Commentary
Humble Timber: The results
The Humble Timber alliance, a 9-actor collaboration in Finland, identified key barriers to timber construction, proposed solutions, and delegated responsibilities to accelerate carbon-neutral building. By fostering cross-sector cooperation, they addressed demand, supply, governance, and skills challenges, aiming to scale timber use in construction and promote sustainable urban development.
Read MoreDiscussing the future of timber construction in Finland
The event on May 18, 2022, gathered Finnish policymakers, city planners, and industry leaders to discuss the transition to timber construction. The Humble Governance model facilitated collaboration, addressing bottlenecks in emissions reduction, planning, and policy updates. Timber construction offers significant potential to lower emissions, but it requires proactive, collaborative efforts.
Read MoreWhat are syndemics, and why do they matter in health governance?
The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted how health crises are interconnected with political, social, and economic factors. Syndemic theory explains how overlapping health and social issues, like poverty and violence, worsen each other. Applying this concept to future health governance could improve decision-making by considering broader societal impacts and fostering resilience.
Read MoreEarth Day 2022: The shifts we need to mobilize
The latest IPCC report highlights that while the window to prevent the worst impacts of climate change is closing, we still have the opportunity to act. However, urgent, collective, and transformative action is required. Demos Helsinki calls for several key shifts: taking accountability at all levels of governance, embedding equity in the climate response, and understanding that the climate crisis is a systemic issue that should inform all decision-making. Humility and learning from diverse voices, including indigenous wisdom, are also essential as we move beyond net-zero and towards sustainable livability.
Read MoreHumble Timber: Building towards a carbon-neutral future
Timber buildings offer a sustainable solution to decarbonizing construction. The Humble Timber alliance, led by Demos Helsinki, brings together key stakeholders in Finland’s building industry to address challenges in transitioning to carbon-neutral construction. By fostering collaboration and identifying shared goals, the alliance aims to overcome barriers like the supply-demand dilemma and promote timber as a competitive and sustainable building material for the future.
Read MoreWhat is the Collingridge dilemma and why is it important for tech policy?
The Collingridge dilemma highlights the challenge of regulating new technologies due to limited early knowledge and entrenched systems later. Experimental governance offers a solution through early, continuous collaboration between stakeholders, fostering transparency and trust. This approach helps co-develop accountable and equitable technologies while addressing societal risks.
Read MoreLet’s rethink: A vision for digital platforms
Digital platforms have the potential to support meaningful governance and strengthen civil society. By leveraging their precision, transparency, anticipatory abilities, and capacity to incentivize behaviors, platforms can play a central role in addressing societal challenges like climate change and inequality. However, conscious efforts must be made to steer platforms away from solely benefiting businesses and toward empowering citizens, fostering pluralism, and enabling collective action. The next few years are critical in determining how platforms will shape the future of governance and civil society.
Read MoreWhat is new economic thinking?
New Economic Thinking (NET) aims to design an economy fit for the 21st century, challenging neoliberalism and exploring alternative models such as green, feminist, and solidarity economics. NET promotes policies that serve both people and the planet. It fosters collaboration and offers tools for building fairer, more sustainable economies.
Read MoreNew economic thinking in the UK — A curious paradox
While the UK has long been a stronghold of neoliberal economics, it has also become a hub for new economic thinking. Despite emerging collaborations among actors, challenges remain due to limited resources and differing priorities. However, with growing connections and efforts to overcome these tensions, systemic economic transformation is gaining momentum.
Read MoreNew economic thinking in Finland — Action on the fringes
Finland’s intellectual and policy landscape remains dominated by neoliberalism, with limited space for alternative economic thinking. While few independent new economic actors exist, institutions like universities, labour unions, and political parties are home to new economic thinkers. Despite resistance, shifts in public discourse, such as debates around Finland’s budgetary frame, suggest opportunities for change and the growth of alternative economic narratives.
Read MoreNew economic thinking in Greece — “Pregnant” with promise
Greece’s history of societal unrest fuels anti-neoliberal sentiments, but new economic thinking remains fragmented. Activism and grassroots movements thrive, yet they lack institutional backing. While heterodox economists like Yanis Varoufakis have influence, deeper collaboration is hindered by ideological divides. Opportunities lie in sustainability efforts, particularly in energy communities, which challenge traditional capitalist structures.
Read MoreNew economic thinking in France — A small but vibrant space
France’s new economic thinking is small, fragmented, and largely issue-oriented, with a focus on social justice and environmental issues. The field is supported by academic networks, cooperatives, and NGOs, but systemic transformation is limited by a lack of cross-sectoral funding and institutional support. Despite influential thinkers like Thomas Piketty, heterodox economics remains weak in academia and policymaking, hindering broader economic change. However, there is growing interest among students and the public in alternative economic models that address ecological crises.
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