Centre of excellence for sustainable development Projects
Development work, experiments and cooperation are primarily carried out in projects enabled by external funding. The projects help us find solutions that facilitate the daily life of Espoo residents. The goal is to find local solutions for solving global challenges.
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Projects and development work
In the Mobilities for EU project, cities develop new mobility and transportation technology in collaboration with companies. The solutions tested in the project include, among others, autonomous transportation of people and goods, various charging solutions, and hydrogen as a fuel for public transport. Espoo is one of the five replication cities in the project. There are partners from nine different EU countries involved the project. The plan will aim to adapt the solutions to the requirements of different urban environments.
Read more about the Mobilities for EU -project.
A significant share of cities’ carbon dioxide emissions is caused by transport. The international Cycle4Climate project experiments with various measures to increase the popularity of cycling and reduce emissions in Espoo and three other European cities in collaboration with local universities. The partner network will provide information on the effectiveness of different measures and on best practices. Project partners include eight cities and universities from Finland, Sweden, Latvia and Estonia.
Read more about the Cycle4Climate-project.
The aim of the project is to develop an internationally appealing hub for circular economy business and expertise in Kiviruukki, along with a multidisciplinary cooperation network. Taking into account the opportunities and limitations related to land use in the area, the goal is to integrate an urban residential area with circular economy business and RDI activities in a way that makes it easy to live and operate in the area.
Previous projects and pilots
Closed Plastic Circle - from Pilots into Practice is a continuation of the work started by the Smart & Clean Foundation in 2018, which aims to increase plastic recycling rate to 60-70 percent in the Capital Region and Päijät-Häme. After the foundation ceased its operations, the coordination responsibility of the Closed Plastic Circle -effort was transferred to the city of Espoo, and this project is one of our ways to implement the Closed Plastic Circle -work. The project focuses on developing the recycled plastic market by piloting new types of processes and improving the knowledge base.
One of the goals of the project coordinated by VTT and funded by the European Union was to promote the energy positivity of the Kera area through renewable energy production and energy-efficient solutions.
The project focused on developing climate leadership and budgeting. It was part of the city's long-term effort to achieve carbon neutrality by 2030. During the project, the climate budget was developed comprehensively, and the climate impacts of construction were more strongly integrated into climate efforts. The project received funding from the Ministry of the Environment's Municipal Climate Solutions program, and its project name is Development of climate and financial management practices within Espoo's city group.
In this project, Espoo and the German city of Mannheim co-created models for comprehensive urban development, administration and management to support the green transition locally in Europe. The work involved cooperation within the entire community in both Espoo and Mannheim but also more extensively in European city networks. The project was strongly linked to the Alliance project coordinated by ICLEI and the EU and provided a foundation for the ongoing URBACT network project ‘CSG – Cities for Sustainability Governance’ led by Espoo. The project ended on 31 December 2023.
Final report: Participation for Transformation: Concepts, Approaches and Insights for European Cities(external link, opens in a new window)
The ‘It’s Like Riding a Bicycle’ project promoted cycling in many ways in Espoo. We offered cycling courses for adults and cooperated with companies that provide bicycle maintenance and repair services in order to promote the use of their services. The project team cooperated with the city sectors, residents, organisations and partner companies.
Read more more about the It's like riding a bicycle project.
The Implementation Pathway for Environments that Accelerate Sustainable Growth project develops cooperation between businesses, educational institutes and research organisations, and creates concrete development environments to promote the green transition and digitalisation. The project will implement quickly-adoptable solutions and work on building the foundation for future jobs and competitive advantages. The project is implemented in cooperation with VTT, Aalto University, Omnia and partner companies.
The objective of the project was to demonstrate the story of plastic, how a growing stream of plastic waste can be used to produce sustainable and low-carbon products. At the same time, efficient and user-friendly plastic collection methods suitable for schools were developed and piloted. In addition, the knowledge and skills of citizens, especially children and young people, on the circular economy of plastic were improved.
The Communication Project for Sustainable Transport provides information, in line with the Espoo Story, on Espoo residents’ opportunities to make sustainable choices in their daily lives. The project team will cooperate with the city’s sectors, residents and partner companies. The project has received mobility management funding from the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom.
Read more about the Communication Project for Sustainable Transport.
The goal of the project is to reduce transport emissions and promote sustainable modes of transport, such as walking, cycling and public transport. In accordance with the Espoo Story, the project will contribute to the achievement of the Carbon Neutral Espoo 2030 goal and the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development by 2025.
Read more about Low-carbon transport in mobility hubs project.
In the project, Kera was developed as a district based on a circular and sharing economy, where new products and services are tried out in a genuine urban environment and cooperation is used to support the realisation of the circular economy.
Read more about KIEPPI project.
In the Smart and Clean Kera project, Kera is developed into an urban district where clean and smart solutions have been honed to perfection. The change is carried out together with partner companies, residents and other stakeholders by means of novel network-based cooperation. The aim is to create important solutions related to, for example, new energy solutions, means of transport and urban food production.