat. He won the Finnish Cup football championship in the Lahden Reipas team in 1978. In Yale, Penttilä was selected to the

Ivy league The Ivy League is an American collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference of eight Private university, private Research university, research universities in the Northeastern United States. It participates in the National Collegia ...

football team. In 1994, he and several other people founded the Nuorsuomalaiset, a reform-oriented liberal political party. He was elected to the parliament in the 1995 elections. The party failed in the 1999 elections and was discontinued. In the 2009 European Parliament election, he was a National Coalition Party candidate. Penttilä was endorsed by people such as former socialist leader Suvi-Anne Siimes, business leader Björn Wahlroos, ice-hockey coach Juhani Tamminen, and Finnish design leader Lenita Airisto. He was one of the most popular candidates, receiving 50,858 votes and the first deputy seat. Penttilä has proposed English as an official "auxiliary language" in Finland. He has said: "A separate statute would specify for those foreigners who are living here - and those foreigners and companies who are moving to Finland - such areas, for instance of public administration, services, and taxation, in which documentation would also be printed and made available in English". Penttilä has encouraged open discussion about pension reform in Finland. Penttilä has argued that Finland should join

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...

Books

* Risto E. J. Penttilä: Historian roolipeli (Otava 2006) * Risto E. J. Penttilä: The Role of the G8 in International Peace and Security (Oxford University Press 2003). * Risto E. J. Penttilä & al.: Ultimatum isänmaalle. Nuorsuomalainen näkemys Suomen mahdollisuuksista (Otava 1994) * Risto E. J. Penttilä: Finland’s Search for Security through Defence 1944-89 (Macmillan 1991) * Risto E. J. Penttilä: Puolustuslinjat : puolustuspolitiikka Suomen kansainvälisen aseman vakauttamisessa 1944-67 (Otava 1988)

Interviews

* "Finland, Russia, and the NATO Question: An Interview with Risto Penttilä" by Henri Mattila, 01/16/2022.Merion West: "Finland, Russia, and the NATO Question: An Interview with Risto Penttilä"
Accessed 02/15/2024.

References

External links

Official website

Risto E. J. Penttilä: Suomen ulkopolitiikan idea
(Taloustieto 2008)
Nordic West Office
{{DEFAULTSORT:Penttila, Risto Living people 1959 births Finnish businesspeople National Coalition Party politicians Yale University alumni Alumni of University College, Oxford Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana, 4th Class