Topic
Public governance
Commentary
Governments that invest in foresight-driven policymaking are better positioned to shape the conditions that they operate in. This is how to build policies that both anticipate and influence the future.
Two key lessons from our work in the Mayors for Economic Growth project, in collaboration with UNDP: 1) Innovation needs to occur at multiple levels and 2) If we’re to be effective, we must remain humble.
These three research projects are: 1) Reducing polarisation via material participation (MaDem); 2) Coastal waters under pressure – safeguarding a healthy Gulf of Finland in a changing geopolitical and environmental landscape (CoWup); and 3) Safe Water for All (WaterFall).
We are pleased to announce that the UNDP’s Istanbul Innovation Days (IID), taking place in March 2025, will focus on shaping the next generation of public institutions for a secure and prosperous world.
The wellbeing economy offers a new framework for governance, with wellbeing as the core objective for policy. Despite its potential, governments struggle to integrate wellbeing into governance effectively. Demos Helsinki’s work identifies key principles – participation, evidence, measurement, and long-term investments – to bridge the gap between purpose and practice, shaping a governance framework that places human and planetary wellbeing at the heart of economic strategy.
Publications
Strategisen tutkimuksen neuvoston rahoittama REPAIR-tutkimushanke käsittelee algoritmisten järjestelmien murtumia. Hankkeen uudessa julkaisussa Digitaalisen yhteiskunnan korjausoppaassa tarkastellaan kuuden tutkimustapauksen ja kahden toimintamallin avulla murtumien vaikutuksia, niiden korjaustyötä sekä mahdollisuuksia oppia niistä.
How can countries strengthen their capacity for long-term governance and ensure that future generations are taken into account in decision-making? In this white paper, we highlight ways to promote anticipatory governance based on the views of key Finnish stakeholders. By translating the Finnish experience into a broader context, we aim to provide universally applicable strategies for advancing long-term governance and promoting intergenerational justice.
The notion of a “polycrisis” has become a defining feature of contemporary governance, and traditional administrative methods are increasingly inadequate. In this publication, Professor Sir Geoff Mulgan’s concept of “Generative Shared Intelligence” offers a model for addressing multidimensional problems in governance, emphasising the need for more flexible and collaborative structures designed for the sole purpose of sharing intelligence.
Projects
CommuniCity is a 3-year project funded by the European Commission’s Horizon Europe Framework Programme, building citizen-centred tech solutions focused on urban and societal challenges. Launching 100 pilots in Helsinki, Amsterdam, and Porto, the project will address the needs of cities and marginalised communities in these areas through co-creation and co-learning…
What determines a just transition to low-carbon futures? In July 2021, the European Commission launched the ‘Fit for 55’ climate policy package, designed to bring many of the EU policies up to speed to achieve a 55% reduction in net greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. Recognising that these technical mitigation…
The great crises of our time have one thing in common: they reveal our limitations in navigating uncertainties and the shifting premises of our world. Public administrations, in particular, are increasingly expected to deal with this challenge. Indeed, uncertainty, ambiguity and complexity are critical features of the environment in which…
People
Lõmaš Kama
Driven by curiosity and care for climate, biodiversity and environmental topics, Lõmaš places his interest in areas spanning across the built environment, governance, futures, social innovation, and public sector innovation. The bridges connecting all these fields for him are collaboration, imagination, and creativity. With a background in strategic design combining…
Joonas Virkki
Politics, culture, and society—these are the themes that have shaped Joonas’ academic path and way of thinking. With a Bachelor of Social Science in Political Science and an ongoing Master’s degree in the same field, he is particularly interested in how political systems evolve, how narratives shape public discourse, and…
Anna Kurth
How can we reimagine city life within planetary boundaries? What governance tools and capabilities are needed to drive this transition? These are the questions that fuel Anna’s work at the intersection of urban climate policy and systems change. Anna has a BA in International Affairs from the University of St….
Lara Best-Dunkley
In a time of unprecedented geopolitical crises, Lara is the go-to person for a comprehensive and critical understanding of international governance and security. She believes in the importance of compassionate, collective and evidence-based decision-making, especially in the domain of hard security. Lara has a BSc in International Relations and Organisations…
Johannes Jauhiainen
At Demos Helsinki, Johannes Jauhiainen focuses on participation, interaction, impact, and science-society relations within the CoWup and CO3 research projects. He is passionate about public innovation, new forms of decision-making, democratic development, geopolitics, and the role of cities as pioneers of societal transformation. Before joining Demos Helsinki, Johannes worked on…
Sahib Singh
Sahib spends his time at Demos Helsinki’s preoccupied by just democratic futures and global governance. At the moment he won’t stop nattering about the need to think systemically and critically about democratic innovations, the political economy of global governance institutions and modes of effective alliance building. At his best, Sahib’s…
Tanya Sahdev
As part of the New Governance team at Demos Helsinki, Tanya contributes to reimagining and reshaping governance systems for a more inclusive and sustainable future. She brings a unique perspective to her role at Demos Helsinki with her background in design, which empowers her to see the bigger picture while…
Lina Forsman
De Bruxelles à Helsinki! Lina is our expert on multilevel governance from a city perspective. In her previous role, she ensured that cities’ viewpoints were considered in the EU legislative process. Focusing on the climate transition and legislation to tackle pollution in cities, she has drafted and executed numerous advocacy…
Isabella Gady
Isabella is fueled by a few big questions: How do we create the right conditions for meaningful change? What kind of self-leadership and practices can make that happen? And what capacities do public sector organisations need to harness to thrive and facilitate positive change? Her path to Demos Helsinki has…
Nina Langerholc
Nina is passionate and hands-on. She orchestrates our governance work and is in constant pursuit of new organisational and system-level approaches to increase the speed of societal transformation. Nina works on bridging the gaps and connecting different sectors, stakeholders, and organisations on a joint transformation journey. This means managing transformation…
Yu-Yi Huynh
How can citizen engagement transform cities? If you’re searching for the answer, no need to look further: Yu-Yi is here to help! Her knowledge of citizen engagement processes and participation is sought after. Justice in climate action is something we value deeply and Yu-Yi is an expert in its implementation…
Bhuvana Sekar
Bhuvana Sekar is an Expert at Demos Helsinki, where she focuses on participatory and service design, design thinking, and strategic impact design, particularly within the public sector. Her work is guided by a commitment to advancing public-sector innovation and social transformation through multidisciplinary collaboration. Bhuvana holds a Master’s degree in…
Elina Hakoniemi
Navigation into the future requires knowledge about the past – this is Elina’s guiding principle. She’s an expert in societal and political history, especially when it comes to welfare state, education, democracy or political language. Elina’s work focuses on recent history, and she looks at the society and governance via…
Lilybell Evergreen
Lilybell is our go-to climate governance expert. We all know the need for a sustainable future but there are not many pathways to reach it. Governance, however, offers one and Lilybell knows how to utilise this. Having worked with several European cities, including the City of Tallinn, the European Green…
Jenni Kilpi
To interact and connect – this is Jenni’s pathway to change. Whether it’s renewing a strategy, building an impact roadmap, mapping out future scenarios, or evaluating engagement processes, the key is building inclusive and empowering engagement and agency. Incidentally, this intersection is where Jenni shines. We cherish her ability to…
Vera Djakonoff
Clinging on to only what we have now is a lousy way forward. At Demos Helsinki, Vera’s work focuses on anticipatory governance: promoting governments’ and organisations’ ability to both build resilience and drive transformation. A key question in her work is: how can we create and deepen our connection to…
Erkki Perälä
Did you know that cities account for over 70% of global emissions? Erkki sure does, which is why he works on supporting the decarbonisation of several European cities. He is especially intrigued by connecting the narratives of climate change and the built environment, and finds cities a practically-sized unit to…
João Sigora
João Sigora is the Vice-Chair of the Board and a Senior Expert at Demos Helsinki. His work centres on pioneering new approaches to governance and enhancing public sector capacity for reimagining and co-creating desired futures. He brings specialised expertise in public sector innovation, with a strong foundation in foresight, experimentation,…
Iacopo Gronchi
Iacopo is our go-to expert in mission management. Societal transformations are changing the playing field of public governance. Public sector organisations are called on to reflect on the very purpose of their work: in other words, on their mission. That’s why Iacopo’s own mission is to help public managers achieve…
Kari Jalonen
Kari Jalonen is an organisational researcher whose work at Demos Helsinki focuses on planning, performing and developing the research operations at Demos Helsinki. Kari defended his Ph.D.(Econ.) on city strategy at the Hanken School of Economics in 2017, and has since worked as a postdoctoral researcher at Stanford University and…
Silva Mertsola
Public administrations are tasked with finding effective and efficacious solutions to complex societal challenges. Simultaneously, they must ensure that their processes are legitimate. Silva supports governments in aligning their governance arrangements with these demands. Silva is a doctoral researcher in political theory at the University of Stockholm where she studies…
Vincent Lassalle
Vincent is a senior expert in the New Governance Team. He has been a practitioner, a consultant, and a writer on the topic of organisational innovation and societal change for over a decade. Prior to joining Demos Helsinki, Vincent’s already international career focused on innovation and spanned most of its…
Maria Malho
Maria is a political scientist specialising in foresight, scenarios and futures thinking to create both high-quality research as well as actionable visions and strategies for making desirable futures easier to reach. She has extensive experience in leading and facilitating projects and research processes on a wide array of topics ranging…
Johannes Anttila (on leave)
What kinds of technologies do we actually want to live with? This is the question that Johannes keeps returning to in his work. Be it about working towards a shared vision in a national level AI program, building worker-led strategies towards emerging technologies or assessing the impacts of algorithms on democracy, Johannes…
Katri Sarkia
As Managing Director, Katri looks out for, well, to put it short: everything! Leading societal transformations means we need the right capacities, relevant projects, new opportunities, and enough financial stability to be able to create impact. At the core of all of this are the people. Katri is the one we…
Otto-Wille Koste
Otto-Wille is a senior expert in the Regenerative Infrastructure Team. He focuses on cities’ sustainability transformations. Cities are under constant change opposed by various phenomena, and Otto-Wille develops processes and solutions with which cities and other actors in the urban sphere can foster required transformations. Otto-Wille holds a master’s degree…
Mikael Sokero
Connecting the needs of the future and the present is easier said than done, and Mikael knows that. Through years of experience, we are proud to say Mikael has truly conquered the art of strategic foresight. No wonder his expertise is in high demand. We strongly believe foresight plays a…
Johannes Mikkonen
Johannes is dedicated to redefining the terms and conditions of our digital futures by exploring the ways to reshape our current sociotechnical systems, advising on policies to remaster technologies and forming visions of emerging alternative futures. At Demos Helsinki, Johannes has worked with various ministries and Prime Minister’s Offices around…
Mikko Annala
We are a think tank with a mission. As the Managing Director, Mikko is responsible for our operations. Our organisation runs 100+ projects every year in 30+ countries. Mikko’s job is to ensure that, on our part, we manage to contribute to the global landscape and remain joyful while doing…
Juha Leppänen
It’s easy to talk the talk, but we take pride in also walking the walk. And ensuring that this happens is our very own Juha. How to build operational hypotheses to truly drive change forward? What is the “form” in “transformation”? How to organize collective action? Juha isn’t afraid to…
Olli Bremer
Olli has worked with us since early 2016, working across all sorts of projects and in a variety of capacities — for example, serving as Managing Director. Thus, he is a go-to person whenever we need to be able to connect different aspects of our work and sew together a…
Themes
Foresight is not just a nice-to-have; it’s a must-have for strengthening your societal relevance in a complex world.
Imaginaries on Sustainability Transformation – Report outlines three positive futures
May 19, 2025
Imagining futures where society has successfully undergone a sustainability transformation helps us envision a world in which today’s major negative trends have been brought under control. But what kind of positive futures have been proposed in recent years? At the request of the Finnish Expert Panel for Sustainable Development, Demos Helsinki conducted a literature review and drafted three preliminary visions of such futures.