Emissions from the real estate and construction sector can be effectively cut while creating new business that is also of international interest. The Low-carbon Built Environment Programme is offering another approximately EUR 12 million in funding for research, development and innovation projects that promote the green transition of the built environment.

Voluntary climate action is one way to promote climate work in Finland and globally. The guide published by the Ministry of the Environment and Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry on 1 February outlines good practices for the voluntary carbon market. The guide aims to improve the reliability of the domestic carbon market and create opportunities for Finnish companies to act for the benefit of the climate.

The first Minister of the Environment and Climate Change of the Federal Republic of Somalia Khadija Mohamed Almakhzoumi visits Finland on 31 January–3 February 2023. The visit is on the invitation of the Finnish Minister of the Environment and Climate Change Maria Ohisalo. The purpose of the visit is to support the new ministry in starting its work.

The Government has decided to keep the annual payments of the state-subsidised rental housing and right of occupancy housing loans (ARAVA) at the same level as in 2022. No adjustment according to the consumer price index will be made in 2023. The decision will curb the pressures to raise rents and management fees in the current situation where the property management costs and the residents’ living costs are also rising rapidly.

The revised EU Drinking Water Directive has been implemented in Finnish national legislation through statutory amendments that took effect on 12 January 2023. These amendments concern a wide range of laws and regulations. The main goal of the reform is to safeguard the quality of water intended for human consumption and to provide more information on water quality.

The 15th Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity ends today on 19 December in Montreal, Canada. Almost 200 states negotiated on actions to halt the loss of biodiversity by 2030 and strengthen the state of the natural environment.

Sixteen Finnish municipalities are taking part in in the work on challenge clusters under the Sustainable City Programme. The aim is to tackle the most difficult sustainability challenges that cannot be solved by individual organisations or sectors alone. The three themes selected on the basis of the needs of cities are: urban green spaces in increasingly built-up cities, urban planning that takes sustainability targets into account, and flourishing communities in socially sustainable cities. The themes are particularly challenging as they combine the different dimensions of sustainability.

On Thursday 8 December, the Climate Policy Roundtable discussed the different dimensions of justice in climate actions and plans. The members of the Roundtable stressed that, even if justice can be considered from many different dimensions, the most important thing in terms of justice is to uphold the climate targets and continue to pursue a consistent climate policy. The meeting was chaired by the vice-chair of the Climate Policy Roundtable, Minister of the Environment and Climate Change Maria Ohisalo.

The Climate Policy Roundtable will hold its 19th meeting on Thursday 8 December. The main topic of the meeting will be justice in climate actions and plans.

The 15th Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity will be held in Montreal, Canada on 7–19 December 2022. “The Conference in Montreal must mark a turning point in terms of halting the loss of biodiversity by 2030, somewhat in the same way as the Paris Climate Change Conference did for preventing climate crisis,” says Minister of the Environment and Climate Change Maria Ohisalo, who leads Finland’s delegation. Minister Ohisalo will attend the Conference on 15–19 December.