Cultural environments

Human activities leave traces in the environment. This is how cultural environments are created and formed. They tell about human activities and interaction with the environment at different times.

In the Finnish context, ‘Cultural Environment’ is an umbrella concept covering built heritage, archaeological heritage and cultural landscapes. Cultural environments include:

• buildings, built areas, yards, parks, traffic lanes and structures
• landscapes where the impacts of human activities can be seen
• archaeological heritage, including structures, formations and objects made by humans, that are preserved in the landscape, in the soil or under water

Cultural environments comprise everything from our homes to medieval churches, from routes for everyday mobility to archaeological sites, and from schoolyards to hiking paths in national parks. They evolve and transform through human actions.

The Ministry of the Environment is responsible for the preparation of legislation concerning the cultural environment, landscape and built heritage. We develop and promote renovation construction, the protection of buildings and the management of even the less glamorous cultural environment sites in many ways.

Management of cultural environments improves the state of the environment and people’s wellbeing

The maintenance of cultural environments promotes sustainability in diverse ways. It saves natural resources, maintains biodiversity, promotes a circular economy and helps to achieve climate targets. Demolition of buildings and new construction cause a lot of carbon emissions and consume raw materials. This is why it is important to repair and maintain the building stock that already exists. Open landscapes and semi-natural meadows, in turn, are highly important for biodiversity.

Well-managed cultural environments enhance our wellbeing. They can add a very special narrative to a residential area and attract residents, tourists and businesses.

How does the law protect our built heritage?

The use and proper maintenance of buildings are the best ways to protect them. Buildings can also be protected through zoning plans under the Land Use Act and the Act on the Protection of the Built Heritage. The aim of the protection that is based on these acts is to create viable cultural environments and good environments for everyday living. The Ministry of the Environment is responsible for the preparation related to these acts and guides their enforcement.  

The municipalities decide on the protection based on the zoning plans. Protection decisions under the Act on the Protection of the Built Heritage are made by the Centres for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment. 

The Church Act and the Act on the Orthodox Church apply to the protection of religious buildings, and provisions on ancient monuments are laid down in the Antiquities Act.

• Read more about the legislation on the protection of buildings and landscapes

European Heritage Days 

European Heritage Days is a Europe-wide programme in which people and communities present and cherish their own cultural heritage. In Finland, the programme is implemented under the name Euroopan kulttuuriympäristöpäivät. Open days, guided tours, volunteer activities and many other public events invite people to explore both new and familiar places. The Days are an excellent example of the power of the cultural environment to foster a sense of community and inspire concrete actions for the benefit of one’s own surroundings.

The theme for 2026 is Worth Caring For, Heritage at Risk and the theme for 2027 Hidden Heritage. 

• European Heritage Days in Finland: Kulttuuriympäristöpäivät (in Finnish)
• www.europeanheritagedays.com

Grants for the management of cultural environments

The Economic Development Centres award grants for the maintenance and improvements of sites with cultural and historical value and their surroundings. Grants may be awarded to private owners, organisations working for the benefit of the built heritage and municipalities.

• Built heritage maintenance grants | Suomi.fi 

Grants for the management of cultural environments are also awarded by the Ministry of Education and Culture, Finnish Heritage Agency and Finnish Local Heritage Federation.

How is the work on cultural environments developed?

Cultural environment and cultural heritage issues are promoted in cooperation between the state, municipalities and various kinds of organisations. The most recent documents that guide this work are the Cultural Heritage Strategy and the Cultural Policy Programme. The processes to compile the documents were led by the Ministry of Education and Culture. 

• Cultural Heritage Strategy | Ministry of Education and Culture
• The Cultural Policy Report | Ministry of Education and Culture

The Ministry of the Environment produces information on the various topics related to cultural environments. One of the themes in the development work is even better quality and management of information concerning the cultural environment.

For example, information on valuable cultural environment sites is now available as map layers in the Built Environment Information System (Ryhti). You can access the information by opening the Ryhti Map Service via the link in the list below, selecting Cultural Environments from the map layers in the left-hand panel, and activating the desired layers.

Viewing cultural environment data does not require logging into the service. However, please log in as a private user if you wish to access more detailed information about buildings.

• Read more about the work on cultural environments. (The page and the reports are in Finnish, but the abstracts in the reports might be in English). 
• Project: Cultural environment information management. (In Finnish)
• Glossary of Cultural Environment | Suomi.fi
• Ryhti Map Service (In Finnish and in Swedish)