Evaluation: Finnish Climate Change Panel has had major impacts on national climate policy
An external evaluation explored the activities of the Finnish Climate Change Panel during the term 2020–2023 and the success and impact of its activities. The evaluation was conducted in autumn 2023 by Gaia Consulting Oy, commissioned by the Ministry of the Environment.
According to the evaluation, as a whole the work of the Finnish Climate Change Panel has been successful in relation to its mandate and tasks. The Panel was considered to have fulfilled its core mandate during the term 2020–2023, i.e. the development of national legislation and plans. A major part of its work was concerned with the development of the Climate Act and the plans under it. The Panel was considered to have had a major impact on the national climate policy, and it has successfully supported decision-making and the official preparation processes.
The work of the Panel has expanded in scope and become more professional. During the second term the Panel produced much more public material than in the first term. There has also been significant growth in the media visibility of the Panel. According to the evaluation, the Panel has been independent, as it should be.
Proposals from evaluation for next term
Based on the evaluation, development proposals were presented for the next term. The prioritisation of the Panel’s work should be further improved and the approach should be even more systematic. The members of the Panel should have enough time for the work, and this is where their background organisations have a key role. The Panel’s activities would be more stable if the scientific secretariat worked on a permanent basis and the Communications Specialist’s post were a full-time one.
Flow of information between the Panel and the public officials of the ministries should be promoted. The Panel should further develop the dialogue with stakeholders and have more cooperation with the national science panels and with the science panels of the other Nordic and EU countries.
The observations from the second term include growing opposition to science and polarisation of climate policy, which were considered to increase the need to prove the Panel’s independence. The evaluation also stressed the need to strengthen the interdisciplinary approach of the Panel by promoting the role of human and political sciences alongside technical and natural sciences.
Independent scientific knowledge about climate change mitigation
The Finnish Climate Change Panel is an independent scientific expert body appointed under the Climate Act. It promotes the dialogue between science and policy in climate issues, gives recommendations for Government’s decision-making on climate policy and strengthens a multi-disciplinary approach in climate sciences. According to the Climate Act, the Government appoints the Finnish Climate Change Panel for four years at a time.
During the term 2020–2023 the Finnish Climate Change Panel was composed of 15 top researchers from fields of science that are relevant in terms of climate policy. The Panel was chaired by Professor Emeritus of the University of Helsinki Markku Ollikainen.
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