Chapter 5 Chapter 5

Sustainable Futures 185 for Hakunila and Sotunki

Christina ''Linza’’ Itkonen Andrea Gilly Marquez Heta Seppälä & Apichaya Sindhuprama Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

scenarios could inspire people to think Framework about what they could do personally to push sustainability forward. In this chapter, we analyze two areas of Our team consists of people from four Vantaa: Hakunila and Sotunki (Figure 1). We professional backgrounds with completely examine their relationship with each other different skill sets and perspectives: real and the threats and opportunities presented estate, environmental sciences, landscape by their paradigm. Using this information, architecture and design. Never the less, we we have created scenarios for sustainable share an interest in social, environmental futures. These scenarios seek to illus- and economic sustainability. We are all in- trate how policies, technologies, people, terested in practical ways to make our ways and planning can shape a more sustainable of life and habitats more resilient in the future. To illustrate the context of the face of climate change and other environ- scenarios, we have defined the trends that mental challenges. Throughout this topic we we will focus on. We chose governance and address several areas of our interest, such technological/economic factors as drivers as the densification of agricultural areas, of change. The scenarios narrate differ- urban permaculture, utilization and retro- ent paths for sustainability and illustrate fitting of existing structures for better diversity of the concept. Scenarios are not environmental performance, environmental be- necessarily a realistic view of the future, havior change, ecologically-driven decision but they can be seen as tools to demonstrate making, and social cohesion in small neigh- what might happen if different sustaina- borhoods. We found that these are inter- ble policies or other measures are used. In ests shared by all of us, and they acted as 186 fact, the future might have aspects of each drivers to develop the project. These areas of the scenarios. We hope also that these of interest enable us to challenge the way scenarios could inspire the planners’ choice we plan, from fast production, to the most of strategies and tools to achieve sustain- efficient solutions. One such example is ability. If we are very hopeful, perhaps assessing the needs of new structures versus

Figure 1. Location of Hakunila and Sotunki in Vantaa. Chapter 5

the re-adaptation of old structures, to ena- set of steps is followed. The purpose of the ble less resource use. scenarios is not to predict how the future For research topic purposes, we have de- will look, but rather, the tool allows us to cided to work with the areas of Hakunila be inspired by the current trends and pin- and Sotunki, within the Vantaa municipali- point possible future trends and outcomes. ty, because of their modes of interaction, It is a tool used by planners to help to their different social paradigms, existing make better decisions today. plans touching both areas, the potential In the creation of future scenarios, four of local cooperation, and the history of societal driving forces have been taken in community interactions. The two areas are consideration: societal dynamics, economic significantly different in structure and issues, political issues and technological culture; Hakunila is a green belt high-rise issues. These forces influence our behav- suburb which is densely populated and con- ior and the course of action of our society tains services, while Sotunki is an agrarian (Wilkinson 1995). landscape with no local services of its own. The future is not guaranteed to manifest This gives us the opportunity to consider itself exactly according to these scenar- solutions for both types of neighborhood. io, but the scenarios give a contextual The City of Vantaa has notable environ- framework for the options and opportuni- mental goals and contains commercial func- ties described. By choosing two axes with tions governing consumerism in the capital extremes at each end, we hoped to present region, such as logistics companies and a variety of tools and strategies relevant Jumbo, the popular shopping center (Laakso to any of the middle values of each (Figure 2017). Additionally, Vantaa is projected to 2); a combination of these would be needed grow between 2017 and 2050. This combination for any plausible future. The vertical axis 187 means that Vantaa could be a model for the describes the level of government involve- United Nations’ Goal for Sustainable Cities ment in change-making, as sustainability and Communities. strategies exist for every value along this This paper consists of six sections. In spectrum. The horizontal axis describes the addition to the purpose of the article, involvement of technology and technolo- we have presented in this first section gy-driven economics in adapting to this fu- the scenario method we used. In the sec- ture and also direction of the economy. ond section we have presented background We chose these axes as we believe them information about Hakunila and Sotunki and to be the most relevant factors for real in section 3, the essential concepts which sustainable development based on our own provided inspiration and guidelines for us. research. The selection criteria have been In the fourth section we have gathered the based on two current, global trends. One em- essential knowledge in relation to devel- phasizes the role of technology, innovation opment of these districts as an analysis and economic green growth, while the other of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and sees declining consumption and low technol- threats (SWOT analysis). Section 5 presents ogy alternatives as the best solutions to the four scenarios and the sixth section reach sustainability. Thus, while all the provides conclusions of the work. scenarios are located inside the wide and diverse concept of sustainability, they represent opposite views. Therefore, there are Method no best- or worst-case scenarios. Instead we In order to talk about potential sustain- assumed an atmosphere of hope; none of these ability tools for the region selected, we predictions are apocalyptic, none involve have described four normative scenarios for the extinction of humanity or any group of Vantaa in 2050. Scenario planning is a tool humanity, and all assume that no one will used to create a fictional image of what actively seek their own destruction. the future might look like if a determined After defining the axes, we brainstormed Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

Figure 2. Scenario axes.

what those scenarios would look like. We did nical language is used, using back casting 188 this together to gather different ideas of to define the steps required to reach the sustainability and discussed which factors specific scenario. This is combined with the would be part of the scenarios - things purpose of developing a strategy that will such as communal spaces for co-living, car- help reach a set of goals (Schwartz 1991, free cities, a sharing economy, or low-tech 258). However, we wanted to use storytelling development. We also took into account all to get the reader involved, to make it more ideas that were inspired from previous re- comprehensive, and to provide the scenario search on the essential concepts, as well with a face. as results from both the Analyses and SWOT While composing the scenarios, we decid- analysis sections. The concepts were used ed to follow some previous assumptions. For as existing trends that could lead to a instance, we assumed that the climate will more sustainable urban structure. Statisti- change as described in The Baltic Marine cal data and literary material, processed in Environment Protection Commission’s (HEL- the analysis and results of SWOT analysis, COM) assessment (Climate change… 2013), in were used to contextualize the solutions the worst case for each indicator. Over illustrated, and to differentiate the area's the course of the 21st century, the capital needs from standard urbanization models. region may warm by four degrees, precipita- To tell the story of the four scenarios, tion might increase by between eight and 24 we chose different narrative perspectives percent in both summer and winter, and the in the form of four characters whose back- volume of snow may decrease by 70 percent. grounds would make them particularly affect- Snowmelt will begin earlier in the year, ed by the changes we want to illustrate. and sediment transport into waterways will The stories are told as one day in the life decrease according to the decrease in snow of each character, including the charac- volume, both of which bode well for agricul- ter’s internal monologue and reflections to ture, if poorly for migratory animals. The showcase how things came to be the way they sea level may rise by as much as 1.1 meters. are. For scenario planning, there are sever- We also assumed that attention will be al ways to tell the stories, usually tech- paid to adapting to these changes as well as Chapter 5

the global changes that climate change will In the 1970s, the district developed cause-- the disappearance of island nations a distinct high-rise suburban character and low-lying territories, increased oc- with its own shopping center, library, and currence and severity of drought and flood church. Most of its residences are rental events, food and water insecurity, and the apartments, with a high proportion of people mass migration of people living in plac- living alone. In the 1980s and 1990s, the es impacted by these. As a place relatively Kaskela neighborhood developed with small mildly impacted by these problems, Finland houses and the Nissas area developed first may expect to see an influx of people. with small houses, then with row houses and two-floor apartment buildings. In the south, there are small areas for row houses and Analyses of Hakunila and Sotunki single-family houses. Despite the exiatence General Overview of bus connections, the area is heavily car-dependent and contains significant Hakunila is Vantaa’s third largest district car parking areas (Vantaa alueittain… 2016, by land area (Table 1). It is named after 259). the 18th century Håkansböle estate, which Sotunki is the eastern-most district in existed in the same area. It also contains Vantaa, sharing a border with Sipoo (Ta- the old village Nissbacka, now a housing ble 1). Formerly Översby, it is the oldest area called Nissas. In the area a manor village in the Uusimaa region. Stone Age house still stands, which burned down in dwellings and burial grounds have been found 1934, later to be repaired by the city, and in the area. The earliest records of Övers- later still to become a cultural and recre- by village are from the 14th century. Nygård ational space. It now serves as an artist’s farm houses still stand in the area. (Vantaa studio and sculpture garden, and has some 189 alueittain… 2016, 274) historic trees. (Vantaa alueittain… 2016, 258-259). The area is still agricultural, and houses

Table Sustainable.1 Table 1. Basic information of Hakunila Sotunki Vantaa Hakunila and Sotunki (Vantaa alueittain… 2016). Area (km2) 3 14 240

Inhabitants in 2015 11,253 652 210,803

Inhabitants / km2 in 2015 3,618 48 877

Vantaa citizen by birth (%) in 2015 25.6 35.9 27.5

Foreign country citizens (%) in 2015 19.6 2.3 9.4

Graduated (%) in 2015 56.8 72.8 67.6

Proportion of entrepreneurs of all working people (%) in 2015 5.6 14.6 7.0

Unemployment rate (%) in 2015 16.6 4.3 10.3

Average income of over 15-year-olds (e) in 2013 25,434 42,108 31,694

Workplaces in 2013 1,625 88 106,420

Level of self-sufficiency in workplaces (%) in 2015 34 28 106 Table XX.1. Basic information of Hakunila and Sotunki (Vantaa alueittain… 2016). Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

are single-family owned. Though the dis- access and get around. We compared the ac- trict is the largest in land area in Van- cessibility using three factors: car (Figure taa, it contains only 650 residents, of 3), public transport (Figure 4), and walk- which 17 percent speak Swedish as their ing (Figure 5), to point out the efficiency first language. Services and transportation or inefficiency of the infrastructure that are accordingly sparse; there are some bus allows citizens to get around Hakunila and connections, but the area is almost entire- Sotunki. Thus, these maps can illustrate ly car-dependent. Housing is mainly made up issues that can cause conflicts with the of detached houses, constructed over several sustainability targets of Vantaa. decades (Vantaa alueittain… 2016, 275). Ojanko is included in our maps and consid- Nature eration only with regards to the Kormuniitty area, which is categorized as a “Culturally A significant portion of the green areas in Significant Landscape area” (Vantaa alueit- Sotunki is part of the Sipoonkorpi National tain… 2016, 253). It borders Hakunila and Park, which is protected against develop- Sotunki, and encompasses also the Sotunki ment (Vantaa alueittain… 2016, 275). Also school and Hakunila sports complex. Land present is a national heritage site which use changes and development plans affecting covers parts of the border between Sotun- Sipoo National Park will affect green areas ki, Ojanko, and Hakunila. A small portion and paths connecting to Ojanko. of the heritage site would be affected by We have created maps to illustrate the the proposed use change for Kormuniitty (nro differences of accessibility to both areas, 002226), therefore attention will be need- to compare how easy or difficult it is to ed to prevent degradation of the site to be 190 developed. Also, some of what is marked in

Figure 3. Accessibility by car from Hakunila center and Sotunki. In the images above, we can see that Hakunila is more accessible by car than Sotunki. This means that it has better infrastructure to get around, and at the same time that Sotunki is somewhat dependent on Hakunila’s existing infrastructure. (Data: Toivonen et al. 2015). Chapter 5

Figure 4. Accessibility by public transport from Hakunila and Sotunki center. In the images above, it is clear that it is much easier to get around from Hakunila than from Sotunki where the average time just to 191 get out is 10-20 minutes, and from there to the Espoo it can take more than 90 minutes. (Data: Toivonen et al. 2015).

Figure 5. Accessibility by foot from Hakunila and Sotunki center. In terms of walking distances, both Hakunila and Sotunki are limited in the same way, but we can also see that it takes on average 20 minutes to walk from one’s center to the other. (Data: Toivonen et al. 2015). Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

publicly-available data as green areas appears to be in agricultural use, which we have considered separately in figure 6. Green areas in Hakunila include both open and wooded Land use spaces, which appear to serve Hakunila, Sotunki, Ojanko as a noise buffer from major roads and as set-backs between residences and streets. Open spaces in the built area are underutilized. Forest- ed spaces at the edge of the built-up area host birds, squirrels, and insects. Figure 7 shows high biodiversity within the conservation areas, which are mostly on the Sotunki side. The natural richness of the area will challenge future development to maintain high bio- 192 diversity. On the other hand, almost half (1.2 of 3.0 sq. km) of Hakunila has a very low biodiversity rate because of pavements, artificial surfaces, and buildings. It could also be another chal- Nature: Biodiversity lenge to the City plan to increase the quality of nature (City of Vantaa’s… 2012, 8). Climate change is another challenge for future city planning as it affects all environmental elements. The City of Vantaa has realized the importance of climate change adaptation. According to the City of Vantaa’s Envi- ronment Policy (2012),

[O]n a local level, cities and municipalities can, to a significant extent, have a significant impact on cutting greenhouse gas Figure 6. Land Use and Green Areas (Corine Land… 2012; Luonnonsuoje- emissions. Thus, cities lu- ja… 2017; Natura 2000… 2017). and municipalities play a major role in implementing Figure 7. Biodiversity maps with buildings and conservation area climate-change-adaptation outline (Jalkanen 2017). Chapter 5

measures. [...] The City of Vantaa has The proportion of foreign country citizens set a climate change management group to is higher in Hakunila than the average in be in charge of the city’s climate work. Vantaa. Almost one-third of inhabitants, 29 Different departments’ goals and actions percent, speak a foreign language. Compared to cut greenhouse gases are included in to Vantaa overall, there is a smaller pro- the departments’ climate and environmental portion of inhabitants with higher education programs. The city can influence the emis- or those who work as entrepreneurs. Also, sions by integrating and condensing the the average incomes of Hakunila inhabitants urban structure. It is also essential to are lower and the employment situation is reduce the greenhouse gas emissions caused worse than the average level in Vantaa (Van- by energy and electricity consumption. taa alueittain… 2016, 258–259). In 2000 conflicts between Finnish and Somali youngsters broke out in Hakunila and The statement has already mentioned the inspired the “Hakunila Project.” The pro- tendency of changes in the urban fabric. The ject addressed the problems and succeed- clear policies also enable business sectors ed in improving the safety of the area, by to plan their goals in the same direction. developing different ways of cooperation Climate change issues are also mentioned in and negotiation (Rikoksentorjuntaneuvoston sustainable urban development of environ- toimintakertomus 2003, 8). In 2015 Suomen mental policy guidelines (City of Vantaa’s… Kotiseutuliitto chose Hakunila as the city 2012, 11). district of the year because of its community spirit, success of reconciling conflicts, Population and the cooperation between the City of Van- taa, various associations, the church, and 193 Hakunila is Vantaa’s third biggest city the neighborhood inhabitants (Vantaa alueit- district by population and fifth biggest by tain… 2016, 259). Even still, today Hakunila population density. In the future, the pop- is one of the areas where more disadvantaged ulation of Hakunila is going to increase as people live than elsewhere in the capital Hakunila will be one of the growth areas in region (Figure 8). Vantaa (Vantaa alueittain… 2016, 258–259). Sotunki is the second largest city dis- Both today and in the future, Hakunila has trict of Vantaa by area, but there are few more young people than those aged over 60. inhabitants (Vantaa alueittain… 2016, 275).

Figure 8. Geography of disadvantaged people in capital area 2016. (Data: Statistics Finland 2017). Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

Figure 9. Estimated development of age structure in Vantaa 2017-2045. Parallel to the global trend, Vantaa is an aging society and birth rate is decreasing. However, district predictions show slightly different 194 patterns (Population projection… 2017).

Figure 10. Estimated development of age structure in Hakunila and Sotunki 2017–2027 (Population projection… 2017). Chapter 5

As shown in Figures 9 and 10, the number Thus, the level of self-sufficiency in work- of inhabitants is not estimated to increase places of Hakunila is only 34 percent, when in the future. Inhabitants of Sotunki are self-sufficiency in workplaces in Vantaa is mainly families living in detached houses, over 100 percent (Vantaa alueittain… 2016, and the proportion of school age children is 258). The most significant industries in clearly bigger than the average in Vantaa. Hakunila, by number of jobs, are transporta- Inhabitants tend to have higher education tion and storage; the second most signifi- and higher incomes than the average inhabit- cant are human health and social work activ- ants of Vantaa. More than one third of them ities (Figure 11). are born in Vantaa. The unemployment rate The commercial services of Hakunila and is also lower, and the proportion of entre- Sotunki are concentrated mainly in the preneurs is higher than the average for the Hakunila center and in its shopping center. whole of Vantaa (Vantaa alueittain… 2016, There are over 20 enterprises like restau- 275). rants, pharmacies, grocery stores, hairdressers and photographic studios. Currently Livelihood the commercial services are not enough compared to the number of inhabitants. Never- With respect of the number of inhabit- theless, the Center of Hakunila is serving ants, there are quite a few workplaces in the whole of eastern Vantaa. The purchasing Hakunila, but the largest concentration of power is directed outside Hakunila at the workplaces is in Vantaan Akseli, beside moment, but the potential for additional Hakunila (Hakunilan keskustan… 2017, 3). commercial services in Hakunila is good, be-

195

Figure 11. Jobs in Hakunila by Standard Industrial Classification TOL 2008 (Työpaikat Vantaalla… 2017). Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

cause there are more residences than com- unko” (2017), or Hakunila center plan (see mercial services and workplaces (Hakunilan Figure 15), is a preparatory vision made for keskustan… 2017, 3). the forthcoming master and detailed plans of There are plenty of public services in Hakunila. It describes how the livability of Hakunila (Figure 12). The library, health Hakunila center could be improved and sets center, child welfare clinic, church, youth goals for land use, traffic, and services. club, daycare and Kela office are locat- In-fill housing development will be located ed in the center of Hakunila. Elsewhere in in the Hakunila center and new housing will Hakunila there is also a retirement home, be located in the old bus depot area. They swimming pool, sports hall, as well as could become home to as many as 6,200 new ten daycare centers, and three schools. In inhabitants. Sotunki there are no public services except The increasing population makes it pos- Sipoonkorpi National Park and public outdoor sible to improve the availability of com- recreation paths (Vantaan palvelukartta… mercial services and the city has set aside 2017). land for a new, larger shopping center. According to the Hakunilan keskustan kaavar- unko (2017, 3, 11), the atmosphere and image Planning of Hakunila center will be improved by The current master plan of Hakunila and constructing high-quality public areas and Sotunki and the detailed plan of Hakunila connecting Hakunila to the larger network of are presented in Figures 13 and 14. Current- green areas. Public transit connections as ly there are five different plans underway well as bicycle and walking paths will also in Hakunila. “Hakunilan keskustan kaavar- be developed. 196

Figure 12. Public services of the area are concentrated mainly in Hakunila. Points represent public services like education, social services, daycare and health care (Vantaan palvelukartta… 2017). Chapter 5

Figure 13. The current master plan of Hakunila and Sotunki from the year 2007. A new masterplan is underway. In this plan, the center of Hakunila is marked mainly as a city center area (C, red) and as an ef- fectively built residential area (A1, darker brown). Light brown A2-areas are low and dense residential areas and lighter brown A3-areas are detached house areas. Lilac PY point out public services and adminis- 197 tration areas. Orange P1 point out commercial service areas. The light red TP point out work places. The green VL-areas point out the recreational green areas and the VU-areas are for recreation and sports. Public transport connections are marked along Hakunilantie and Kyytitie (Vantaan palvelukartta… 2017).

Figure 14. The current detailed plan of Hakunila from the 1970s. The new detailed plan is underway. Hakunila is marked mainly as apartment buildings (AK, brown), different public buildings (Y, lilac), parking lots (LPA, lilac) and office buildings (K, orange) (Vantaan palvelukartta… 2017). Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

In Sotunki there are no master plans or detailed plans underway, but outdoor recreation paths will be developed in the Sipoonkorpi National Park area (Vantaa alueittain… 2016, 275).

Sustainable Development The City of Vantaa has been aiming for sustainable development since 1995. Current targets for environmental politics and sustainable development are defined in the City of Vantaa´s Environmen- tal Policy 2012–2020 (2012) and in more detailed environmental programs of different city departments. The pro- gress of the work is moni- tored annually and every few Figure 15. Hakunila development plans (Vantaan palvelukartta… years to create environmental 198 2017). reports. The main aim of sustainable development in Vantaa is to secure good living conditions for current and future inhabitants. The City of Vantaa is striving to implement economic action without endan- gering the carrying capacity of nature and social equity, while opportunities to influence surroundings are also being supported and improved (Kestävä kehitys… 2017). Vantaa wants to be seen as a bellwether in sustainable development (City of Vantaa’s… 2012, 6; Figure 16). According to information provided by the City of Van- taa regarding sustainability, the major environmental challenge in Vantaa is climate change and the most signif- Figure 16. Structure of environ- icant solutions to that are mental management in Vantaa (City densifying the city structure of Vantaa’s… 2012, 14). and increasing public transport and cycling (City of Chapter 5

Vantaa’s… 2012, 8). Energy production has and sustainable development as the practice; to be developed more sustainably as well as different definitions are used by different the consumption habits of citizens, through disciplines. And we also define sustainable reinforced sustainability education. Green- development, which is the practice of sus- house gas emissions are acknowledged in the tainability, as defined by a range of schol- City of Vantaa’s own public procurements. ars and institutions (Koglin, 2009). The second largest environmental problem Many definitions of sustainability posit is the loss of biodiversity caused by the economic, social, and ecological capital as fragmentation of habitats and destruction of equal pillars of society, which means that ecological connections, among other things. they can replace each other by fulfilling Renovating and rebuilding Vantaa’s numerous somewhat similar needs. In this situation, flowing waters and creeks is one priority in the sustainability of society is located at securing biodiversity. The third significant the intersection of these three dimensions environmental problem in Vantaa is noise, (Heikkurinen 2014, 11; Figure 17). However, which is controlled mainly by planning. many critics (e.g. Latouche 2010; Heikku- In addition to the environmental policy rinen 2014; Caradonna et al. 2015) point and various reports, the City of Vantaa has out that in the current economic system, other tools which help to improve sustain- the economic factor or pillar is too often able development: (1) Eco-support persons given top priority. Social welfare is taken help employees in every workplace of the into account if possible, only within the City of Vantaa to improve environmental limits of the economy, and the environment sustainability; (2) environmental education is either forgotten or seen as a commodity starts when children enter daycare and it (Tikkanen 2015). This definition of sustain- continues at school, in workplaces, and even ability is quite similar to the sustainable 199 in retirement homes; (3) Vantaa measures the development definition, and it is referred standards of Fair Trade and, among other to as weak sustainability (Heikkurinen 2014, things, it means that equal rights of em- 11). ployees and welfare of nature are respected By contrast, the concept of strong sus- in public procurements, and that those prod- tainability defines categories based on ucts are not produced by child labor; and their interdependencies. Nature is not de- (4) the City of Vantaa’s guidelines to re- pendent on anything, which means it does not source efficiency will be finished in 2017. depend on either economic or social factors The goals are to reach a carbon neutral and to survive (as opposed to the views many hu- waste-free city by 2050, and to learn to use mans have). For this reason, ecological cap- natural resources as sparingly as possible ital holds the highest place in the hierar- (Kestävä kehitys… 2017). chy, surrounding and supporting both social and economic capital. The middle circle, social capital, or humans, are dependent on Concepts nature, and unable to survive without it. In a like fashion, the economy is dependent on social capital, as it is a human invention-- Sustainable Development and Sustainability there is no economy without people. The con- In this section we define some of the concept of strong sustainability sees nature as cepts we have researched and been inspired a precondition and a restrictive factor for by. These concepts are used in guidelines humans and economic systems. Thus, capitals and are inspiration for both the creation of of each dimension - economic, social, and the SWOT analysis and the future scenarios. ecological - are complementary in relation Sustainability and sustainable development to each other. Both economic and social are concepts often thought of as referenc- welfare can be implemented only if natural ing the same thing, and it is hard to find resources are lasting (Tikkanen 2015). The a definition that explains the difference. main idea behind strong sustainability is Here, we define sustainability as the ethos, that because humans are part of nature, we Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

Figure 17. Concepts of weak and strong sustainability (Tikkanen 2015).

cannot live as if it did not exist (Heikku- fines sustainability more like a process or 200 rinen 2014, 12). transition strategy than an end in itself. The definition of sustainable development Although it resonates on all fronts: so- by the United Nations’ (UN) Brundtland Com- cial, economic and environmental, there is mission (Our Common… 1987, 41) is one of the no unified theory for it. Creating a theo- first and most used definitions. It says: ry would be difficult, because sustainable development is a moving target. Sustainabil- Development that meets the needs of the ity know-how is developing all the time and present without compromising the abili- different solutions are needed in different ty of future generations to meet their places. There is no “constant recipe” or own needs. It contains within it two key “one size fits all” solution for sustain- concepts: the concept of ‘needs’, in par- ability. According to Timmeren (2014, 1), ticular the essential needs of the world’s “sustainability often relies on the manage- poor, to which overriding priority should ment of transitions—a shift to doing things be given; and the idea of limitations differently.” In the end, sustainable devel- imposed by the state of technology and opment depends on humanity’s mind and that social organization on the environment’s is why it is so important to produce more ability to meet present and future needs. knowledge and innovation about the complex- ity of problems, environmental technology, design, and adaptation to change. This way However, we do not like this definition, of thinking resonates more with our way of as we feel it is elusive, and very often thinking, because we think that in order to used to pursue personal agendas that can act sustainably, and for real sustainable be contradictory. We see examples in both development to happen, the way we go about public and private sectors of organiza- our businesses, our policies, our practices, tions that only use sustainability as “green our habits, our education, and everything washing,” while continuing to do things that makes us social beings, must change. business-as-usual. This means that the way Starting from the economic and governance things are done does not change at all. models, maybe we can integrate the value of ecosystems and natural resources - their Lastly, Arjan van Timmeren (2014, 1) de- Chapter 5

respect, preservation and recognition of our Economic Degrowth dependency - into the definition of sustainable development. François Schneider, Joan Martinez-Alier, and Georgios Kallis (2010, 512) define degrowth We feel it is relevant to define what a as follows: “Sustainable degrowth is defined sustainable city is. For this matter, we as an equitable downscaling of production will use the term referring to the UN’s and consumption that increases human well- eleventh goal (Goal 11… 2015), where they being and enhances ecological conditions.” define sustainable cities and communities. Degrowth is striving for sustainability, but The core concept is to “make cities and hu- departing from many other ideologies; it man settlements inclusive, safe, resilient does not believe that it is possible to de- and sustainable.” The UN mentioned sever- couple economic growth from the use of nat- al urban challenges and set sub-targets ural resources. Until now, economic growth and indicators to complete them. The path- has only led to an increase in the use of way concerns four main issues: continuing resources, although humanity should re- to thrive, improving resource use, reducing duce its aggregate demands on the biosphere pollution, and reducing poverty. Besides, (Caradonna et al. 2015, 2–3). the UN has projected the future as “opportunities for all, with access to basic ser- The goals of degrowth could be compacted vices, energy, housing, transportation and as follows: (1) to strive for sustainability more.” (Goal 11… 2015) by questioning the idea of economic growth and cultural domination of economy; (2) to model and develop society, institutions, and Resilience social systems without economic growth; and (3) to decrease production and consumption Ecologist Crawford Stanley Holling (2013, (Järvensivu & Järvensivu 2017). The ideolo- 201 250) defines resilience as “a measure of gy of degrowth suggests that people reduce the persistence of systems and their ability economic activity and the material through- to absorb change and disturbance and still put of the economy, at least in developed maintain the same relationships between pop- countries by downscaling consumerist life- ulations or state variables.” This defi- styles, by moving beyond conventional energy nition has its roots in ecology, in which sources, and by rethinking technologies in change and disturbance are not opposite to use (Caradonna et al. 2015, 2). each other, but instead are seen as variables to alter the system to make it strong- There is no reason to reject technological er. It means that with each incident, the development completely, but it is important system goes back to stability (having in to understand their contributory role in mind that stability is not real, as systems current environmental problems. Environmen- are constantly changing), to maintain its tal problems cannot be solved only with the identity (van Timmeren 2014, 12–13). help of technology; there is still a need for changing consumption habits (Caradonna According to van Timmeren (2014, 13) et al. 2015, 2). resilience has three defining attributes, which are, “the amount of change the system can undergo and still retain the same con- Ecomodernism trols on function and structure, the degree to which the system is capable of self-or- Increasing room for nature and reducing hu- ganization and the ability to build and in- man impact on the environment have been the crease the capacity for learning and adap- only aims for the environmental ideal, while tation.” As for cities, van Timmeren (2014, economic growth has been a key player in 13) thinks that resilience means “innovative human societies and developments. Following capacity, a dense and varied social fabric, the discussion, a group of eighteen schol- decentralized control and physical infra- ars from different institutes have defined structures that allow future adaptations.” a concept which focuses on human impacts on the environment, ecomodernism (An Ecomodern- Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

ist Manifesto 2017): but it also seeks social and environmental wellbeing. We think it is important to A good Anthropocene demands that humans define them, as we were inspired by them to use their growing social, economic, and create our different scenarios. technological powers to make life better for people, stabilize the climate, and protect the natural world. [...] Intensi- Agrarian Urbanism fying many human activities — particularly Agrarian urbanism is a design method that farming, energy extraction, forestry, and includes agricultural considerations in settlement — so that they use less land urban environments, such that urbanites par- and interfere less with the natural world ticipate in the sustainable production of is the key to decoupling human develop- food (Duany 2011). This food production is ment from environmental impacts. These not intended to provide an income for any socio economic and technological processes member of the community, but to create a are central to economic modernization and local food economy, utilize green space, and environmental protection. Together they increase social contact through a planned, allow people to mitigate climate change, productive activity. A residential unit may to spare nature, and to alleviate global include a plot of garden land, a greenhouse, poverty. balcony gardens, roof gardens, or a window box, depending on the type of construction. Communities may choose to mandate a certain This definition shows a strong belief amount of space on each property be used for in technology and the “decoupling of human growing food, but the resident may outsource well-being from environmental impacts” (An 202 that work to a gardener if they prefer. In Ecomodernist Manifesto 2017). communities with a large output, a central storage and processing facility may be held Green Economy and Green Urban Economy in common (Duany 2011). This is intended to provide a closed loop A green urban economy can be defined result- for several natural processes. Agricultur- ing in “improved human well-being and social al water collection, filtration, and storage equity, while significantly reducing envi- features would be designed as recreational ronmental risks and ecological scarcities” areas, which would preserve pervious areas. (UNEP 2011, 2). It is a process that focus- Less energy would be needed for transporting es on the respect of both social and envi- food, and some jobs would be created in the ronmental aspects regarding the activities area to maintain gardens for residents who in an urban area. This means that the main do not want to maintain gardens themselves. drivers of development are focused on sus- Composting food waste for use in residents’ tainability as we define it above (GIZ and gardens would reduce the export of nutritive ICLEI… 2012). waste from the area. Local production of The above definitions of degrowth, eco- food also allows residents to be more confi- modernism, and green economy are based on dent about the fertilizers, pesticides, and economic factors. They are similarly looking additives used (or not) (Duany 2011). to target the economy towards sustainability, yet they differ in how this could be achieved. For ecomodernism, the main tar- Urban Permaculture get is to decouple the economic growth from Permaculture is a term created from the harmful impacts, opposing degrowth, which words “Permanent Agriculture,” and it is the seeks a shift in values where the economy study, ethics and design principles used in is not expected to increase, but rather the the observation, and application of ethi- wellbeing of society and the environment. cal and ecological principles when planning, As for green urban economy, we could say it designing, developing, maintaining, organiz- goes half way, where it still seeks growth, ing, and preserving the spaces that sustain Chapter 5

life in the present and future (Hieronimi the creation of murals by international art- 2009). ists that brought a sense of pride. There is Like sustainability, permaculture follows the Taito Ry - Hakunila Handicrafts Center, the management of three core ethical prin- where residents go to work on different pro- ciples: (1) earth care; (2) people care; jects. A large proportion of foreign-born and (3) fair share of the surplus. Earth residents enrich the Hakunila atmosphere and care refers to responsible land use through cultural offerings, including restaurants. long term planning, and an efficient use Good sports and outdoor activity facilities of energy and material flows. People care exist in both Hakunila and Sotunki. Hakunila refers to the awareness of human rights and enjoys direct bus connections to Helsin- free will to decide for one’s lives with ki center and east Helsinki via Mellunmäki. not only freedom, but with responsibility A youth center offers young people a place and a balance between the individual and the in the Hakunila shopping center, which is common. And fair share of surplus refers to itself in the center of Hakunila. Housing is maintaining a balance of the above-mentioned affordable, and a variety of tenancy types factors and an equal distribution of the are represented in Hakunila. Public services surplus, setting limits to production and are centrally located in Hakunila. consumption. This means that we should produce and consume only what we need, aiming Weaknesses to maintain a balance (Mollison 1988). Hakunila has a high number of bars in relation to the number of inhabitants, and the alcoholism in the area is noticeable. This SWOT-analysis has contributed to the bad reputation of the 203 area. On top of that, Hakunila is described as a “nothing happens” or “sleeping” neigh- In our SWOT analysis we defined strengths, borhood, meaning that people only go there weaknesses, opportunities and threats in to sleep and not to spend time in the area. relation to the future planning of Hakunila This was reiterated during our interac- and Sotunki (Tables 2, 3). The analysis was tion with residents. The unemployment rate used as a tool to collect the most important of Hakunila is higher, education levels are things from the information gathered, which lower, and incomes levels are lower than provided us with an opportunity to further average Vantaa inhabitants. Additionally, develop in each of the future scenarios. according to our map analysis, disadvantaged people are concentrated in the area. The area is car-dependent, with car parking near Strengths most buildings and on the southern border of Sotunki is a cohesive community with an the district. Outdoor areas are maintained organized, independent village council. poorly, green areas include yards or un- Sotunki has well-preserved natural and cul- tended forests, the architecture is dominat- tural historic areas. Agriculture contin- ed by high-rise blocks of flats in one or ues in the area, and it is physically close two colors of concrete, and many of those to Hakunila, home to hundreds of residents buildings need paint or exterior renova- interested in local and organic agricul- tion. The current shopping center is in the ture (REKO Hakunila 2017). The residents of old two-level square style, and though it Sotunki have higher incomes and education is occupied and in use, it requires exterior levels than the Vantaa average. The propor- renovation as well. tion of entrepreneurs is higher than aver- There are few connections between Hakunila age, and the unemployment rate is lower than and Sotunki, and few connections to Sotun- average. (Vantaa alueittain… 2016) ki from anywhere else, making it very hard As for Hakunila, there is a strong iden- to access the neighborhood except by car. tity among the inhabitants, especially after Sotunki has no shop or post office, and the Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

Table 2. Summary of SWOT-analyses on Hakunila.

Table Sustainable.2 SWOT of Hakunila Strengths Opportunities ● strong identity within the ● interface possibilities with agricultural inhabitants Sotunki and Ojanko via local production ● murals created sense of pride of and consumption relationship the area ● working as an entrance to Sipoonkorpi ● foreigners enrich atmosphere National Park and cultural offerings ● Sipoonkorpi creates possibilities for ● good sports and outdoor activity ○ nature studies facilities ○ tourist industries and more jobs ● direct bus connection to ○ improving the image of the area Helsinki ● mixing residential demographics as an ● existing knowledge about opportunity for increased tolerance and solving problems with education youngsters ● immigrants will increase the diversity ● large proportion of young ● number of inhabitants is bigger than people amount of jobs and commercial services → ● youth club as youngster’s own possibility for new commercial services and place in center ● cheap housing jobs. ● good public services ● 6,200 new inhabitants in the future 204 ● active multicultural associations ● new master plan improves public ● city of Vantaa develops the area transportation as one of the growing centers ○ tram connection to Tikkurila?

Weaknesses Threats ● bad reputation of the area ● Lahdentie dense mixed-use construction ● “sleeping neighborhood” could lead to the loss of green areas ● high unemployment rate ● large proportion of foreigners can lead to ● population with lower education worse segregation level and incomes ● climate refugees ● disadvantaged people are concentrated in the area ● social problems like bored young people, alcoholism and racism ● dependency on cars ● poor maintenance of public outdoor areas ● large parking lots ● dreary architecture of buildings ● buildings need to be maintained and painted Chapter 5

Table Sustainable.3 SWOT of Sotunki Table 3. Summary Strengths Opportunities of SWOT-analyses ● local cohesion within the inhabitants ● interface possibilities with urban Hakunila on Hakunila. ● active village and other associations via local production and consumption ● preserved natural and cultural historic relationship areas ● working as an entrance to Sipoonkorpi ● idyllic landscape National Park ● long and interesting history of the ● Sipoonkorpi creates possibilities for: village ○ nature studies ● villagers interest to practice local and ○ tourist industries and more jobs organic agriculture ○ improving the image of the area ● population with higher education and incomes ● a lot of entrepreneurs ● low unemployment rate ● good outdoor activity possibilities

Weaknesses Threats ● lack of public transport connections ● densification pressure ● isolated ● social problems of Hakunila could decrease ● good accessibility only by car also well-being of Sotunki ● withdrawn community? ● lack of services nearby

205 nearest schools are in Ojanko. Thus, Sotun- dential demographics provides an opportuni- ki residents must leave the neighborhood for ty for increased tolerance and education. most daily functions, and there is very lit- Also, the predicted immigrant population tle to encourage them to do their shopping growth will increase the diversity of the and socializing in nearby districts, if they area. There are more inhabitants in Hakunila must drive no matter where they are going. and Sotunki than there are jobs; the unemployment rates indicate an available labor force. Opportunities According to the plans for the area, The clear interface opportunity between the aim of the master plan is to increase agricultural Sotunki, Ojanko, and urban public transport for better mobility and Hakunila could be a local production and decrease reliance on cars (Hakunilan kesk- consumption relationship. This could benefit ustan… 2017). When the plans are executed, both food producers and service providers. the parking lots will be underused, creating Both Hakunila and Sotunki could work as an opportunities for repurposing. The resi- entrance to Sipoonkorpi National Park for dents have pride in their neighborhood, so the whole capital area, which would bene- improvements to the area’s reputation would fit forest studies, tourist industries, job be multiplied by their willingness to talk opportunities, as well as improve the image about it. The proposed plan to change the of the area. transit modes for the area could make the The plan to build a new shopping center district better connected to the rest of with a focus on walkers and bicyclists will Vantaa. (Hakunilaan Lahdenväylän… 2017) draw commercial services further from Sotun- ki, which could potentially make Sotunki Threats residents more willing to shop in smaller Hakunila shops where parking is available. The plans to shift Hakunila’s center and From the social perspective, mixing resi- develop Lahdentie into dense mixed-use Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

construction could lead to the loss of Tech Driven Community green areas (Hakunilaan Lahdenväylän... 2017). These changes could also affect the Narrator: A climate immigrant male, who Hakunila-Sotunki relationship ecological- lives in an apartment building in Hakunila ly by removing a key piece of the old green with his wife and son. He has his own busi- belt. Currently, the green belt areas con- ness (around) local products and keeps his nect Sotunki and Nissas to Ormberget, to lifestyle up-to-date with the trends. north-eastern Vaarala, and to the network In 2050, community and private sectors of green spaces that continue west to the play significant roles in a new economic Vantaa River. Moving the green belt would structure. The green urban economy idea is a impact the movements of animals that use global mainstream model which brings op- the green belt to get around. Hakunila has portunities for green investments. Sharing a higher-than-average share of unemployed economy businesses are implemented through residents, ratio of rental apartments, and improved platforms. The innovation encour- proportion of foreign-born residents than ages citizens to have fully-equipped facil- Vantaa overall; continued segregation might ities with environmental friendly branding be reflected in poor reputation, education (Figures 18, 19). outcomes, and a lack of resources to adapt to the changing climate (Vantaa alueittain… I suddenly woke up from a horrible dream 2016). It also reflects the financial acces- of a big flood in my motherland. It has sibility of the district and its appeal for been almost 30 years since I was forced immigrants; should the worst case of cli- to leave my city because of the disas- mate change occur and people migrate through ter. With the help of the government, I necessity from nations experiencing adverse was placed in an old apartment in Nissas. 206 effects such as drought or natural disas- After getting married, I moved to another, ter, it is reasonable to expect Hakunila newer building close by. The high-rises would receive a greater percentage of those constructed in 2025 are flexible to adapt climate refugees than the average for all to both technology and climate change. districts in Vantaa. I shook off the sadness. My stomach was crying for the first meal. I picked some

berries from our planting slots by the window and put them into breakfast bowls. SCENARIOS 2050 Oatmeal and milk are from the local store which has online ordering and home deliv- In the Framework section, we detail the pro- ery services. cess of how we determined the scenarios to portray, the information to include̊̊̊, and This morning, I left at the same time as the voices that narrate each story. Here, we my son. From our front door, we saw the present four scenarios: Tech Driven Communi- amazing scene when sunlight touches the ty, in which area development is driven by trees on the edge of Ojanko. Ojanko is all technology and the residents; Transitional open views of farm fields and low houses. Urban Villages, in which the area undergoes When we turned west and faced the Hakunila degrowth directed by residents; An Unequal side, the skyline was totally different. Future, in which the economy continues to There are a lot of medium high-rise build- globalize and area development is driven ings with different shapes. The streets by government policy; and From Materialism used to be car lanes before local activ- to Mental Development, in which the region ists decided to make changes. Cars were undergoes government-directed degrowth. We pushed out of the center. The small roads illustrate Hakunila and Sotunki in each sce- around the school were made into pedestri- nario, and describe the ways in which sus- an-only zones. Past the school, on Lah- tainability is prioritized. dentie, there are only buses and trams. Chapter 5

I sent my son off to school and caught a fixed-function style space. Electricity a tram to today’s workplace. I have my for all machines and lighting comes from own business but do not have a permanent neighborhood providers. The dense part of physical office space. I work with goods Hakunila hosts a micro grid for the large produced in my community, trying to add blocks. The energy comes from a combina- value and find new uses for them. On this tion of solar glass and rooftop verti- particular day, I tested new food print- cal-blade wind turbines. Finland stopped ing techniques with the 3D printer. So, I using coal or fossil fuels after 2021. went to the maker space to use the machines. The community requested space for My wife called during lunchtime and asked the machine studio from the municipality me to bring her backup generator and to almost two decades ago, and the municipal- pick her up after work. I used the smart ity allowed us to use a portion of the old mobility platform to reserve a shared car shopping center if we kept emissions and for the afternoon. My wife works as a waste below a certain level. Back in the manager at the Sotunki Nature Center. The 2020s, I had to catch a bus to the center center is located in Kormuniitty (techni- to use facilities like these. cally Ojanko, but everything in Ojanko is named after Sotunki anyway). It provides After I got off the tram, I walked for a knowledge and courses for local farmers few hundred meters, passed an old parking and gardeners. She sometimes gives a food lot which is now half park, half neigh- preservation course for kids. Tomorrow the borhood kitchen-garden. Most of the former Center is going to have a dried fruits parking areas are small separated patches event. The Nature Center is off grid as a because they keep the same boundaries and demonstration, but may need extra support 207 there is no drive to build on them. Build- for the energy-intensive process of drying ings in the Hakunila center are tall, and a lot of fruit at once. the gaps between each are already narrow enough. Each block has a mix of types of It rained heavily for an hour, but there space, which encourages people to walk in- was no flood. The city drainage system was stead of drive. While big-window retailers improved years ago from the vote through are on the ground floor, the upper floors the Happy Citizen app, which enables citi- have several purposes, such as offic- zens to make reports to municipal service es, co-creation spaces, and residential departments and vote for their community’s areas. Twenty years ago, the recession problems, to gain the municipal govern- hit the real estate market when several ment’s attention. With the collaboration anchor businesses moved out of the build- of the municipality, some old and ineffi- ings. Service providers launched online cient buildings were torn down. The areas platforms as their primary service line, became temporary runoff catchments before so physical locations were no longer in a proper drainage system was implement- demand. The space became cheap, and rather ed. When buildings are outdated, sometimes than allow the spaces to become run-down, it is more environmentally reasonable to the community, entrepreneurs, and building tear them down and replace them with more owners worked together to fill those spac- modern construction than to retrofit them, es with restaurants and cafes with differ- or worse, continue using them. This is ent international flavors. The neighbor- particularly true of buildings containing hood became much livelier. hazardous materials or insufficient insulation. Like other co-working spaces, the Hakunila maker space provides several facilities, I walked out of the car-free zone to pick which are flexible enough to accommodate up the reserved car at the parking struc- many kinds of users, so the lifespan of ture. This structure is quite old, al- the interior decoration is longer than in though it is the latest automated parking Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

lot in the district. The smart mobility market. We enjoyed tea with her family company built a vertical parking garage in before we returned home. To send the car order to save space and also to protect back to the smart mobility garage, I only their vehicles from winter conditions. had to turn on the self-driving mode and Minor roads in the area have been narrowed leave the vehicle. The car drove itself to two lanes and have a dedicated space back to its ‘home’. This saved me fifteen for bike lanes. minutes driving the car back and walking home. After setting up the generator at the Nature Center, I drove my wife’s col- My son returned from his volunteer activ- league home. She lives in Sotunki with ity just after we arrived. The area is her big family. They are farmers; they safe to let children be on their own dur- grow primarily rye and ox peas, and keep ing the daytime. After school, he signed chickens and sheep. Along the way, we saw up to walk dogs at the community rescue some changes in the area. Most lands here center on Hevoshaantie. Our neighborhood are still used for agricultural purposes. funds the dog rescue, which also teach- There are new middle-scale farm build- es volunteers about the care of animals. ings such as greenhouses and warehouses. Technically it is well-automated, and the Although the winter is shorter, and the machines could take care of the dogs’ growing season is longer, farmers seek out physical needs, but dogs are social an- new (and profitable) challenges by growing imals and have psychological needs best expensive sub-tropical fruits and vegeta- attended by humans. People of different bles which would usually be imported from ages, social statuses, and beliefs share 208 as far away as Kenya. They also increase their kindness here and build empathy their available area with vertical stack among living creatures. planting. Above the outdoor spaces, I saw some monitoring drones, which report to I was tired from driving, so I decided to farmers what areas of the field are re- lie back on the couch instead of join- ceiving too much or not enough water, as ing the Tuesday sauna club. Sauna has not well as alerting the farmer to possible changed in Finnish culture, but we ro- invasive species or undesirable insect in- tate days to normalize electrical demand. festation. There are also several automat- People go for relaxation and socialization ed machines on the ground. Some machines in an environment which VR (State Rail- are shared within the farming collective. ways) could not replace. While my wife There is an active farming community which and I prepared our dinner, my son prac- takes products to market and coordinates ticed drums on the VR console. VR provides who will grow what, to fit the local sup- the opportunity to practice many kinds of ply to the local demand as much as pos- instruments without the expense of buying sible. They also work closely with the them separately, and we don’t have to hear Nature Center. it when he practices.

I parked next to my wife’s colleague’s For dinner, we tried my wife’s new insect husband’s truck. Sotunki is still a menu. Then my son told us about his day. car-dependent society; even though they The school had a visit from the Sipoon voluntarily stopped driving personal cars, trekking club. The retiree volunteers the transportation system isn’t perfect, promoted their new research device. To and they still need to drive for some improve geographical data without in- things. Once a week, her husband drives vading privacy, new walking sticks have into Hakunila to collect biowaste to com- been fitted with sensors, but with no way post and use as fertilizer in the fields. of collecting personal information. The In return, he sells some of his harvest at sticks gather nature conditions such as a discounted rate at the Hakunila farmer’s air quality, soil quality, moisture, and Chapter 5

Figure 18. Hakunila Crossing of Hakunilantie and Oritie towards north in 2050. Here we can see parking spaces have been repurposed; to community building, urban gardens. All technique of outdoor planting, glasshouses and stack kitchen are implemented. Part of traditional car lanes have delivered to trams and public robot buses. The obvious biking and walking path are setup and subdivided in order to encourage active (walkable) lifestyles. Denser mixed-use building structure is another enable. Solar glass technology is automatically in new built construction. Also, some old buildings (facades) have been renovated towards resilience design concept. Some drones flying for delivery purpose. 209

Figure 19. Sotunki View to Sotunki from Bisajärventie in 2050. Here we see a new Nature Center nearby a larger housing community. It is laboratory for renewable energy and agriculture. Glasshouses encourage new types of farming. Drones and robots are effective labor-saving machines. Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

temperature, but there is no IP address local economy and the wellbeing of inhabit- or physical address to associate with the ants. Decision making went back to a local data. It interfaces with an existing app level, and different nonhierarchical struc- that provides guidance through Sipoonko- tures were created as an egalitarian model rpi, so that we don’t disturb sensitive of governance. The importance of communal areas or happen upon private property by living is enhanced, and citizens are active mistake. The trekking club members hope participants of the development of their to expand their data set for more inten- area (Figures 20, 21). sive study, and we enjoy picking berries and mushrooms in the National Park, so we Today is December 22, 2050. I woke up at decided to spend this weekend at Sipoon- 5:30 am to a cold dark morning of -1 ̊, korpi and try these new walking sticks. typical to this time of year, but accord- These days, people do not need to own ing to my Dad, not as cold as it used to their own outdoor gear. They can reserve be. Last night there was so much snow that hiking gear from Sipoonkorpi’s own plat- the window from my earthship was almost form and receive them at the official park covered in snow, a very weird thing for entrance or by drone delivery service to this time of year. Good thing the walls other paths into the park. Returning the are thick, with proper insulation and a equipment works similarly. heat-saving system, developed specifical- ly for Finland by the architect Michael We do not have a robot maid, but the af- Reynolds and a group of students from ter-meal cleaning is not as time-consum- Aalto University. We are not dependent ing as it was thirty years ago. Waste is on the grid and we generate our own heat 210 automatically sorted and travels by chute for the house, greenhouses, and livestock to the bins downstairs. The biowaste will barns. My Father was one of the pioneers go to Sotunki, but some older products or in the village to build an earthship, and mixed compound waste needs to be trans- he has helped build many others, as well ported to the recycling center outside the as a permaculture school in Kormuniitty district. Much of the recyclable materials and improvements for the infrastructure of can be reused at the co-creation center Hakunila. for handicrafts and new products. This earthship was built in 2018 on my Finally, I returned to my comfortable bed grandparent’s land. Both my Mom and Dad and warm blanket. For a few minutes more, were thriving architects living in Helsin- I used my tablet to browse online shops ki and decided to move back to Sotunki in for new gadgets. There are so many in- 2020, due to the realization that moving ventions from other ordinary people; if I off-grid was a good solution for the fu- bought one, the plans would be sent to my ture of the planet. I was only a baby back tablet and I could order them to be print- then and I barely remember, but growing up ed at the maker space. in Sotunki has been a great life. We are a very tight community and all the villagers are very active in participating and Transitional Urban Villages helping each other. We were pioneers in Finland to make the transition, and we did Narrator: A single mother of twins; 32 years it voluntarily. Other places had a rougher old. Working as a part time farmer, plus a time transitioning after the global econo- role assigned to her by the community every my collapsed. two years. She lives in Sotunki and at the moment she runs the trade between Hakunila I am about to prepare breakfast for my and Sotunki. children and Father before we go to work In this scenario, development followed a at the greenhouse. Today is market day, degrowth model, focusing on supporting the which means we have to be at Hakunila by Chapter 5

8 am to sell what we have produced at didn't have to go through the same situ- the farmer's market, where producers from ation twice. I have always been a strong both areas get together to exchange goods. independent woman and I don't believe in In the winter it gets harder to produce marriage and love. But I had always wanted things, but within the community we have children, so at 29 I put my name on the implemented technologies that help us grow list of women looking for a sperm donor vegetables all year round, even during the and a month later I had a date to go to darkest times. At the moment we have po- the clinic at Hakunila. I decided to go tatoes, cabbage, kale, and pumpkins. Some with the most real possible experience and of it will be preserved by my Father with I was given a list of candidates who kind- other elders, for selling later on and for ly donate sperm to women like me. I chose our own consumption. But today we have an the baker’s son, he is a healthy man my overproduction of pumpkins and potatoes, age and we had the most compatible genes. as well as eggs from the chickens. I’ll Now my kids are 3 years old and soon they see if I can exchange these for fish to will start learning about the world. But surprise the children for Christmas. Oth- for now, I take them to the community erwise we might have to kill a few chick- house where the elder women take care of ens for the parties. children. Children learn about the environment at a young age. All members of the This is the only time of day I get to re- community have to go there and teach at lax before starting the day. I make myself some point. It is part of the community’s a warm infusion of the herbs in season; governance. To belong to the community, rosemary and dill. This ritual reminds you have to work for 2 years providing a particular service and then we rotate. At me of my Mother, but she used to drink 211 coffee. She was born in Syria and came to the moment my Father is the “Aabo”, which Finland to seek asylum, as many others did means he is the leader of the governance in 2015. She was quickly integrated and committee, and he is the one who commu- continued studying and working, because of nicates with the other community heads as her architecture degree. But many didn't well as the mayor of Vantaa, who at the have the same luck. She died two years ago same time is selected by the board of Aa- from lung cancer due to the bad air quali- bos and serves the same time. We call this ty back home. This time of day I dedicate system a “Wallad”. to myself and my Mother. I wonder how it was to grow up where she did, and what After getting dressed, we go to the com- kind of life she had when borders were so munity kitchen where the people in charge important, and it was still possible to of the food are preparing the breakfast. travel by air. Right now, I would not be I have this task on Mondays, but today able to go there even if I wanted to; the is Thursday and Mari, my best friend, is heat is so strong you could die. There’s the cook. This year we didn’t get to do nothing but sand, wind and desolation; it together because we spent too much nothing will grow there. I can't believe time talking and my Father separated us. that used to be a thriving land so long We have porridge, which has been produced ago, it seems crazy to think how much the locally. We grow grains such as oats, world can change, and how it was possible rye, and wheat throughout the harvesting for humans to devastate the land so much. months, grind them using energy from our But here it’s another story, we have an local gym bikes, and store them to con- easy and happy life and we don't depend on sume throughout the year. The surplus is much to survive, but we do depend on each also exchanged at the farmers markets. Our other. economy is not dependent on monetary value, but rather on the exchange of goods or Now it is time to wake up my kids. I was services. Everyone has a service to offer lucky to have twins Anna and Antti, so I to the community and no one is left out. Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

Today’s conversation around the table same lane as the tram. There are a lot of circled around the amount of snow we got people around walking and I fear I might this morning. The weather is so unpre- cause an accident. As we tank up the truck dictable, and no year looks the same. The I get very excited; we have a lot to offer elders are still talking about when the and it seems like I will be able to get years were more “normal” and you could some good products. Some of the other vil- predict the kind of winter we would have. lagers and I have been hoping to surprise They talk about when we will reach normal- the children by getting some fish for our ity, if it will ever happen again. It is winter parties. The youngest ones have hard to imagine “normality;” the unpre- never tried fish, and it is a great thing dictable is normal to me. After we finish that salmon have returned to the Vantaa eating, we help put the remaining waste river. This is a sign of how well the in the communal biodigester. The kids love environment is doing thanks to practices doing this. In exchange, we get some humus like ours. Maybe I can take the kids to and liquid fertilizer, which we will use fish one day. to feed the plants. We have five tanks in the village which get several kinds of Everything is packed and now at 7:30 I waste and produce different fertilizers. am ready to go to the market. Mikko, my Some get food and plant waste; others get neighbor, has also been assigned to go to human and animal feces. They provide all the farmers market with me, which I enjoy the fertilizers we require to maintain our a lot because we are good friends. Driving crops, and we all get a share according to from Sotunki to Hakunila is very short, how much farmland we have. The first time only 6 minutes, but it seems as if we are 212 I got the job cleaning out the dry toilet two worlds apart. They have big buildings remains, I was angry because my Mother and roads, a contrast to rural Sotunki, didn't like the idea and she always said though not quite as extreme as Tikkurila it was a dirty job, but to be honest I or Helsinki. It is impressive to see big liked it. It was very quiet, and you only constructions made of glass and steel; had to do it once a month (plus it was a they are becoming obsolete because they great and easy workout). It is not dirty are hard to maintain and sometimes it is at all, unlike what my Mother told me, better to recycle the materials. We get and it is what keeps our crops so healthy. to the market and there are already some I don't understand why older generations people getting their stalls ready; it is have such a problem dealing with processed going to be an exciting day. Setting up is human waste; it doesn't even smell bad at easy; we have done this many times and we this stage. know what we are doing. Soon we are set up and other people start coming in. To- Now it is time to go harvest the crops day I agreed with Mikko that he will stay and put them in the communal truck that at the stall while I look for trades. I goes into Hakunila. Usually we walk or hope to find some knitwear from the elder use bikes, but when more people are going craft workshop where both locals and im- or when we go to the farmers market we migrants interact and get integrated while use our truck, which runs on biogas from having an easy and fun job. They knit the digesters. At the moment I am work- everything from wool colored with natural ing as the truck driver. I don't like the dyes, such as the beautiful light blue job that much because the idea of driving from the lupine flowers that are abun- such a large machine makes me nervous, but dant in the meadows. I brought calendula I like to get there faster and without extract to exchange for two sweaters for having to carry all the goods. It has been the kids; they are growing so fast these hard to adjust to driving, as Hakunila is days. I know I can always exchange their much bigger and more densely populated, small clothes for bigger ones down at the I get very nervous when we go in on the clothes center, but I want to surprise Chapter 5

Figure 20. Hakunila Crossing of Hakunilantie and Oritie towards north in 2050. Here we can see how parking lots have been turned into areas for growing food, and as a growing forest. On the back, the farmer’s market is held at the community center, where the old shopping mall used to be. We can see the tanks to store rain and snow water, which can be later used for irrigation. 213

Figure 21. Sotunki View to Sotunki from Bisajärventie in 2050. Here we have a view of the community center, a big earthship with lots of space for a diversity of activities, and the biodigesters that turn the biowaste into gas, which fuels and gives heating in the hardest months, but also creates the fertilizer for the crops. There are windmills and greenhouses on the far left side, and the plantations are very efficient. Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

them, as they have been so good. start learning about plants from a very young age. In addition to our greenhouse, I find a good deal for the salmon, I will there’s a small garden inside the house give them a sack of oats and two pumpkins where I grow some herbs and things to make in exchange for ten salmon. The day is infusions and some natural remedies. They more productive than I expected. I bump are mostly for personal use, but this year into my old teacher, who soon will take the crop was good and now there’s so much the kids once a week to teach them about growing that I will dry them and take them forest conservation. She is quite a woman to the communal house where they can be and I have always admired her courage. She used to make herbal remedies. It is not was part of the team who helped replant a much, but it sure will help and I will get forest on the premises of one of the old some essences for the sauna. How I wish I parking lots after their demolition and could go to the sauna today, but I am too she knows so much about nature! She used hungry and too tired already. to be a scientist in a big lab, but now she retired to only be a teacher in the It is finally time for dinner; I am too community; sometimes she still helps retired to talk to anyone and can't wait searchers and I enjoy helping her when she to get to bed. I eat quickly and I head monitors the quality of the soil in the home early. Tonight, my Father will help area. We talk about the options for the put the kids to bed and tell them a story kids’ education. When they start learn- about the old days. It is good to have him ing I have to get involved again with the around. school, education and the research being 214 held by the foresters.

It was a good day. Even though people in An Unequal Future Hakunila grow their own crops in their communal gardens, we are still produc- Narrator: A 30-something technology profes- ing more than them. Coming here is always sional in an automated Hakunila, living in a good to see what they are growing and if four-person flat-share and working remotely. they have implemented new systems. They In this scenario, technological develop- have rain barrels and pipes, so they can ment and global trade are cornerstones of use water from rain and snowmelt to water the economy and society. The government sets their crops; this prevents runoff and environmental, social, and economic policies reduces demand for treated water. We’ve to ensure that, even as technology and busi- traded everything we wanted to trade, and ness continue to develop, the environment packing our winnings in the truck takes and individuals are not left to the mercy of the rest of our energy. The way back home market forces. Citizen involvement in their is quiet; we are both exhausted. community continues in an ad-hoc fashion. Municipalities plan using ecomodernist ide- After going to the communal house to un- als (Figures 22, 23). pack the truck, it is time for me to go the greenhouse to take care of the plants. I woke up this morning to the sounds of my It is quite an easy task most of the time, favorite musician from Korea playing out as a lot of systems are self-regulat- of my Sony mobile phone. I’ve never met ed. I need to refill the fertilizer and the musician in person, but we communicate water tanks, and then I make sure that online and collaborate on new music from the plants are looking good and get rid time to time. Of course, we didn’t col- of dry leaves, which I will put into the laborate on my alarm tone - that would be worm compost. The children come with me tacky - but she seems like a nice enough to the greenhouse; they are too young to person. Or he. It’s difficult to tell over help but they love playing around and they the internet. Chapter 5

I slide out of my bed-- designed in Fin- pressure of the water to brew exactly the land but manufactured in Russia, where cup of coffee I like. It’s ready as soon fiber is now grown sustainably, and robots as I get to the kitchen, and I stand at are available to make the metal springs. the counter to drink the coffee without My apartment automatically fades on the having to do any high-level mental pro- lights-- high efficiency LEDs-- and con- cessing until I’m caffeinated. trols the color temperature to simulate the sunrise. Outside, it is the coldest I contemplate my exotic kitchen in a half- day of this winter, -10̊. In my apartment, awake stupor. My countertops are granite, it is a comfortable 18̊. The heat was gen- mined and polished in Finland, but my erated weeks ago from gas produced by our cabinets are made of sustainably logged sewage, but the unpleasant work all hap- hardwood from Tanzania. My pots and pans pens in the waste facility in Viikinmäki. were made by robots in Romania, from metal My building, constructed in the 1970s, mined in Norway by other robots. My fur- has been retrofitted to increase interior niture, designed by Finns (I am a patriot, thermal mass and isolation from external after all) is recycled acrylic and made in conditions. The new facade is much more the UK by a French company. It was expen- stylish, and art from international art- sive, but everything in the room will last ists encourages the community to maintain at least fifty years-- the warranty period it. My windows are three layers of glass; required by the government to stop the the exterior layer is solar glass that planned obsolescence craze of the 2000s. generates enough electricity during the When we’re well and truly done with it, few daylight hours to run my apartment’s it will be hauled to Vantaan Energia’s automation control system. During the sum- trash-to-energy incinerator and turned 215 mer, the windows generate enough electric- into enough heat and energy to sustain my ity to open and close vents and moderate four-person commune for a week. the indoor temperature. Due to climate change, summers get up to 35̊ and some- The first of my flat mates emerges from times I need to run the air conditioner to his noise-isolated room. He is about my keep from melting into my cork flooring. age and has a full-time job (20 hours a week) in the second-hand store in the Before I can function as a person, I need shopping center nearby. Mostly, he says, coffee. Coffee is still the fuel that that means talking to elderly people and makes civilization happen. I cross the drinking coffee. He won’t leave for work generously sized 40 square meter common for another four hours, but he likes to area to the kitchen. My housemates aren’t take the dog to the dog park for an hour even awake yet; we are awake in varying every morning. shifts. Today I can work remotely, and don’t even have to get dressed if I don’t I tell the kitchen what to make for break- want to. The internet in our building was fast and return to my room to get dressed. upgraded ten years ago to be reliable and My clothes are made of Egyptian fiber, fast. That took a government order to do, but designed by a Finnish company and made since the majority of the building’s resi- in nearby Tikkurila by-- you guessed it-- dents are over 70 years old and don’t see more robots. I work for the company that any point in improving an apartment they designs those robots, and I need to be “at will soon vacate. a meeting” in about an hour. I put on a pressed shirt and blazer, but stay in my The apartment, having detected that I pajama pants. The webcam only sees from my am awake, has already started the Ital- chest up anyway. ian-made coffee maker. It grinds fair trade Sumatran beans, packs them into the The dog wanders in, lazily checks out group, and regulates the temperature and my room, and then goes to the kitchen Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

to receive food from the automated feed- the North Sea. er. His food is supposedly chicken-fla- vored, but meat is printed in a labora- Usually there are plenty of birds and tory these days, so who even knows what squirrels in the area, reminding us that a real chicken tastes like. The govern- we came from the woods even if we live ment issued a cruelty-free mandate over a in modern apartments, but the morning’s decade ago, and my family was vegetarian frozen rain has driven them all into even before that. It’s easier and cheap- their own homes. Only a crow is still er to buy things grown in places with the out, trying to figure out how to get into least water stress-- vegetables (grown in the bins. He won’t succeed; the bins are Holland, Kenya, and Costa Rica) and grain sealed until the collection robot comes (France, India, and China) than it is to to replace the bin with an empty one. The by lab-printed sustainable meat (Kerava). filled bin will be loaded into a truck and taken either to the trash-to-energy plant I eat the breakfast my kitchen cooked. or to the biowaste digester at Ämmässuo, It’s delicious. to become heat and organic humus, which will then be added to Finland’s potato I go to my room and fold my bed into the fields. Potatoes… I have to remember to wall and then fold out my desk from the buy potatoes... bottom of the bed. My computer starts up, interfaces with the apartment, and adjusts I pass one of my neighbors, wrapped in so the lighting in my room to a warm after- many clothes that I can hardly tell who noon color temperature. I log in to my they are. I say hello anyway, just in case 216 company’s VPN and sit through the meet- they’re someone I know, but I don’t know ing patiently, then spend another couple most of my neighbors so it’s unlikely. I of hours creating maintenance plans and know my flat mates, and my Mother lives ordering replacement parts to be print- in nearby Sotunki. I know some people from ed in Myyrmäki. I then log off, close my the gym. Otherwise, most of my socializa- computer, and order the kitchen to cook me tion happens online. lunch. I walk to the end of the row, through the The kitchen informs me that we are almost buffer layer of trees. The trees prevent out of potatoes. I could order a drone to the noise and pollution from the transit drop some off, but it’s a clear day out- system from reaching our living spaces, side and I might as well enjoy the limited and also provide a space for rainwater and hours of natural sunlight. I put on pants snowmelt to sink into the ground. It also and a winter coat, and head out to the sequesters carbon left in the atmosphere local shop. by generations passed, so maybe one day we will return to the Eden of pre-Industrial There are no more cars in central times. Maybe not. Hakunila, but the neighborhood is very pleasant even in winter, so I don’t mind I hop on the tram. The tram is more of a walking. Lighting is good, and the new light rail train, shiny and modern and al- towers were built without corners to avoid ways clean. There is no driver, but a ded- blind spots. There are no private yards icated circle of grannies rides the tram reserved for each building, but all green around during the day and makes sure the spaces connect and flow between each youth understand they are being watched. other. Kids play rambling games of tag They are armed with smart phones and often between the buildings. I walk under trees, post public videos of misbehaving youth, on a path created from recycled granite so parents will be aware of what their products. The lighting is powered by solar kids are doing. Luckily, there is enough panels in Spain, or maybe wind mills in digital entertainment for young people as Chapter 5

well as the sports center for youth who and go back downstairs, passing dozens of aren’t interested in computers. I used to people who chose to go to the shop the wish for a movie theatre when I was young, old-fashioned way and talk to actual human but now I can stream anything I want to cashiers. Some people still don’t trust a the television in the common area of the robot to pick their produce, and that’s apartment, or to the screen in my room okay. (and then I don’t have to wear pants). The shop crowd is the portrait of ethnic The tram goes all the way into the shop- diversity, but most of us are in the same ping center, so I step from the tram onto socioeconomic bracket. There are some lux- an indoor platform. Downstairs is a large ury apartments in the area, and a row of Walmart-- it used to be a Prisma, but hipster-friendly townhouses on Lahdentie, then the Walton family purchased it about but most people with a high income own ten years ago, and now we can buy what- self-driving Audis to take them wherever ever they want us to buy, but very cheap- they would like to go-- including nicer ly. It’s a good fit for Hakunila, because shops, cleaner gyms, more upscale restau- most of our community chose to live here rants, classy pubs-- all of these in other because they don’t make a lot of money. neighborhoods. But they can’t use their The only limitations on what I can buy fancy cars in Hakunila’s old center, so here are my wallet (my primary influence) they tend to live on the outskirts. Their and the government policies on imports. children attend the same schools as every- The government has specific regulations one else’s children-- the schools are all on what kinds of products can be sold, pretty much the same in every way-- but according to the product’s environmental they can go out of the neighborhood to so- 217 impact and the social conditions under cialize. They probably go to a real movie which it’s produced. In my opinion, this theatre. is fine, but my Mother regularly complains that she has to pay more for fair trade Okay so maybe I am still dreaming of a coffee than she did two decades ago, when real movie theatre after all. Perhaps I it was still possible to buy coffee grown will start one. Businesses are very easy by slaves in a country with no social for individuals to start, but the com- protections. Justice isn’t a priority for petition is global and it’s often very her, but I’m glad the government stepped stressful. Perhaps I won’t start a movie in. Many countries did this, particularly theatre. in the EU, and now we don’t have to worry about supporting warlords, gangsters, I get back on the tram without having to sweatshops, or child labor. step outside at all, which is fine by me. The granny patrol greets me by name-- I I do miss Pop-Tarts, though. don’t remember any of their names, so I say ‘Hello friends!’ and politely lis- I choose instead to go up to the second ten to a story about knee surgery that floor, where the automated kiosk is. I happened two decades ago, before rou- don’t have to talk to anyone in order to tine surgery was automated, and back when buy a bag of potatoes, after all. I type replacement parts were built to order in my product name into the kiosk screen, a specialty factory in France. It sounds choose a variety of potato, and give my dreadful. Another granny is going to have fingerprint to confirm the payment from a modern, automated knee surgery, and is my bank account. Behind the kiosk, in the receiving a replacement joint which was shop warehouse, a robot retrieves a bag of 3D-modeled from an MRI of her own knee and potatoes and shuttles it up to the kiosk, printed in the hospital in Tikkurila. She where it passes through a chest-level door doesn’t even have to go to a full hospi- via a rolling belt. I take my potatoes tal, but she feels hospitals are somehow Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

Figure 22. Hakunila Crossing of Hakunilantie and Oritie towards north in 2050. Here we can see parking spaces turned to be forests. Some earthships are blend in these young forest areas. Road surfaces are semi-nature to continue green functions. Cars are pushed put. New round buildings have been a new characteristic of this area.

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Figure 23. Sotunki View to Sotunki from Bisajärventie in 2050. Here we see old building structures have been retrofitted. Brand new buildings are small scale structure. Drones and robots are part of future agriculture. Chapter 5

better than local clinics. drinking. I could do the same, but it’s not really my style. Instead, I ride the The tram is unusually crowded, which is lift to my apartment and walk into the when I realize that I accidentally got common room to find it covered in flat on the tram going in the wrong direc- mates. tion. Instead of going back down the old main road, it turns left from Kyytitie Two of my flat mates are unemployed. They and tours through Nissas, a sleepy res- wake up late, they spend most of the af- idential neighborhood of corporate-owned ternoon producing videos of the dog to apartments. The tram is full of tourists, post on the internet, and then spend the some from Finland and some from abroad, on evening playing video games. Sometimes, their way to Sipoonkorpi to see the rare they don’t leave the apartment for days. spectacle of untouched nature. I’m not a When we first moved in together through fan of that sort of thing, but there are the apartment trade program, I tried to places where the climate has destroyed push them to go out and get “real jobs” the ecosystem or where everything has been but as time went on, I realized they were paved over, so there are people who must probably not particularly welcome in a travel to experience such things. I’m highly-competitive economy. It’s not that lucky enough that I experience that when I they are bad people in any way, just that leave my apartment, whether I want to or they aren’t good at capitalism. But they not. don’t hurt anyone, and they’re fun to hang out with, so they’re very good at being Lots more young adults board the tram flat mates. It’s not so different from here with sports gear, going to the what people in my grandfather’s generation 219 sports center on the border of Sotunki did, except in my grandfather’s genera- and Ojanko. The tram tours through Sotun- tion, they used their government support ki, where merrily-lit single-family houses money to buy alcohol. dot the hillsides and robot-farmed fields separate one side of the valley from the My flat mates told the kitchen to make other. The residents of Sotunki have very macaroni casserole and are now eating it little to do with us, except when they drenched in ketchup. We stream half of a take the tram into Hakunila to visit the season of The Simpsons, passing around our shop or continue on to Tikkurila. Most of one set of VR goggles between episodes. their errands, in theory, could be done We’re not wealthy enough for everyone in by drones or by using private cars, but the house to have their own pair of VR they’re an odd group of hippies and seem goggles, so the rest of us have to watch to prefer the more ecological tram. They on the regular thin-film screen mount- have a shared driverless car that they can ed on the wall. It’s very retro-2020. It summon to take them on particularly long has been suggested that we listen to “the or cargo-heavy trips. I guess people whose wireless” to make the retro experience livelihood is agriculture never really complete, but there hasn’t been even one leave behind their concern for the land. radio station for twenty years.

The tram makes it back to Hakunila even- At almost midnight, the dog interrupts us tually. I leave the tram and walk through and demands to be taken out, so I do a the former carpark, now forest. The crow quick circle of the area. More people are is gone. The towers have lights in only home, but it’s the enforced dark time to a few windows. Many of my neighbors have accommodate bats, flying squirrels, owls, taken the tram to Tikkurila to do fun and nocturnal insects. They are busily things, or from there they’ve taken the attending their natural processes, turning train to the center for an evening of tree waste into humus and eating garbage drinking and a night of probably more and spreading seeds. I can hear them, but Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

not see them-- the path lights are hooded oil was closer than ever. Huge amounts of and dimmed, and the windows are all auto- carbon, in the form of oil, coal and nat- matically darkened. Hakunila is the ani- ural gas, were moved from the ancient and mals’ territory between 23:00 and 04:30. stable storage of soil to the atmosphere. The news became an evening review of new I go back in with the dog. It goes imme- environmental catastrophes. Micro-plastics diately to sleep on one of my flat mates’ and contraceptive hormones caused destruc- beds. I take a shower, brush my teeth, and tion in water ecosystems. Even sand almost then go to my own room and fold the bed ran out, used up by the construction in- out of the wall. This was a pretty good dustry. Biodiversity decreased while the day. I set my alarm and climb into bed. number of humans increased, and at the Tomorrow, I will decide whether or not to same time natural areas shrank due to new start a movie theatre business. construction to house the new humans. Cit- ies grew and expanded. Outside the cities, the countryside and natural areas suffered the impacts of our demand. It was a decade From Materialism to Mental Development of harsh contradictions: we knew that the Narrator: A 74-year-old lady, who worked as direction of development was wrong, but a landscape architect in the City of Van- consumption increased anyway, driven by taa. She lives in Sotunki with her farmer self-interest. husband. They don’t have their own children, but they have worked as foster parents for At the beginning of the 2020s, things two girls, who have already grown and left started to change. I was then in my 30s 220 home to study. and I first noticed that almost all young- This scenario aims to reflect living in er people were vegetarians. I, too, was a degrowth society, in which the adminis- worried about the environmental impact tration on many levels lead the society to of my food, so I decided to follow their decrease production, consumption and human’s example. It was easy, because vegetari- harmful impact on nature. The emphasis of an food was already served everywhere in living moves towards mental development and daycare centres, schools, restaurants, a local, stationary life, instead of consum- and also in my workplace lunch cafeteria. erism and world-traveling (Figures 24, 25). Cooking magazines were full of vegetarian and vegan recipes. Of course, there were It’s interesting to think about how the some lifestyle beef eaters, but it went world has changed in my lifetime, for out of fashion. Then the Greens won the example technology and consumption. When parliamentary election in 2019, and in I was a child, computers started to be- the same year, leading food specialists come more common. Then came mobile phones changed official guidelines for nutrition and all technology started to develop to favor even more vegetables. Conse- faster. Flat screen TVs, smart phones, quently, the government of Finland decided self-service checkouts, drones… I can’t to serve only vegetarian food in daycare even remember all of the gadgets we had. centres, schools, and government work- Somewhere along the line, technological places to save money and the environment. development crossed the limits of wisdom Half of all adults were overweight, so the into the absurd. We had coffee makers in- decision was a good start for improving tegrated with mobile phones, dysfunctional health as well. solar roads, and of course battery-powered machines to froth milk that fit in your Looking back, it is easy to see that de- handbag, so you could froth milk on the cision as part of the social continuum, bus if you wanted to. In the 2010s climate which started a long time ago when envi- change was finally accepted as an unavoid- ronmental education entered the daycare able truth, and the end of reliance on and school curricula. Early education gen- Chapter 5

erated the enthusiasm necessary for such the public transport network as well. This a big social change to happen when the change helped to increase the utilization children became adults. Like the prohibi- rate of public transport, because before tion of smoking in restaurants in 2007, the change, commuter trains were almost the change created public conversation, empty during the day from 11AM to 15PM. but it subsided quickly, and people adapt- Vehicles have compartments and cars de- ed to the new situation surprisingly well. signed for freight. Because public trans- Later the EU stopped subsidies for cattle, port doesn’t have stops in front of every and the carbon tax was introduced to add store, it is common to see transporters the price of carbon emissions to meat and walking with trolleys on the street. The milk products. Meat and milk products be- idea of freight transport is based on came a luxury that we eat only on special the Lean philosophy, which means that we occasions, and the number of beef cattle shouldn’t keep a large stock of items at eventually decreased. In my home district the point of purchase, but transport the of Sotunki, few of my neighbors still have right amount of goods to the right place cows, sheep, goats, and horses, because at the right time. Less dispersed storage the EU has an ecological subsidy to sup- made for lower heating costs and increased port pastureland for their biodiversity. available floor space, so shops seemed Animals work also as tourist attractions larger but were smaller in total square for agritourism farms. Sheep and horses meters. are so beautiful in the Sotunki landscape and I’m happy that visitors of Sipoonkorpi I feel that taking private cars off the National Park can also enjoy seeing them. roads made citizens of the capital region more equal. Before, we privileged peo- 221 Vegetarian food was a good and easy start. ple slowed down traffic and took up space The changes in traffic were a bit more with our private cars, but now we all have complicated, and inspired strong opin- quality public transport and we must all ions. I worked as a landscape architect be able to look each other in the eye. My and a city planner in the City of Vantaa’s commute by tram to Tikkurila or a visit to Department of Land Use, Building, and Helsinki by light rail takes only as much Environment. We conducted the “Car Free time as it took before by car, even with- Capital Region (CFCR)” project, which in- out a traffic jam. Of course, the ticket volved the cities of Helsinki, Espoo, Van- still costs a little money, but I think we taa, and Kauniainen. Together, we studied all enjoy the cleaner and more silent en- strategies to reduce traffic and related vironment. I am happy because I don’t need pollution. When the final decision of the to worry about maintaining or repairing my project was announced in the third quar- car and changing tires twice a year. Also, ter of 2027, it made international news: I don’t need to buy insurance for my car the capital region of Finland would become anymore, and the number of traffic colli- the largest car free zone in the world. sions has decreased dramatically. The only vehicles allowed into the capital region would be delivery trucks, emergen- The CFCR project and subsequent car-free cy service vehicles, and public transport policy released a lot of land from use. vehicles. Planning and preparation took Motorways and parking lots disappeared. six years and the first trial was started One lane of the motorway to Lahti and in Helsinki city center in 2033. Then the Ring Road III were repurposed into light transitional period took five more years. trails. Additionally, parking lots became green spaces. Land use was re-planned with Later, when the whole area had public the influence of landscape architects, transport service by commuter trains, geographers, sociologists, biologists, trams, metro, and electric and biogas environmental scientists and the general busses, freight transportation shifted to public to create the most livable possible Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

paradigm. I remember it was such a reward- er, most of us think that wide varieties ing job, where we could learn from each aren’t worth destroying nature for. This other. We decided to have only one high change caused larger consequences as well, level park in each district and all other when the huge hypermarkets located on the released areas were returned to nature. fringe of cities disappeared. They were Old pavement was ripped up and sorted for based on wide variety, but basically the reuse in other applications. Aggregates variety included just many brands repre- were also removed and reused, and the senting each basic product and only few ground was reshaped to look more natural. special products, which weren’t sold in The advice of environmental scientists smaller grocery stores. Eventually, the and biologists was to allow the Finnish change led to smaller grocery stores, but Formula 1 driver Kimi Räikkönen’s strat- the number of them increased. Now we have egy to be employed; when Kimi was guided many small grocery stores in every city via headphones during the race, he an- district of Vantaa within walking distance swered: “Leave me alone; I know what I’m for everyone. They are no longer full doing.” Similarly, all the land under the of different kinds of beer brands like roads and parking lots was left alone to neighborhood small Siwas and Alepas were be restored by Mother Earth herself. This in my youth. Instead they improved their benevolent abandonment started in 2034; variety of daily goods. In Sotunki we have sixteen years later, there are still only three grocery stores now, instead of only small birches, willows, aspens, bird cher- one previously. It made life easier and ries, smaller pines, and spruces. One very simpler, because we don’t need to spend a nice thing was when the Sotunki Nature lot of time in huge hypermarkets anymore, School started to study these succession first trying to find the ketchup, and then 222 areas with children and curious adults. secondly trying to choose the best brand. Now everybody can read from their website It was also one step toward a more local about the re-emerged species they found and stationary life, because it reduced there. I hope we have learned that even the need to travel. At the same time, it though forests can be easily and quickly decreased the amount of freight traffic. cut down, it takes a long time for a real forest to grow again. In 2031, member countries of the Organisa- tion for Economic Cooperation and Devel- In 2036, the domestic production and opment (OECD) decided to stop mining new importation of daily consumer goods was metals, rock materials, and fossil fu- restricted by the government of Finland, els. It was another turning point, which because there were serious requirements no one could have imagined in the 2010s. to decrease consumption and the amount of Before the decision, when the result of waste. For example, meeting the demands the conversation was still uncertain, a of Fair Trade and environmental standards famous cartoonist drew a cartoon pre- were required for imported daily goods. senting the globe after a hundred years, Other restrictions related to decreasing where humans had mined down the Alps and the wide variety of wares sold in grocery other big mountain ranges. However, in stores, which was one of the main caus- 2031 poor Mother Earth was full of pits es creating pointless waste and traffic. and deep tunnels, but luckily some un- Now there are only two to three ketchup touched ground was still left. We had to brands in grocery stores, instead of the cope with those metals and rock materials seven brands that were there previously. we had unearthed onto the ground. Metals I don’t miss them because, in any case, I were not such a big problem, because they used to buy that one brand I already knew. can be reused over and over again. Recy- Of course, one could say that, “variety cling of metals was made more effective is the spice of life,” and that is why and all unused metals were taken in use. they were initially originated. Howev- New techniques were developed to sepa- Chapter 5

rate different metals from each other, useless dust. However, the use of rock ma- and sorting was also considered from the terials decreased when traffic reduced. point of the production of new goods, as well as from the point of recycling, to The importation of oil and other foreign make it easier. The use of metals became fossil fuels to Finland stopped finally in more effective and consequently we don’t 2035 and nuclear power plants in Finland have metallic furniture anymore, because stopped at the same time. The oil didn’t furniture can be made of wood or oth- run out, but the rest of it is saved for er renewable materials. I understand the use to meet the most critical needs. Do- pain, when some architects cried, when the mestic decentralized biogas production was copper handrails at Finlandia House were already running at full pace. In addition, replaced by wooden ones, but maybe it was we had domestic and foreign wind and solar necessary. The recycling of rock materials energy, as well as geothermal heat, but was also started, and old artificial fills together they were used to manufacture were sifted. It is still more complicated less energy than before. For example, the than recycling metal, because pieces of City of Vantaa limited the room space per rock are ground into smaller and smaller person to 25 square meters to save ener- pieces over time, until you left only with gy. To help change living habits, the city

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Figure 24. Here we see Hakunila, which has changed more than Sotunki. There are only busses and trams on the roads and the curbsides grow meadow instead of lawn. The parking lots are now forests or vegetable gardens. Inhabitants are not self-sufficient in food production, but gardens help them maintain their relationship with nature and ease their subsistence. All the lowest areas between watersheds were changed to forests to collect and purify storm waters. There are now much more inhabitants than before because of climate refugees. Only a few new, low apartment houses have been built, but people live denser than before. While the area needed for living is smaller, and there aren’t any private cars, paved areas are also smaller and life is getting closer to the nature. The biggest change is the renovation of the apartment houses. The ideas for that were collected from inhabitants by the Hakunila International Organization, which is an active player in the area. Then the renovation project was made in cooperation with the joint-stock property companies, the City of Vantaa, and the Hakunila International Organization. Now apartment houses are painted with warm, earthy colors, which also made the atmosphere of Hakunila warmer and happier. Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

started a project which supported local the streets has been solved now. In the associations to find the best solutions countryside, where the public transport for living. The purpose was to increase isn’t profitable, all private cars use local empowerment, because it benefits biogas or electricity. Farmers are also all parts of society, while one-sided the main producer of biogas for vehicles. top-down policies often only cause harm. Here in the city, many housing companies For example, the Hakunila association and dormitories have signed contracts with established dormitories in old apartment the City of Vantaa, and their inhabitants houses, which were popular especially can cut hay and herbaceous plants from with the youngsters and the elderly, who certain public green areas twice a year to now enjoy a more social way of life. Some get more biowaste. All open and semi-open apartment houses just made some of their green class A2 and A3 maintenance areas apartments smaller for those who like to have been changed into meadows, whereas live alone or with a partner. Personally, previously there was only a boring lawn or I lived with my husband and his parents in a few rowan or linden trees. Today those a one-family-house in Sotunki. We shared meadows are full of flowers, and butter- the kitchen and living room but also had flies and other insects. Cutting and col- our own rooms. When granny and grandpa lecting the hay has decreased the number died, we worked as surrogate parents for of nutrients in the soil and old tradi- two children, whose parents had problems. tional plants got a new chance to grow. We didn’t want to have our own child, al- Cutting the hay is also good physical though all couples could have one, because exercise for many people and so reasonable we knew that the size of the population is while biowaste furthers their self-suf- the biggest problem of the world. That’s ficiency in energy production. All those 224 also why all states have restrictions in nutrients are accumulated to the final relation to the number of children couples sludge of gasification and it is a very can have. Nowadays, in 2050, the number valuable soil enrichment, which is used in of people is really decreasing around the communal gardens and agriculture. Then the globe and we are happy about that. I am biowaste is transported to the country- also so happy that I got the opportuni- side, such as Sotunki, where it is trans- ty to enjoy parenting. Leena and Anni are formed into fertilizer for our crops. Be- both studying now, and their future seems cause nutrients aren’t mined anymore, and lighter regarding the current state of the artificial production of nitrogen consumes environment, in comparison to the environ- too much energy, it is important to recy- mental situation we went through in the cle them as well as possible and prevent 2010s. them from ending up in the water systems. Our system is a closed loop system. This decentralized biogas production is such an interesting thing. Our generation We don’t have the option to have a lot demolished many of the great achievements of stuff anymore, or to compete with each of the 20th and 21st centuries, like the other for the quantity of stuff. We don’t sewerage system, which dissipated fresh travel by air anymore, there is no longer water to be used for washing toilet bowls, night time lighting outdoors, and we have but the system was material intensive and given away many things which were previ- inefficient. Now all houses have their ously important to us. But still I think own biogas plants that convert our waste, the quality of life is getting better such as feces and organic waste from our all the time. The way of life is slower foods and gardens, into natural gas. All and the “hurry feeling” has almost disap- kinds of biowaste are currently very val- peared. uable, because we need them to produce heat, electricity, and biogas fuel for Because work is almost as profitable as vehicles. Even the problem of dog poop on before, we work only 6 hours a day. All Chapter 5

work is aimed at improving the wellbe- their occupation to more sustainable ones. ing of nature, to fulfill basic needs of In some trades, the content of the job people in a fair and equal way, and to im- was changed to more ecologically sustain- prove the mental health of people. It led able activities. For example, hairdressers to the change in the economic structure. no longer use toxic chemicals and addi- Food production serves more jobs, although tionally the hairstyles have changed to tractors and other machines have not been more natural styles. At the same time the totally abandoned. Simple calculations production of luxury, high consuming and told us that if we assess the whole life ecologically harmful products like luxu- cycle of machine work and compare it to ry cruisers, furs, and jewelry are slowly human and animal labor, machine labor is being reduced in number and amount, be- less energy efficient and less resource cause of government sanctions for social- efficient. Education for ecologically ly horrible and high-carbon products and harmful jobs, like pilots and marketers, imports. Also, advertising was forbidden, was stopped or decreased. Representatives because its aim is mainly to create more of these fields have gradually changed unsustainable needs by manipulating people

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Figure 25. Here we see a beautiful view to Sotunki, which is still agrarian and close to nature, because there are many culturally, his- torically and environmentally valuable areas. Biogas busses replaced private cars on the roads. The fields are a little bit smaller by area, because settling pools and wetlands take their place filtering and retaining nutrients. Wetlands are important habitat for many birds and insects, which have improved the biodiversity of the area. The water- front border strips of the water system are ten meters wide, instead of three meters previously, and small forests are growing there. Depending on work, you can see biogas tractors or people and horses working on the fields, which is of course a big change compared to earlier, when bodily work was almost forgotten. At the same time nature tourism is more visible in Sotunki’s current landscape and small businesses have grown around it. Sipoonkorpi National Park attracts visitors from the capital region, when people spend more time in nature. But maybe the biggest change can be seen if you have the possibility to peep inside the houses and their gardens. There are more people living in houses and one-family-houses have larger vegetable gardens than before. Many of the households are self-sufficient in food production while in denser built areas the households are only partly self-sufficient. Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

Table 4. Assessment of scenarios.

Scenarios Sustainability Goals of the City of Vantaa 1 2 3 4 Ensure sustainability of biodiversity in planning and implementation Secure functional ecosystem services and ecological connections Recognize the value of small inland water habitats and enhance their ecological state Promote sustainable recreational use of green areas Ensure air and water purity by preventing harmful subjects from accessing the environment Use natural resources sparingly Condense the urban structure while maintaining important green areas and connections between them Create precondition for trouble-free mobility Adaptation to climate change in all our planning and operations Increase use of renewable energy 226 Increase material and energy efficiency Life cycle costs guide planning activities and procurements Minimizes noise and ensures quiet areas are preserved Enhances environmental awareness and responsible behavior Cooperates with residents, businesses, and others on environmental matters Strengthens R&D of environmental technology and practices SDG #11 Targets Safe and affordable housing and basic services Safe, affordable, accessible and sustainable transport systems for all (inclusiveness) Inclusive and sustainable urbanization with citizen participation Protection of cultural and natural heritage Protection and healthcare from climate related disasters Reduction of environmental damage per capita trough waste management and good air quality Support positive economic, social and environmental links between urban, peri-urban and rural areas Adopting and implementing integrated policies and plans towards inclusion Adopting and implementing integrated policies and plans towards resource efficiency Adopting and implementing integrated policies and plans towards mitigation and adaptation to climate change and resilience Building sustainable and resilient buildings utilizing local materials

The goal is 80-100 % achieved. The goal is considered in scenario, but not succeeded yet. The goal isn’t mentioned in scenario. Chapter 5

with unfairly. The amount of paper and treme air pollution that served as a warn- digital waste decreased heavily, and also ing that the earth cannot simply absorb landscapes became more beautiful without everything that we add to it. New studies those big advertisement signs. I think no- proved the same thing: everyone is affect- body really misses those visual pollutants ed, whether or not they are the polluter, anymore. and one person can mess it up for everyone. Governance everywhere in the world While people had to give away so many just had to change their ranking order and things, the main question was what would put the environment before their economy, replace the materialism. The answers because we are all primarily dependent on were education and mental development, nature. In Vantaa, for example, the ruling which could satisfy the higher levels of politicians started to implement sustain- Maslow's hierarchy of needs than pure ma- ability strategies for cities instead of terial needs. I guess it stretched teach- green-washing and other rhetorical means. ers to inspire people to find the joy of learning and of mental development. Finnish society improved the education of teachers, and from 2025 to 2035 educated twice as many teachers and psychologists than in the 2010s to reach the goal, and I think it worked. While we have more free Conclusions time, we really need reasonable action like physical exercise, arts, philosophy, As a team, most of us had never worked with history, psychology, and nature and out- scenario planning before. It was a lot of 227 door activities. fun to write the stories and envision different futures for the area. Scenario plan- Afterwards everything seems to be crystal ning is a good tool to use when trying to clear, but I really need to write a whole understand what the future can look like ac- section about why the governance of cap- cording to the current state of affairs, but ital region cities was ready to make big it can be used in a variety of ways. It was changes like the car-free zone, and why especially interesting for us to understand, states were finally ready to reduce the through our story-telling, how we could pic- consumption of natural resources. Those ture how current technologies can develop goals of sustainability were written into into other things. their strategies for years. For example, you know those goals of sustainable While working with this paper, we under- development by the United Nations, which stood that the future might have aspects of touched every nation. And at a lower lev- all the scenarios. In fact, sustainability el, for example, the City of Vantaa wanted is not mutually exclusive with any combina- to be “a city that acts as a trailblazer tion of economic growth or degrowth, govern- in sustainable development” in their envi- mental or community involvement, technology, ronmental policy for the years 2012-2020. or lack thereof. A socially and environmen- In the same paper they told that they tally sustainable future is possible with wanted to ensure “good living conditions diligent attention by all actors. for present and future generations,” and Ideally, at this point a comparative im- also to take ecological perspectives and pact assessment would create a comprehen- fairness into account in solutions and sive model of each scenario and reveal which decision-making, but also keep the economy elements of these scenarios cause or prevent balanced. environmental impacts in several categories. This is not possible with the level Then some environmental disasters happened of uncertainty in future scenario planning. around the world. India experienced ex- Additionally, scenarios contain activities Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

(such as farming vegetables in greenhouses, increase in another area. For example, buy- or automating public transport) which can be ing an electric car might lead to a higher performed in low impact or high impact ways. use of the car itself, thus increasing the However, because of the level of uncer- level of consumption on cars and on fossil tainty, we assessed the scenarios according fuels. to their alignment with the City of Vantaa’s One of the problems of degrowth is that sustainability goals and the UN’s Sustaina- people are not yet willing to decrease their ble Development Goals. Overall the scenarios consumption and compromise their living are sustainability-driven, but they do not standards. However, there are real existing necessarily follow other agendas. Table 4 signs which give us hope, like the increas- helps illustrate whether the scenarios are ing trend among young people toward vege- in line with sustainability for both Vantaa tarianism and living without a private car. and the global sustainability goals. Degrowth would still require both free will Our green growth scenarios reflect a fu- of the people and top-down policies to push ture in which sustainability goals, such as society towards sustainability. The problem those put forward by the United Nations, with top-down policies is the current eco- are generally accepted as necessities. The nomic models, which are focused on econom- proper goal of the green growth-movement is ic growth while overlooking environmental to decouple economic growth and environmen- or wellbeing goals. Nobody knows what would tal problems from each other, like carbon happen to the world economy if the econom- emissions, for example. A central means to ic model shifted towards degrowth. Would it decoupling is technology, which could help mean we would enter an era of crises and to decrease consumption. For example, led- wars, or could humanity adjust to a differ- 228 lights consume less energy, and demateri- ent way of doing things? We are not able to alization, which could decrease material answer this question, but we attempted to consumption, similar to how digital commu- highlight that it is possible to reduce con- nication can decrease space consumption. The sumption and increase the quality of life of workable decoupling would make it possible citizens through planning. to have both the economic growth and wel- Given the opportunity to continue, we fare of nature, and thus also the welfare would elaborate each of the tools and of humanity. No state has yet succeeded strategies in the scenarios, place them in in reaching perfect decoupling, yet the UN a physical location or range within the still aims to find a solution. Our scenarios Hakunila-Sotunki area, and relate them to present many promising technologies, which Vantaa and Finland overall. It is easy to could help humanity to decrease consumption. see, for example, that the top-down scenari- Before the implementation of new technolo- os (3 and 4) encourage a wider perspective, gies, we suggest using life cycle analysis, while the bottom-up scenarios (1 and 2) for example, as a tool to ensure that the involve a strong sense of place and communi- new technology does not consume more than ty identity. Our next step would be to meet expected. with a wider sample of residents and plan- Our degrowth scenarios represent a mar- ners of Hakunila and Sotunki and assess how ginal ideology, which sees the decreasing of feasible and realistic the scenarios are, as consumption as the only truly workable means well as how to plan for the future. when trying to achieve sustainability. Its strength is that it would be the most ef- REFERENCES fective in adapting to the changing climate and the disasters that may come with it. An An Ecomodernist Manifesto. (2017) increasing amount of research (e.g. Latouche 16.11.2017. duction of consumption as the only driver Caradonna, J., Borowy, I., Green, T., Vic- for change is not enough, because that ef- tor, P. A., Cohen, M., Gow, A., Ignatye- fort might result in an overall consumption Chapter 5

va, A., Schmelzer, M.,Vergragt, P., Wan- City of Vantaa. 14.11.2017 S., Axmann, J., Duncan, R., Norgaard, R. Heikkurinen, P. (2014). Kestävyyden käsit- B., Brown, H. S. & Heinberg, R. (2015) A teen ulottuvuudet. Tieteessä tapahtuu call to look past an ecomodernist mani- 32(4), 10–16. festo: A degrowth critique. http://www. resilience.org/wp-content/uploads/arti- Heronimi, H. (2009). Fundamentos de la cles/General/2015/05_May/A-Degrowth-Re- permacultura, Tierramor. 26.11.2017. sponse-to-An-Ecomodernist-Manifesto.pdf City of Vantaa´s Environmental policy Holling, C.S. (2013). Resilience and stabil- 2012–2020 (2012). Environmental Centre, ity of ecological systems. Annual Review City of Vantaa. ning at University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Climate change in the Baltic Sea Area: HEL- 22.11.2017. COM thematic assessment in 2013 (2013). Järvensivu, P. & Järvensivu, T. (2017). De- Baltic Sea Environment Proceedings 137. growth? 21.11.2017. BSEP137.pdf Kestävä kehitys Vantaalla (2017). City of CORINE Land Cover (2012). Copernicus Land Vantaa. 16.11.2017. rine#tab-gis-data> Koglin, T. (2008). Sustainable Development Duany, A. & DPZ Partners (2011). Garden in General and Urban Context: Literature cities: Theory and practice of agrarian Review. Lund University Faculty of Engi- urbanism. The Prince's Foundation for the neering, Technology and Society, Traffic Built Environment, London. and Roads, Bulletin 248/3000. GIZ & ICLEI (2012). Discussion paper: Green Laakso, S. (2017). Spatial distribution of Urban Economy – Conceptual basis and business enterprises and labor flows in courses for action (2012). GIZ Germany the Helsinki metropolitan area. Lecture, & ICLEI World Secretariat. http://www. Urban Studies and Planning at University citiesalliance.org/sites/citiesalliance. of Helsinki, Helsinki, 9.10.2017. org/files/ICLEI_GIZ_Green_Urban_Econo- Latouche, S. (2010). Jäähyväiset kasvulle my_Study_2013_03_26_BMZ.pdf (transl. by M. Ollila). Into Kustannus, Goal 11: Make cities inclusive, safe, re- Helsinki. silient and sustainable (2015). Unit- Luonnonsuojelu- ja erämaa-alueet (2017). ed Nations’ Sustainable Development. Finnish Environment Institute. 2.12.2017. ta.fi/data/fi/dataset/luonnonsuoje- Hakunilaan Lahdenväylän vaihtopysäkki 002311 lu-ja-eramaa-alueet> (2017). Kaupunkisuunnittelulautakunta, Mollison, B. (1988). Permaculture. A design- City of Vantaa. 8.6.2017. nomic Area. 28.11.2017. Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

Our Common Future (1987). United Nations, Jaakkola, J., Järvi & Salonen, M. (2015). World Commission on Environment and De- Helsinki Region-Travel Matrix 2015. DOI: velopment. http://www.un-documents.net/ 10.13140/RG.2.1.1901.3201 our-common-future.pdf Työpaikat Vantaalla (alueella työssäkäyvät) Population projection of Vantaa by age and toimialan (TOL 2008, 2-3-nro) mukaan gender 2017–2045 (2017). Helsinki Re- 31.12. (2017). Helsingin seudun aluesar- gion Infoshare. 14.11.2017. nuste-ian-ja-sukupuolen-mukaan-2017-2045> UNEP (2011). Towards a green economy: Path- Population projection of Vantaa by district, ways to sustainable development and pov- age and gender 2017–2027 (2017). Helsin- erty eradication - A synthesis for policy ki Region Infoshare. 14.11.2017. nuste-osa-alueittain-ian-ja-sukupuo- Vantaa alueittain 2015 (2016). Tietopalve- len-mukaan-2017-2027> luyksikkö, City of Vantaa. http://www. Rikoksentorjuntaneuvoston toimintakertomus vantaa.fi/instancedata/prime_product_ 2003 (2003). 12.12.2017. toimipisterekisteri (2017). 15.11.2017. REKO Hakunila (2017). Facebook-group. 26.11.2017. ios. Wired. 13.12.2017. ic degrowth for social equity and ecological sustainability. Introduction to this special issue. Journal of Cleaner Produc- tion 18(6), 511–518. Schwartz, P. (1991). The art of the long view. Planning for the future in an uncertain world. Doubleday, New York. State of the Environment in Vantaa (2012). City of Vantaa, Centre for Environmen- tal Affairs C13:2012. http://www.vantaa. fi/instancedata/prime_product_julkaisu/ vantaa/embeds/vantaawwwstructure/118889_ state_of_the_Encironment_in_Vantaa.pdf Statistics Finland (2017). Grid Database. 13.12.2017. Tikkanen, J. (2015). Yksi juttu taloudesta. Luonnonsuojelija 2015(3), 10–13. Timmeren, A. van. (2014). ReciproCities. A dynamic Equilibrium. Inaugural speech, TU Delft, 12.5.2014. https://urbanmetabolism.weblog.tudelft.nl/files/2016/07/05a_ UrbanMetabolism_VanTimmeren.pdf Toivonen, T., Tenkanen, V., Heikinheimo, T., Chapter 5

ization of future societies and of the for- Commentary: mal and social structures that could foster and sustain them. From classical times to the contemporary era, philosophers, writ- Thinking ers, scientists, artists and planners have understood the transformative potential of of desirables futures, cities. Sometimes emphasis was placed more on form, sometimes more on function, but in imagining better cities all cases, the need to integrate different dimensions has always been part of the agen- by Juanjo Galan & Johan Kotze da of urban visionaries. Cities are an invi- tation to transversal systems thinking.

Humans´ dreams are highly connected to cities. Like no other place, cities display our QUESTION 1: What drives the contemporary values, hopes, fears, knowledge and technol- evolution of cities? ogies, and at the same time, are the conse- quence and the cause of the complex inter- Due to the high concentration of technolog- action of our socio-cultural, political and ical, economic and cultural capital, cities economic systems, between themselves, and have the potential to express - with special with the environment. Somehow, cities are intensity and speed - the evolution of human one of our best mirrors, or even a magnify- civilizations. This evolution happens within ing lens portraying our lights and shadows. some socio-cultural contexts which determine It has always been like that, and it will the goals, within some economic and knowl- probably continue being like that, since in edge frameworks that draw the possibilities, 231 the end, cities might be the logical conse- and within some environmental conditions quence of the activity of a social and high- that define the material and physical lim- ly transformative species like humans. its. Those goals, opportunities and limits are not static and are constantly challenged Following the text “Sustainable Futures by human ingenuity. for Hakunila and Sotunki,” this short ep- ilogue aims to frame some of the topics We are currently living in a unique situ- treated in this interesting text. Firstly, ation in which the very same goals of human if we assume that cities are the expres- development are being scrutinized and in sion of human conditions, societal values which the acceptance of some global limits and human knowledge, what kind of cities and the achievement of the above-mentioned can we envision and pursue now? Secondly, new goals are supposed to define new condi- and in order to answer this initial questions in the evolution and management of the tion, we can formulate two sub-questions: urban system. (1) which permanent and conjunctural factors These new goals and limits are epitomized are affecting the transformation of cities by the sustainability concept (and its in- nowadays; and (2), how can we integrate all creasing court of related terms), which are those factors, limitations and expectations activating a potential shift of paradigms in in speculative models that could help us to the way in which we, humans, interact with visualize desirable futures for our cities the environment and amongst ourselves (more and, hopefully, react accordingly? Lastly, on sustainability later). Interestingly, in the pursuit of sustainable cities, what reality shows some evident conflicts between constraints and potentials does nature place what we pretend to do, and what we final- on urban greenspace management and planning? ly do; some clear contradictions between These issues are not new. Speculation and what we want to be, and what we are, both as future-oriented thinking have always been individuals and as collectives. The con- part of human intellectual activity and cit- flict between the defiant Promethean and the ies have usually been present in the visual- prudent Malthusian awakes again with renewed Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

vigor. arriving, in complex and dynamic systems, to This is precisely where the students have the point at which consistent and reliable placed their work, in the unclear dialectics predictions become a challenge. between different and interconnected con- Cities are one of those complex and dy- cepts such as sustainability, consumerism, namic systems. The appearance of unexpect- materialism, development, growth, etc., as ed new rules or actors in the “City game” well as in the values and socio-political can invalidate previous predictions. On the systems that could move the evolution of contrary, the existence of frameworks, like cities in one direction or another. planning systems that limit the degrees of It is particularly interesting to see how freedom of some factors, facilitate the the authors apply concepts like Sustaina- definition of more certain futures. bility, Sustainable Development and Resil- This is where the students invite us to ience in Hakunila and Sotunki and how these follow them in their adventurous specula- concepts are articulated through strategies tion. In their particular case, they decid- such as Economic Degrowth, Ecomodernism, ed to restrict their options by proposing a Green Economy, Agrarian Urbanism or Urban single goal: sustainability, and by defining Permaculture. Their work distills an ex- two variables or factors to achieve the pro- plorative character and concentrates on the posed goal: technology and governance. definition of qualitatively different alter- The combination of those two factors cre- natives rather than on the objective iden- ate four hypothetical and qualitatively dif- tification of urban drivers or in the deep ferent scenarios to increase the levels of understanding of the relationship between sustainability of Hakunila and Sotunki: The different urban factors or dimensions. The “Tech Driven community” scenario is based 232 result is a fresh text that provides an ave- in the advanced use of new technologies by nue for further and deeper discussions. self-organized communities. The “Transition- In addition, the text proposes a world al Urban Villages” scenario also presents a in which technology and science are highly community-based society fully committed to subordinate to a sustainability-based agenda decreased consumption and to the use of low and in which there is a general and unques- technology. On the other hand, the “unequal tioned commitment to sustainability goals. future” scenario illustrates the intensive Interestingly, this radical, even utopian, use of technology in a policy driven society scenario can be perceived as an extreme rep- to achieve “green” economic growth. Finally, resentation of the increasing “scientifica- the “from materialism to mental development” tion” and “ethicalization” that we might al- scenario describes a shrinking economy in ready be experiencing in urban planning and which the low use of technology and a pol- that has been highly supported and retrofit- icy-driven society produce a sort of extra ted by the use of the sustainability concept planned and decentralized system. and its environmental, social and economic The four scenarios are described in a dimensions. narrative style and between the lines, include some contextual information about the QUESTION 2: How can the evolution of cities possible catastrophic or extreme events that be imagined? could have led to a radical change in the life style of the inhabitants of Vantaa and Modelling is a game in which we often need in their approach to technology and govern- to choose between accuracy and free specula- ance. tion. We can know what we have approximate- The “scenarios” method, together with ly, we can detect some trends and then, as the chosen narrative style, proved to be a in a chess game, we can try to forecast some productive and inspiring way for the authors possible future moves and scenarios. The to develop their visions for future Hakunila more factors and complex interconnections we and Sotunki, which in this case, prioritize have in the game, the more options we get, open speculation over accuracy or methodo- Chapter 5

logical consistency. However, the text can Sustainability is a highly anthropocen- open a constructive discussion on the impor- tric concept, its main goal being to sustain tance of identifying the different drivers today’s human population (and the future and factors affecting the evolution of any population) on earth. Urban sustainabili- system that is studied, as well as of under- ty aims at the modest and efficient use of standing their mutual interrelationships. In natural resources, thus decreasing the eco- particular, and following the reading of the logical footprint of the city, or of people text, some key questions arise: Can sus- in general. At the core of sustainability tainability become the leading goal of the is nature (the “other” nature), especially evolution of cities, or does this goal have its ability to provide ecosystem services. to coexist with some others? Are technolo- Cities of the future will depend heavily on gy and governance the most relevant factors existing greenspace within its borders to affecting the sustainability path? Is the provide these vital services. emergence of more autonomous and autarchic For nature to flourish in cities, land- communities and the de-specialization of scape ecological principles can help guide labor compatible with the very essence of design and planning. For instance, the sin- cities and with human history? gle most important feature of the landscape Again, we find that imagining the fu- that affects biodiversity positively in ture of cities requires a deep integration cities is patch size, followed by corridors of disciplines dealing with the different (connectivity) and vegetation structure (Be- dimensions of human beings, with the elab- ninde et al. 2015). Not surprisingly, these oration of complex and collective systems features are most at risk due to a prefer- and with the capacity of planning to create ence in densification policies (see Dallimer physical and functional infrastructures for et al. 2011), which result in the loss and 233 cities. fragmentation of habitat. The issue of densification vs. sprawl is also of importance to the city of Vantaa, where the benefits Humans and the “other” nature? of transport and energy savings in a con- solidated city needs to be weighed against One of the key issues in any sustainabil- the cost of losing biodiversity and ecosys- ity reflection is the relationship between tem services, e.g., storm water management. humans and the “other” nature and between Fragmentation theory recommends a land-spar- human systems and “other” systems. This ing policy through which fewer larger frag- dichotomic separation is clearly artifi- ments are preserved at the expense of a cial and is located right at the core of higher number of smaller patches (land shar- the sustainability discussion. Accordingly, ing), but, surprisingly, a recent meta-anal- the text developed by the students explores ysis suggests the opposite (Fahrig 2017). new ways for the coexistence of human beings The optimal solution in urban areas may lie within nature. This exploration includes the somewhere between, with both large and small introduction of key concepts that hybrid- green fragments dispersed throughout the ize different types of infrastructures; that cityscape with functional connectivity be- approach the “other” nature from a more sym- tween them (either in the form of corridors biotic point of view; or that use new tools or stepping stones). The quality and type of or methods to understand the relationship urban greenspace is also important to urban of humans with the environment. Even though biodiversity, as suggested by Joscha Beninde the role of nature (the “other” nature) in et alia (2015). Indeed, certain natural fea- cities was not dealt with explicitly in the tures of urban forest, for instance, promote text, we nonetheless provide some thoughts biodiversity and can be considered hotspots, on its role in the sustainability debate and such as dead and decaying wood and wet areas emphasize the effects of fragmentation (a (see Noreika et al. 2015). The challenges main driver in the contemporary distribu- that remain in the planning of urban green- tion of greenspace in cities) on nature and space for the sustainability and benefit of humans alike. Sustainable Futures for Hakunila and Sotunki USP / 2018

nature include greenspace quantity, quality, and Conservation 24(12), 2991–3007. type and spatial arrangement, to name a few. Samways, M. J. (2007) Rescuing the extinc- Urban greenspace provides a plethora of tion of experience. Biodiversity and Con- services to people. A sustainable city also servation 16, 1995–1997. includes a population that is physically and mentally healthy, and knowledgeable about nature. The increasing disconnect from nature, or as James R. Miller (2005) put it ‘the extinction of experience, is a concern since it is clear that contact with nature has measurable physical and physiological benefits, even increasing with an increase in species richness in these urban green spaces (Fuller et al. 2007). However, there is a danger in exposing people to urban nature if such nature only consists of common and generalist species (Samways 2007). In this sense, urban greenspace should not only be ‘sustainable’, providing services we need, but also contain elements of pristine nature to be explored and experienced by the citizenry.

234 REFERENCES Beninde, J., Veith, M. & Hochkirch, A. (2015) Biodiversity in cities need space: a meta-analysis of factors determining intra-urban biodiversity variation. Ecol- ogy Letters 18(6), 581–592. Dallimer, M., Tang, Z., Bibby, P. R., Brin- dley, P., Gaston, K. J. & Davies, Z. G. (2011) Temporal changes in greenspace in a highly urbanized region. Biology Let- ters 7(5), 763–766. Fahrig, L. (2017) Ecological responses to habitat fragmentation per se. Annual Re- view of Ecology, Evolution, and Systemat- ics 48(1), 1–23. Fuller, R. A., Irvine, K. N., Devine-Wright, P., Warren, P. H. & Gaston, K.J. (2007) Physiological benefits of greenspace increase with biodiversity. Biology Letters 3(4), 390–394. Miller, J. R. (2005) Biodiversity conservation and the extinction of experience. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 20(8), 430–434. Noreika, N., Pajunen, T. & Kotze, D. J. (2015) Urban mires as hotspots of epi- gaeic arthropod diversity. Biodiversity Chapter 5

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Chapter 5

236 are concerned but the fringes that have A new turn in the devel- relied on detached housing, have suffered opment of the region? (Figure 1.; see also Laakso 2012). There seems to have been a drastic change in the favor of Helsinki, starting in 2007– 2008, while during the period from 1994 to Future perspectives on 2007, Helsinki was suffering from a loss of the settlement and plan- educated people through migration (Broberg 2007). A discussion on the change and its ning in the Helsinki re- significance is important from the perspective of urban policies. At least two possi- gion ble interpretations emerge, with different policy implications. After the change was observed, public by Matti Kortteinen & Mari Vaattovaara discussions emerged quite soon. They linked the development to the urbanization of people’s preferences (values and attitudes) and If one looks at the recent public discussion recognized similar trends in Stockholm and on urban policies in the Helsinki Region, elsewhere. This quickly became the predom- it would seem that we are living through a inant interpretation. The end of the so period of profound change in the development called Nurmijärvi-phenomenon (people moving of the region, a turning point that is espe- to the detached fringe outside the urban re- cially affecting the position of the subur- gion, thus decentralizing the urban struc- ban fringe. Helsinki seems to be doing well ture) was suddenly adopted as an explana- 237 as far as migration and population growth tion, and the concept of “New Urbanism” was

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introduced in order to describe the change tially stratified data (a random sample of that was assumed to be a permanent new fea- the population in the region) enabled a com- ture in the development of the region. parative analysis between the different sec- The argumentation was straightforward: in tions or parts of the region for the first Finland, being the late-comer in urbaniza- time ever. tion, subjective changes were first lagging One of the analyses was focused on the behind, and then catching up. data that was obtained by asking the peo- As to the position of Helsinki, the change ple how satisfied they were with the choices and the interpretation had great signifi- they had made as to their housing. The anal- cance. Whereas the city was facing a finan- ysis was made by comparing the center urban cial crisis about a decade ago, Jan Va- area of the region (the center of Helsinki), paavuori (NCP) the mayor from 2017 onwards the high-rise suburban fringe and the de- could now even lower the rate of the munic- tached fringe further away. With the assumed ipal tax. As the new development is expected subjective urbanization of people’s values to be permanent, it is being assumed that and attitudes, one would have expected to the position of Helsinki within the region get results that would highlight or empha- has permanently changed towards the better. size the benefits of urban living, at least For example, The New Master Plan of Helsinki among the people who had chosen to live in (City Plan 2018) is based on the assumption the urban center of the region. of continuous strong growth of Helsinki up People with wealth can afford to fol- till 2050. low their preferences in the housing market better than the rest, and for this reason we controlled not only for income, but also 238 City growth and public satisfaction for education, age, family structure, gender The problem with the interpretation from a etc. (see Tuominen 2014). As a result, we research point of view is that empirical ended up comparing similar people in differ- evidence on a major change of people’s ori- ently urbanized surroundings, measuring how entations is scant or lacking. The official they liked their housing in 2012. National Inhabitant Survey (Asukasbaro- The results were a surprise. The respond- metri) on people’s attitudes, evaluations ents’ housing satisfaction was significantly and preferences towards housing in 2016, higher in the detached suburban fringes than shows that the proportion of respondents who in the center or in the high-rise suburbs. favor high-rise housing in urban centers has In addition, a simple explanation for this grown to exactly 20 percent of the respond- result emerged: if one held constant two ents (Strandell 2017). In other words, the features of the housing surroundings – high- proportion of the minority preferring urban rise and dense housing with socially mixed surroundings in centers has grown a little surroundings – the whole result vanished. while the proportion preferring high-rise In other words, it was the high-rise and suburbs has somewhat diminished. The overall dense and mixed housing that lowered the result is no surprise: there is a gradual satisfaction of the population in the center slow urbanization in the attitudes but noth- districts of the region (Tuominen 2014). ing that could explain the fast change. These very features – high-rise, dense and A research project, funded by the Academy mixed – are the features that characterize of Finland in 2011–2015 (“New urban poverty urbanity in the region. It seems quite dif- and the renovation of prefabricated high- ficult to claim that the turning point could rise suburbs in Finland, PREFARE”) entailed be based on a change in people’s values and detailed analysis of the values and housing evaluations. To be blunt, there has been no satisfaction of people living in the Hel- research that would point towards a drastic sinki Region. The mass of the data gathered subjective urbanization of the population in outnumbers everything done in the district the region. on the subject (n = 20 000), and the spa- If this holds true, how should the change be interpreted? Another simple idea emerges: of the center municipalities. Finland has The exceptionally strong economic downturn, only very recently started to recover from the longest in recorded history, has trig- the industrial collapse that began in 2008 gered a new wave of migration that has very and led to the loss of a significant part little to do with the subjective orienta- of its economic base (Figure 2). The recov- tions of people. During the first major wave ery will most likely take some time, as the of urbanization – in the 1960s and 1970s – distance economic gap between Finland and people did not move into the cities and to most European countries (including the other Helsinki because they preferred urban living Nordic countries) is a major one. The pat- but because they had to. This could also tern of the migration towards Helsinki (see apply to the new wave of the results which Figure 1) seems to be following the pattern we see now in the statistics. If this is the of the slump, with its two consequent drops, case, the policy implications of the change the first in 2008-2009, then a small upswing seem somewhat different. To get to grips which resulted in a new slump in 2012–2013. with this it is necessary to develop the In addition, urban and capital regions interpretation with the help of the data we usually react to economic crises stronger now have. than rest of the country. When unemployment is high, for example, it is usually high- Economic factors and migration er in the cities, and vice versa, when the economy improves, unemployment tends to fall Economic fluctuations have had a significant faster in the cities. Accordingly, the ex- impact the growth of the detached belt of ceptionally long and difficult down-swing of housing between 1994 and 2008: every slump, the economy has had a strong effect on the however minor, resulted in a downturn in de- economy in Finland’s main urban areas (see 239 tached housing construction, and was eager- Figures 3 and 4). ly commented on in public by the proponents

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Figure 2. GNP quarterly in Finland, EU, USA, and Japan in 2005–2017 (Elinkeinoelämän keskusliitto 2017). USP / 2018

240

Figure 3. The real GRP change in the Bal- tic Sea Region during the years 2009–2013. The maps shows that the reduction of GRP was between 0 – 1 percent in Uusimaa region (Nordregio 2016). The second element of the interpretation entail a risk, as the future itself is a is that economic crises trigger new waves of risk (Heikkilä et al. 2001). In other words, internal migration with two main elements: it could be that only economic calculations some parts of the country end up having are behind the down-swing of the migration serious economic difficulties, and well-ed- of the well-off to the fringes: people would ucated people seek work in bigger city rather settle down to living with less room centers. This is happening simultaneously (Laakso 2012), and in surroundings that do with the influx of the new wave of migration not appeal to them as much (Tuominen 2014), from abroad. for economic reasons, trying to avoid exces- But why should people settle down in the sive risks. center and not in the fringes? This is easy We know that the new patterns of migration to interpret on the basis of previous knowl- favoring Helsinki have been linked with a edge on how economic fluctuations affect simultaneous crowding in Helsinki. The space people’s lives. It is during up-swings that per capita has started to diminish (Laakso divorces, suicides and a range of signs of 2012). In other words, it could be that peo- human suffering flourish – together with ple (including families with children) are massive construction projects and risk-tak- trying to cope during the depression with ing. Why? During up-swings people tend to less space than they need and that (with a take risks, some of which come off, but dur- new economic upswing) this will burst out ing slumps people minimize their risk-tak- into demand for family dwellings once the ing and refrain from everything that could economic opportunities are there. If this

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Figure 4. Unemployed job applicants and vacancies announced by the TE Offices at the end of each month in 2013–2017 (Salorinne 2017). USP / 2018

was to be a valid interpretation, we could ing dense, high-rise and small. However, if be heading towards a new turn of the tide in you take the available research results into the development of the region, and also in consideration, and acknowledge that there the patterns of migration. All we would need is no evidence of this, how do the policies is a new reliable economic upswing. look like as to their future effects? Previously both business firms and the Future remains unpredictable population tended to opt out of the crowded center to the fringes (cheap land, more Which interpretation is valid, which one room, optimal places and spaces). If the is to be trusted? To be frank, we cannot accessibility of Helsinki becomes even worse be sure. The first one can be criticized than before, this will provide new incen- as wishful thinking. The second is based tives for both to move out. In addition, on data better, but what we do not know is the new obstacles are permanent (as opposed whether it holds true, and if so, to what to taxing the traffic, for instance): if extent. This gives us a good basis for dis- you use millions of euros to make the roads cussing regional urban policies, for this is narrower with new housing production, you the basic setting in politics in general: in cannot reverse this the moment the results politics you work with matters you basical- become negative. In addition, by changing ly have no way on knowing (“it is difficult towards even smaller apartments, Helsinki to do forecasts, especially on the future”). would risk driving out families with chil- So, what do you do? dren, and creating a platform for the spread The Helsinki New Master Plan (City Plan of neighborhoods of excessively high turn- 2018) is heavily based on the assumption over rates (i.e. producing neighborhoods 242 of strong future growth, and on the grow- where no-one lives permanently). Neighbor- ing success of Helsinki within the region. hoods such as these tend to develop into On this basis the city suddenly appears as concentrations of social exclusion (with the being brave enough (1) to make plans on the wealth being concentrated in neighborhoods so-called city boulevards (making it more with family-sized dwellings). difficult for private cars to enter the city If this were to happen, wth the choices it from the ring), a plan that would have been is making today, Helsinki would be promoting impossible to present during the previous exactly the development it has been trying period (1994–2008); and (2) to introduce to prevent. In other words, with no reliable innovative changes in housing policies, to- knowledge on future developments, and con- wards producing even smaller apartments. trary to what we know, Helsinki is at pres- The criticism against the boulevards is ent taking a huge risk as to its own future. simple: with the assumed growth of the city, the narrowing of the main roads would pro- REFERENCES duce massive traffic jams and make living conditions along the roads (in any case) City Plan (2018). City of Helsinki, Urban unsuitable for housing. The counter-argument Environment Division. 1.3.2018. policy: it is an attempt to spread of the Elinkeinoelämän keskusliitto (2017). Brutto- urban center of Helsinki further into the kansantuote. 1.3.2018. major change in the patterns of mobility of the population (with the boulevards, public Heikkilä, M., Rintala, T., Airio, I. & Ka- transport is the only sensible way of get- inulainen, S. (2001). Hyvinvointi ja ting into the center). tulevaisuus maalla ja kaupungissa. Re- search reports / National Research and The policies make perfect sense if you Development Centre for Welfare and Health assume there will be a permanent change in 126. people values and attitudes towards favor- Laakso, S. (2012). Helsingin seudun ja Helsingin väestökehitys. Toteutunut väestönkasvu ja projektiot vuoteen 2050. Helsingin kaupunkisuunnitteluviras- ton yleissuunnitteluosaston selvityksiä 2012(3). Nordregio (2016). Real GRP change in the Baltic Sea Region in 2009-2013. 1.3.2018. Salorinne, M. (2017). Työllisyys ja työt- tömyys Helsingissä 3. vuosineljänneksellä 2017. Helsingin kaupunki, Tilastoja 2017: 14. https://www.hel.fi/hel2/tietokeskus/ julkaisut/pdf/17_10_30_Tilastoja_14_Sal- orinne.pdf Strandell, A. (2017). Asukasbarometri 2016. Kysely kaupunkimaisista asu- inympäristöistä. Suomen Ympäristökeskuk- sen raportteja 19/2017. Tuominen, J. (2014). Asumistyytyväisyys Helsingin seudulla. Unpublished Master’s Thesis. University of Helsinki, Faculty 243 of Social Sciences, Department of So- cial Research. USP Studio Publication 1 ISSN 2489-8007 (print) ISBN 978-951-51-4193-4 (print) ISBN 978-951-51-4194-1 (PDF) https://www.helsinki.fi/en/programmes/master/urban-studies-planning Painotalo Plus Digital Oy Lahti 2018

The Master's Programme in Urban Studies and Planning prepares students to excel as professionals capable of understanding and addressing complex urban development challenges. Students learn to address such challenges through a curriculum and pedagogical approach that includes interdisciplinary breadth as well as depth in core areas of knowledge, skill and practice. The programme started in autumn 2017 as a joint programme of the University of Helsinki and Aalto University. Aalto University joined the programme officially in 2018.

2018

Confused Suburban Identities: A Case Study of Helsinki Region

USP Studio Publication 1