thisisFINLAND

Chill skills: Finnish icebreakers and snow-how are more relevant than ever

Finnish ice and snow expertise was born out of necessity and transformed into cutting-edge innovations with global appeal. As winters get warmer with climate change, this snow-how is in more demand than ever.

Business & innovation Startups

Finnish company creates an innovative sand battery

Polar Night Energy has developed a thermal energy storage system which supplements renewable energy sources and reduces our dependence on fossil fuels.

Business & innovation Biotech

Finland helps crack the oat genome in global research effort

Finland is a global oat powerhouse, and new genetic research is helping to secure the future of this key crop for food, health and climate resilience.

Arts & culture Music

Hear Tytti Metsä play an ancient Finnish instrument with a timeless voice: the jouhikko

Few Finns play the bowed lyre, or jouhikko, an instrument whose roots stretch back thousands of years. For Tytti Metsä, its breath-like, singing tone has become the centre of her musical expression.

Arts & culture Culture

The northern Finnish city of Oulu puts big ideas into action

This year’s must-visit destination? Look north to Oulu, the Finnish city that is European Capital of Culture in 2026.

Life & society Society

Helsinki underground: Where the city plays, swims and shelters

Beneath Helsinki’s streets lies a second city that is carefully planned and actively used. From playgrounds to rehearsal rooms, the Finnish capital has turned preparedness into part of everyday urban life.

Arts & culture Film

Finnish actor Alma Pöysti believes in curiosity, compassion and communication

For the award-winning actor Alma Pöysti, culture is a force to be reckoned with. It helps people understand each other in a polarised world in at least four ways, she says.

Business & innovation Design

Finland’s Nokia Design Archive reveals the human stories behind your favourite phones

Prototypes and personal stories reveal how Nokia’s designers shaped the mobile age. We visit the Nokia Design Archive to learn more.

Business & innovation Technology

Producing just enough: Finnish startup uses AI to rethink retail

When the former chief of startup megaevent Slush takes on retail’s overproduction problem, the result is Clair, a Finnish startup using AI to help brands anticipate what customers truly want and produce only as much as needed.

Christmas Christmas traditions

Yes, Santa Claus is from Finland: Ten top facts about Father Christmas

What do you know about Santa Claus? Here are ten fun facts that might surprise you!

Arts & culture Film

Sisu movie sequel: Finnish sisu never goes out of fashion

Sisu is a Finnish word that refers to a combination of resilience and perseverance. Cited as a Finnish source of strength and wellbeing, it’s also the title of a violent action film whose new sequel is enjoying runaway success.

Christmas Cuisine

Finnish foodfluencer wishes you a veggie merry Christmas

You don’t have to compromise on quality or taste to make a holiday dinner with no animal products. Finnish culinary influencer Elina Innanen’s recipes lead us on forays into the world of plant-based cuisine.

Christmas Modern Christmas

Find Finnish gifts for everyone on your list this holiday season

Our Christmas gift guide highlights meaningful pieces by Finnish brands: thoughtful, well-made and designed for everyday happiness.

Christmas Christmas traditions

Finnish Christmas spirit brightens Helsinki streets for holiday season

As the winter days grow shorter in Helsinki, the city bursts into light, and the Christmas season brings warmth, music and thousands of twinkling bulbs.

Life & society Society

The key to Finnish happiness may be people helping each other

At a blood donation centre, we find an example of Finnish talkoohenki, the community spirit of helping each other. As our video conveys, it could be a contributing factor to Finnish happiness.

Life & society Nature

How to spot the Northern Lights in Finland

The Northern Lights are visible for human eyes only when it’s dark and the sky is clear and cloudless. In northern Finland they can be witnessed from late August until early April.

Arts & culture Art

Staying playful: A Finnish artist combines fatherhood with creative freedom

Everyone’s an artist in Teemu Keisteri’s family, no matter if they’re four or almost 40. Father and son get creative together and explore Finland’s vibrant children’s culture scene.

Life & society Language

What one person’s path to speaking Finnish reveals about life and language

For polyglot Irina Pravet, learning a language isn’t just about grammar. She sees knowing Finnish as a way to belong – and that’s something you don’t find in textbooks.