Update January 2005

A new series of Kohtaamispaikka (“ Meeting Place”), a television programme offering a discussion forum, or chat, for Finnish Sign Language users will be broadcast in Finland this year. The first series was broadcast in Autumn 2004 on Diggari, a digital channel reaching 700,000 viewers. The one hour programme is broadcast once a week.

Kohtaamispaikka is aimed at viewers using Finnish Sign Language and Finnish as a discussion and meeting place. It aims to promote understanding of Sign Language culture as well as communication between cultures. At the same time it facilitates an opportunity for communication within the community of Sign Language users.

The programme can receive text messages and computerised video messages which are then interpreted into Sign Language by its two presenters who also act as interpreters. The presenters are students of Sign Language interpretation at the Polytechnic of Kuopio.