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Finnjamboree brings together 17,000 international scouts and guides

Organised by the Scouts and Guides of Finland, the seventh annual Finnjamboree is utilising social media and smartphone apps at the Evo campsite near Hämeenlinna for the outdoor event, which wraps up on July 28.

Partioleirin avajaisissa metsässä on paljon ihmisiä
Image: Heidi Kononen / Yle

For the first time ever, social media and smartphone applications are being brought into the world of Finnish guiding and scouting.

For this year's Finnjamboree, a team of 15- to 30-year-old scouts have produced social media.

"Our social media feed has been very successful as it has delivered the scout message in Finland and abroad," says Katriina Valkeapää, the event's social media team leader.

Valkeapää says that in addition to tailor-made activities and features for kids, adult scouts and guardians can join in and learn new skills from professionals attending the jamboree.

In its debut year, the social media squad drew tens of thousands of followers on various online platforms from Instagram to Snapchat.

The event's own app and Facebook page provide practical information on topics ranging from hygiene and sanitation to camping and shelter.

Almost two years of preparation went into the event. Hundreds of volunteers built a mini hospital, a radio station and an on-site daycare. Organisers estimate that about 200,000 hours of volunteer work went into the event.

This year's themes include entrepreneurship, wellbeing and global education.

Scouts and guides from 45 countries are participating in the event.

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