Helsinki first European city to deliver Sustainable Development Report to the UN
Having completed its Sustainable Development Report in June, Helsinki is handing it over to the UN at the follow-up conference on 18 July, as the first European city. Mayor Jan Vapaavuori will speak to the UN on the occasion.
The High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development – HLPF is held in New York on 9–19 July 2019. The UN’s most important conference on sustainable development, the HLPF assesses global progress towards the goals stated in the Agenda 2030 action programme for sustainable development. Kicked off in 2015, the Agenda 2030 action programme aims at eradication of extreme poverty and... Read more »
Helsinki awarded as the world’s 10th best cycling city
Helsinki ranks 10th best in the world as a city for cyclists in the new edition of the Copenhagenize Index. Copenhagenize’s assessment acknowledges Helsinki’s ambitious goals for cycling, plans for an extensive cycling route network and the construction of new routes.
Reetta Keisanen, Cycling Coordinator at City of Helsinki, is delighted with the award. - The construction of state-of-the-art cycling routes in Helsinki is a result of work carried out over several years. It’s magnificent that our work wins an international award. It tells us that we’re on the right course, and we’ll continue our efforts so we’ll climb on the index step by step, Keis... Read more »
Best ideas of the Most Functional City in the World website published
A year ago, Helsinki Mayor Jan Vapaavuori launched the idea of a brainstorming platform for all Helsinkians, which would be carried out through the Most Functional City in the World website.
The Most Functional City in the World website was open during the beginning of the year and more than 400 ideas were submitted. A working group of city experts went through the proposals and made a pre-selection – The experiment was pleasant and there was an abundance of ideas. In the service, we were especially looking for neat improvements to everyday life and there were plenty of ... Read more »
Summer Day Festival by the Töölö Bay launches Finland’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union
The public park party in the Töölönlahti Park and on the Kansalaistori Square mark the opening of Finland’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union on 8 July.
Helsinki - one of the world’s most active test cities for robot buses
Helsinki has been determinedly testing robot buses since 2016. The pilots have developed and expanded year by year.
Helsinki presents solutions for sustainable urban development during Finland's presidency
Finland’s Presidency of the Council of the EU, which starts today, will bring Helsinki a lot of international visibility. The delegates that visit our city can experience the sustainable everyday solutions of Helsinki. Moreover, they are invited to enjoy the activities in the Töölönlahti area.
- Helsinki is a forerunner in Europe when it comes to sustainable urban development, and during Finland's Presidency we want to highlight solutions that are not only environmentally friendly and energy efficient, but are also built on the well-being, equality and good routines of the citizens, emphasises Mayor Jan Vapaavuori. - Over the upcoming six months, the Most Functional City ... Read more »
Helsinki joins Bloomberg digital innovation initiative
Helsinki has joined an extensive digital innovation project launched by Bloomberg Philanthropies. The new initiative for European capital cities aims to accelerate digital innovation to improve critical services for residents.
The New Digital Innovation Project for European Cities was launched by Michael R. Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies and former mayor of New York City, in London on 25 June 2019. All 28 European capital cities have been invited to join the project. Through project support, grants, and professional development programming for Chief Digital Officers and oth... Read more »
The Think Sustainably service helps to reduce the carbon footprints
The city of Helsinki has set an aim to reduce emissions by 60 percent by the year 2030 and to be carbon neutral by 2035. This shift requires both major structural changes and everyday actions.
Individual choices matter – in order to stop further climate warming, every Finn should reduce their carbon footprint from 10.3 tonnes to 2.5 tonnes by the year 2030. The Think Sustainably service helps to choose more sustainable ways of living in Helsinki and enjoying the city. It filters content from the MyHelsinki.fi website to suggest sustainable services, such as restaurants, sh... Read more »
Helsinki-Uusimaa tops EU regions in innovation
The Helsinki-Uusimaa Region tops the ranking of the European Commission’s 2019 Regional Innovation Scoreboard published 17 June 2019. The rating of the Helsinki-Uusimaa Region in the scoreboard’s assessment was the region’s highest ever during the assessment history. The Helsinki-Uusimaa Region rose to first rank from fifth rank in the previous edition of the scoreboard.
The European Commission’s Regional Innovation Scoreboard (RIS) is a comparative assessment conducted once in every two years. The RIS 2019 covers 238 regions across Europe, five of them Finnish: (1) Helsinki-Uusimaa, (2) Etelä-Suomi (Southern Finland), (3) Länsi-Suomi (Western Finland), (4) Pohjois- ja Itä-Suomi (Northern and Eastern Finland) and (5) Åland (Ahvenanmaa). Read more »
Helsinki collaborates with Aalto University in order to evaluate the impact of design
Helsinki has brought up design competence strongly as a part of the City’s development, international profile and competitiveness. At the same time, the City has profiled itself as a pioneer in expanding the significance of design.
Caption: Design can support the planning of built environment. The concept for the New Central Library Oodi was created from a user perspective, by means of design. (Photo: Tuomas Uusheimo) Helsinki has brought up design competence strongly as a part of the City’s development, international profile and competitiveness. At the same time, the City has profiled itself as a pioneer in ex... Read more »
