Anna Moring is the project manager for the Kaikkien perheiden Suomi (‘Finland for all Families’) project. The goal is to make Finland a better place for different types of families. These include reconstituted families, rainbow families and intercultural families.

The project gathers information on the challenges faced by different types of families and then relays this information to policy makers and the service system.

The project is coordinated by the Family Diversity-network, which consists of ten independent family organisations. Each one concentrates on families that in some way differ from what is commonly considered a typical family.

“There is strength in numbers. This allows us to highlight the issues facing diverse kinds of families better than any single organisation acting alone ever could,” Anna Moring says.

Moring is an active speaker on family diversity at events and fairs dealing with these issues. In the spring of 2015, around the time of the Finnish parliamentary elections, she spoke at political gatherings and cruises organised by the parties for their members.

The plans for next autumn include an advocacy cruise, an art exhibition at Hakaniemi metro station and a metro car dedicated to family diversity. The policies of the new government on issues such as family leave are also under close scrutiny; so too is the citizens’ initiative to overturn the decision to legalise same-sex marriage.

“This is the best job I can imagine. I can use my expertise and learn more about new family groups.”

Moring feels that gender studies have provided a strong foundation for her work.

“Through gender studies I have learned to recognise when the structure of society disadvantages certain groups, and how to take the necessary steps to prevent that from happening.”

Anna Moring wrote her doctoral dissertation on rainbow families. Through her research she learned a great deal about family research and the Finnish justice system.

Links:

Website for the Finland for all Families project:

News articles on Family Diversity project:

‘There are many kinds of families, but the laws drag behind.’ Valomerkki, July 6, 2015 (in Finnish).

‘Nuclear families, rainbow families and single parents still treated very differently.’ Nurmijärven uutiset, March 17, 2014 (in Finnish).