Citizens’ panel on improving state of nature

The Ministry of the Environment organised a citizens’ panel in May-June 2025 to collect people’s views related to improving the state of nature and pass them on to support decision-making. The views of the citizens’ panel provide ideas for the preparation of the national restoration plan under the EU’s Nature Restoration Regulation.

The statement of the citizens’ panel and a description of its composition are available in the publication: Citizens’ panel on improving the state of nature 2025: Statement of the citizen’s panel to support the preparation of the national restoration plan

Citizens’ panel on improving the state of nature

• helped to identify what the citizens consider as important in improving the state of nature 
• produced the people’s view of how the Nature Restoration Regulation can be implemented in Finland in a way that is acceptable and just.

Citizens’ panel produced deliberated views to support the national restoration plan

The citizens’ panel on improving the state of nature was composed of 44 Finns from different parts of the country selected by means of random sampling and quotas. The panel convened online on four evenings in May-June 2025 to discuss the implementation of the EU’s Nature Restoration Regulation in Finland. The recommendations produced offer valuable information in support of decision-making. 

The views of the citizens’ panel provide ideas for the preparation of the national restoration plan under the EU’s Nature Restoration Regulation. The citizens’ panel produced the people’s view of how the Nature Restoration Regulation can be implemented in Finland in a way that is acceptable and just.

No previous knowledge on the topic was required to participate in the citizens’ panel. The participants received information about the topics as the work of the panel progressed.

• Background material for the citizens’ panel on improving the state of nature (in Finnish)

Background

The deliberative citizens’ panel is a new method for civic participation where a group of ordinary people selected by random sampling meet to learn about and discuss questions important for society and to give recommendations concerning these to support decision-making. 

• Read more about citizens’ panels | Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra.fi

Biodiversity is being lost faster than ever before in different parts of the world. Biodiversity loss is progressing in Finland as well: one out of nine of the species and one in two of the habitat types are threatened. The EU Nature Restoration Regulation aims to halt the loss of biodiversity. 

• Read more about biodiversity

The aim of the EU’s Nature Restoration Regulation is to improve a broad range of ecosystems in different kinds of environments, both in protected areas and outside these. Biodiversity loss cannot be stopped only by increasing protected areas; instead, the ecological sustainability of the commercial use of nature needs to be improved as well.

The process to prepare Finland’s national restoration plan is under way. The national plan will specify the means to reach the objectives of the regulation. Including people’s deliberated views in the planning already in the early stages of the process is highly important. 

• Read more about the Nature Restoration Regulation