• Ph.D. in Political Science, Lund University, 2019
  
  In her dissertation The Constitutive Power of Maps in the Arctic, Helena contends that maps perform the political by shaping generally held assumptions about the ‘reality’ of the Arctic, both in terms of its ‘challenges’ and ‘opportunities’, and therefore serving particular interests as well as giving rise to ideas and visions about the region’s future.
  
  The doctoral project was part of by the Lund University Centre of Excellence for Integration of Social and Natural Dimensions of Sustainability (LUCID), a Linneaus Centre funded by the Swedish Research Council Formas. During her studies in Lund, Helena participated and presented at several conferences and workshops, including Matchpoints 2015, Gregynog Ideas Lab 2015, the Arctic Frontiers' PhD workshop 2016 and the Calotte Academy 2018.
• Graduate diploma in Small State Studies and the EU, University of Iceland, 2011
• Master in Environmental Studies and Sustainability Science (LUMES), Lund University, 2011
• Bachelor in Human Geography, University of Oslo, 2009

Helena worked as a coordinator at the Centre for Environmental and Climate Science (CEC) and the Sustainability Forum at Lund University, before joining as a senior researcher at Nordland Research Institute in August 2022.