Commentary
Letter: The Three Horizons of Economic Stimulus
When looking at the reactions and implementations of the governments in different countries concerning the ongoing economic crisis, the actions differentiate from previous such crises in two ways: 1) the immediate political response won’t be built around the idea of austerity, i.e. public spending is not to undergo significant cuts;…
Read MoreForesight enables to prepare for crises but also look beyond them
The corona crisis has rapidly changed the way we look to the future. The National Foresight 2020 project mapped how should the Finnish foresight system be developed in order to meet the challenges of the 2020s.
Read MoreLetter: After the crisis, let’s not bounce back. Let’s leap into the future.
March 2020. It only takes a day to receive a text message from the Prime Minister informing you of a lockdown. It only takes a week for unemployment statistics to record-breakingly surge. It only takes a month and the healthcare system is on the brink of collapse. Will it take…
Read MoreReorienting the aim of the economy to increase the transformative capabilities of the EU
In this blog post I’ll first discuss about the purpose of the economy and second, I’ll pinpoint the discussion to one specific solution to a problem of the current economic policy. This solution is called the Economy of Wellbeing. I hope that the insights for these two topics awoke interesting…
Read MoreThree Turning Points From 2019, Three Directions For 2020
Aleksi Neuvonen and Demos Helsinki team summarise three important turning points that shaped the future in 2019. We also list three themes to follow in 2020.
Read MoreWe Need a European, People-First Smart City Model
We must bring the citizens to the heart of European smart city thinking, not focus on the interests of global behemoths or political aspirations.
Read More“Youth voice must be heard – not only during a strike on the steps of the Parliament House”
There is a difference between ‘hearing’ young people and ‘working with’ young people, Demos Helsinki’s Sofia Rahikainen emphasised in ministers’ discussion.
Read MoreTime to Discuss Cities’ Role in Global Agenda-Setting, Seriously
By strengthening city networks from peer-learning platforms into capable changemakers, we can have a truly global impact on the wicked problems of our day.
Read MoreThe Changing Roles of Universities: Three Ways for Doctoral Education to Respond
In Finland, almost two thirds of PhD graduates work outside academic research 3 years after graduation. This is an understated route to societal impact of universities. Based on our survey among University of Helsinki PhD students, the imaginable “future horizons” of doctoral candidates are still mostly linked to academic research.
Read MoreDesigning the next era of (zero) waste
On September 13th I participated in a discussion on the future of waste organized under Helsinki Design Week by the innovative design company Lovia that recently published their Flipside statement on the topic. I was joined by two opinion leaders on waste issues, designer Outi Korpilaako from Lovia and Otso…
Read MoreMisunderstanding of Platforms Will Lead to Costly Failures
The business concept “platform” is widely misunderstood. Platforms are wrongly defined as digital tools that help two or more groups to interact. This causes much undesired ambivalence: Are electric scooter companies platforms? How is the interaction between the driver and the passenger in Uber different from a cab company? The…
Read MoreIt is not the survival of cities at stake, but the survival of rural areas
As cities capture parts of the power previously granted for nation states only, concerns about rural futures in the urban age have started to emerge. The role of rural areas is one of the most pressing issues for sustainable and democratic urban futures.
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