Forest

 

Sustainable recovery in Helsinki-Uusimaa region

In autumn of 2020 the regional council of Helsinki-Uusimaa focused its strategic development on improving the framework of its stakeholder interactions. The aim was to synergize the different aims and measures drafted earlier in the regional plan, climate road map, traffic and transportation plan, and…

Towards shared understanding of the changes in sustainability of forest use

In 2020, The Finnish Cultural Foundation granted a 150,000 euro Argumenta funding to the project “Towards shared understanding of the changes in sustainability of forest use”. The project is coordinated by the University of Jyväskylä School of Resource Wisdom (JYU.Wisdom), the Natural Resources…

Revision of Helsinki’s urban nature management practices

The Helsinki Urban Environment Division set up a working group to revise the city’s urban nature management policies. In 2022, Akordi planned and facilitated three workshops to support this work. The city of Helsinki is revising its urban nature management policies, and the city asked Akordi for…

Natural resources plan for the Sámi homeland

The drafting of an updated plan guiding the activities of Metsähallitus in the Sámi homeland began in October 2020. The updated plan will be for years 2022-2027, and it will align the aims of the state owned Metsähallitus (the Finnish forest administration) with those of the local populations. A working group consisting of key actors in the region was an important tool for the collaborative planning.

Negotiations and mediation between the Finnish Association for Nature Conservation, Greenpeace and the Finnish forest administration Metsähallitus in 2018-2021

The concerned parties commissioned Akordi in autumn 2018 to assess the prolonged forestry conflicts in the Kainuu region. In order for the conflict to be resolved the national level aspects had to be discussed as well. A twelve member working group was founded from members of the concerned organizations including national directors and forest experts of the Finnish Association for Nature Conservation and Finnish Greenpeace. The group convened 14 times between November 2019 and January 2021. The scope of the work expanded significantly from what was initially planned to include all state owned forests in Finland.

Finnish FSC standard revision

The Forest Stewardship Council - FSC - is an international, non-profit and open association that is committed to strengthening the sustainable use of forests via certification. At the start of 2020, Akordi was requested as a neutral party to assist in the negotiations and work in updating the Finnish…

Conflict assessment: Sámi herding cooperatives and Metsähallitus

In 2020 the lingering tensions between Sámi reindeer herders and Metsähallitus forestry called for framing the conflict. In a novel approach, a neutral party intervenes in a lingering conflict to get a clearer picture of the situation. Conflict analysis is sometimes a part of environmental conflict mediation. It isn’t research, since it has a more practical goal; to lay the foundation for resolving the conflict.

Jyväskylä Strategic Forest Program

The City of Jyväskylä's Forest Program is a long-term strategic plan outlining the management and use of the city's forests. The process, which concluded in June 2018, involved the collaboration of city representatives and local stakeholders. Akordi played a key role in facilitating an interactive negotiation process during the development of the Forest Program.