NATIONAL SAUNA WEEK 2026
Women of the Sauna now available for viewing through National Sauna Week 2026. >>
Women of the Sauna: Keepers, Healers, and Future BuildersThank you | Kiitos for joining Dalva Lamminmäki and Becky Pelkonen for their National Sauna Week 2026 talk titled: “WOMEN OF THE SAUNA: Keepers, Healers, and Future Builders.”
Dalva + Becky explored women's role in sauna as living cultural heritage and as a powerful third space for relational wellbeing. From Finland to Canada, women are shaping the future of public and community sauna through leadership, cultural stewardship, collective care, and regenerative growth. See below for more info about Dalva + Becky, and to sign up for news on upcoming workshops. |
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SPEAKER BIOGRAPHIES
Dalva Lamminmäki, MADalva Lamminmäki is a Finnish folklorist (MA) and is currently working as a grant researcher at the University of Eastern Finland. She also lectures in folklore studies and is conducting doctoral research on Finnish sauna culture, particularly focusing on its significance as living cultural heritage. In 2020, Finnish sauna culture was included on the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List.
Her research examines ancient rituals, such as whisking with specific tree branches, as well as oral and written knowledge about the health benefits of sauna use. She explores how these traditional practices continue to influence modern sauna experiences. These customs are deeply rooted in Finnish mythology and agrarian traditions, yet they remain relevant today as vital components of wellbeing, relaxation, and community. With over ten years of experience leading workshops and events on Finnish folklore, folk magic, healers, cunning/wise folk, beliefs in agrarian Finnish culture and mythology, and an animistic worldview, Dalva enjoys uncovering the connections among these themes. |
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Becky Pelkonen, MScBecky Pelkonen is a sustainability educator, sauna entrepreneur, and community builder based in British Columbia’s East Kootenays. She teaches Sustainable Business at College of the Rockies and co-runs Kamu Sauna, creating inclusive and culturally grounded sauna experiences shaped by Finnish lineage and third-space design principles. Kamu Sauna has recently been working with Destination Canada to develop a scalable approach to "regenerative sauna principles" within the region and beyond. Becky also supports international member engagement with Sauna from Finland, contributing to the growth of the North American sauna community.
Becky has begun doctoral studies at the University of Eastern Finland, where her research focuses on third spaces, regenerative principles, and the cultural depth of sauna in relation to sustainable livelihoods. Grounded in systems thinking and Finnish cultural roots, her work explores how sauna rituals, hosting practices, and place-based storytelling shape wellbeing, cultural resilience, and ecological awareness. With more than twenty years of experience in sustainable development and regenerative tourism, including extensive work alongside Indigenous communities, Becky is committed to creating spaces that foster belonging, cultural care, and meaningful connection to place. She is also a mother of two boys and a grandmother to one; this past winter, three generations shared their first sauna together when her grandson was eight months old. |
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Thank you | Kiitos to the "Future-builders" who contributed to "Women in Sauna"
