Mari Mäkiranta is a researcher-artist and visual culture scholar with a background in feminist studies, socially engaged art and art activism. She is an Adjunct Professor at the University of Jyväskylä and a Senior Lecturer at the University of Lapland. Mari’s work explores visual culture, gender and peoples’ living environments and it involves collaboration with communities, scientists, and activists. She has received several research grants, including organisations such as the Academy of Finland and Finnish Cultural Foundation. Currently she is a Principal Investigator in Artivism on Edges – Art, Activism and gendered violence project granted by the Kone Foundation (2022–2026). She is an editorial board member of Ruukku – Studies in Artistic Research and an advisory board member in Northern Photography Center. As a member of the art collective, she is taking ‘artivist’ (art & activist) actions on gendered violence and large-scale destruction of the ecosystems in Arctic contexts. Most of her free time she spends on resting and wandering in forests and hills.