Ari Sihvola (born 1951) received his doctorate in philosophy from the University of Helsinki on the subject of political history of ideas in the 18th century. During his career, he worked at the Finnish Foreign Ministry as counsellor (chief of training) and at HAUS Finnish Institute of Public Management, where he was responsible for the development of public organisations and personnel in Finland, Europe and the world. Dr. Sihvola also served as principal administrator at the European Commission in Brussels.