Pia Prost

I am a PhD student in Business and Island Studies, within the doctoral (third-cycle) subject area of Politics, Economy and the Organisation of Society (PESO).

My main scholarly interests focus on island communities, sustainability, habitability, and community empowerment. My PhD project explores local initiatives that have emerged within Swedish archipelago communities over the past decade, where businesses and civil society have jointly driven sustainability projects. The project examines the conditions, processes, and outcomes of these initiatives, with the aim of generating insights that both promote sustainable development in the archipelago and contribute more broadly to knowledge on sustainability and societal resilience.

I have extensive experience in archipelago development through my work at the Archipelago Institute at Åbo Akademi University. There, I worked with the concept of habitability External link., a tool used to assess the vitality of island communities. I also worked as an editor for Skärgård External link., a magazine published four times a year with themed issues. At the Helsinki Book Fair in October 2025, Skärgård was named Magazine of the Year in Swedish-speaking Finland.

Through the European Small Islands Federation (ESIN), I have collaborated with island organisations such as Skärgårdarnas riksförbund (National Association of the Swedish Archipelagos) and SIKO—both key partners in my PhD project.

My doctoral studies are funded through the Knowledge Foundation’s External link. (KK-stiftelsen) initiative for Jubilee Doctoral Students, a programme aimed at strengthening Swedish research and deepening collaboration between academia and the wider society.

Recent publications can be found on Google Scholar. External link.