As a Cultural Researcher

HELENA KARHU

CULTURAL STUDIES * CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY * SHAMANISM * PLANETARY INCLUSION * RELATIONALITY * ETHNOGRAPHIC METHODS * RESEARCH-CREATION * RADICAL CREATIVITY

I am a cultural researcher with ancestral roots in North Karelia, Finland. On 30 October 2026, I will defend my doctoral dissertation at the University of Eastern Finland, exploring the meanings and reframing of shamanism in contemporary times. Geographically my research is located in Finland south of Sápmi. My academic background is in human and cultural geography, which has helped shape my approach to understanding cultural phenomena as part of broader societal and ecological relationships.

I am interested in the alternative perspectives that animistic worldviews and shamanic practices can offer on the societal and ecological challenges of our time. I explore their significance for transformations in human consciousness, new ways of being in the world, and planetary citizenship.

As a researcher, I work with transformative research approaches and the relationality associated with animistic worldviews. I have begun to explore the possibilities of shamanic anthropology as a distinct research approach or academic discipline.

Doctoral Research

In my doctoral dissertation, I examined shamanism as a deep-time, living process and as part of humanity's mythic dimensions. Based on ethnographic research, the dissertation comprises a collection of articles that explore the experiential meanings and transformative dimensions of shamanism and shamanhood in contemporary Finland, south of Sápmi.

The research examines the significance of contemporary shamanic drums, shamanic enchantment in relation to planetary inclusion and sense of belonging, and transformations in the shamanic lifeworld in relation to the societal degrowth movement.

Read the dissertation announcement here.

Read my doctoral dissertation.

Postdoctoral Research

My current research explores the sacredness of nature from the perspective of an animistic worldview. I am working on this topic in collaboration with my research partner, tietäjä and witch Miika Vanhapiha.

I have also completed a theoretical article examining the potential of shamanic methods in planetary youth work. The article was written in collaboration with psychologist Tiia Eggert of the University of Helsinki.

Publications

Eggert, Tiia, and Helena Karhu. 2027. “Nuorten shamanistiset rituaalit ja voimaeläintyöskentely planetaarisen sivistyksen edistäjänä” (Young People’s Shamanic Rituals and Power Animal Work as a Means of Advancing Planetary Civilization). In Planetaarisen nuorisotutkimuksen antologia (Anthology of Planetary Youth Research), edited by Sofia Laine and Pirjo Suvilehto. Finnish Youth Research Society. (Forthcoming.)

Karhu, Helena. 2026. ”Juuren alta voiman”: shamaaniuden merkityksiä ja uudelleenkäsittämistä etnografisesti Saamenmaan eteläpuoleisessa Suomessa (“Power from the Roots”: An Ethnographic Exploration of the Meanings and Reframing of Shamanism in Finland South of Sápmi). Doctoral dissertation. Joensuu: University of Eastern Finland.

Karhu, Helena. 2026. “Degrowth and Relational Transformation: A Shamanistic Perspective.” In Relational Degrowth, edited by Teppo Eskelinen and Pasi Heikkurinen, 110–127. Bristol: Bristol University Press.

Karhu, Helena. 2025. “Belonging and Planetary Inclusion Through Enchantment in Shamanism.” The International Journal of Religion and Spirituality in Society 15 (4): 71–93. https://doi.org/10.18848/2154-8633/CGP/v15i04/71-93

Karhu, Helena. 2024. “Autoetnografian potentiaali osana shamanismin tutkimusta” (The Potential of Autoethnography as Part of Shamanism Research). Elore 31 (1): 114–126. https://doi.org/10.30666/elore.146064

Karhu, Helena. 2023. “Luonnon ja sydämen rytmissä: Etnografinen tutkimus shamaanirummun syntyyn ja käyttöön liitetyistä merkityksistä” (In the Rhythm of Nature and the Heart: An Ethnographic Study of the Meanings Associated with the Creation and Use of the Shamanic Drum). Elore 30 (2). https://doi.org/10.30666/elore.125960

Karhu, Helena. 2020. “Shamanismi voimistuu nykypäivän Suomessa” (Shamanism Is Gaining Momentum in Contemporary Finland). AntroBlogi. Published September 17, 2020. https://antroblogi.fi/2020/09/shamanismi-voimistuu-nykypaivan-suomessa/

Contact

Helena Karhu
info@karhuntalo.com
+358 40 514 8788