Circular economy in key sectors

This is how we implement the Circular Economy Programme

To make the circular economy a reality, various stakeholders and sectors in society must adjust their practices and create innovations. In particular, the real estate and construction sector as one of the largest consumers of natural resources has significant potential to promote the circular economy.

Municipalities and regions are key players in the circular economy. They can significantly promote services and solutions that support the circular economy e.g. in urban planning and when making procurements. Cities and regions have contributed to launching cooperation between operator networks and ecosystems that support the circular economy and have collaborated to develop new solutions in actual operating environments.

What we do and where we are now:

1.  We will prepare a Green Deal on the circular economy.

  • The work to develop the Circular Economy Green Deal started in March 2022 and was completed in June 2024. Almost 90 operators and stakeholders were involved in the process. The aim is to promote the circular economy transition in companies, sectors, municipalities and regions. The operators can join the Green Deal with their own commitments starting in summer 2024. The implementation of the measures will continue until 2035. To support the assessment of the effectiveness of the objectives and measures, the research institutes led the process to prepare an analysis and scenarios concerning material flows in Finland.  Responsible organisations: Ministry of the Environment, Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment, Finnish Environment Institute and other research institutes.

2.  We will establish a national network of expertise to support the work of corporate, municipal, and regional ecosystems in promoting a circular economy society.

  • The network of expertise on the circular economy brings together experts on the circular economy, disseminates information and good practices and improves the capabilities of operators in promoting the circular economy. The network is led by Motiva and the Finnish Environment Institute SYKE. Responsible organisation: Ministry of the Environment.

3. We will increase awareness and expertise related to the circular economy in the real estate and construction sector.

  • In the real estate and construction sector the awareness of and expertise on the circular economy will be promoted as part of the Green Deal on the circular economy (in Finnish).
  • We will implement a Circular Economy in Construction growth path together with Kasvu Open. The aim of the programme, targeted to companies working with a circular economy, was to provide support for the growth and development of companies in the construction sector that apply solutions related to sustainable development. 15 companies were chosen for the programme, and it was implemented in April-October 2022. Responsible organisation: Ministry of the Environment.

4. We will develop the land use planning principles and the guidance of construction and the use of premises to support the circular economy.

  • As part of the reform of the Construction Act the Ministry of the Environment set up a group of experts to develop the lifecycle properties of new buildings. The report concerning the possibility to adapt, repair, demolish, transfer and reuse new buildings that supports their longevity was completed in the beginning of 2024. The study conducted by Ramboll on the conditions for altering the intended use of a building and ways to promote this was completed towards the end of 2023 and a policy brief related to the topics was published in the beginning of 2024. The package of measures is also included in the Finland’s national architectural policy programme 2022–2035 published in January 2022 Responsible organisation: Ministry of the Environment.