thisisFINLAND

An ode to the joys of Finnish summer cottages

From coastal islands to inland forests, our American reporter explores the quiet joy – and hard work – of Finland’s summer-cottage traditions.

Business & innovation Sustainability

Savouring sustainable eating in Finland

We visit two innovative Finnish businesses – a discount retailer and a Michelin Green Star restaurant – to see how food culture is shifting from consumption to conservation.

Life & society Wellbeing

A Finnish nurse aims to revolutionise elderly care

As the global population ages, the challenge of providing compassionate and sustainable care for older people becomes increasingly urgent. In Finland, a nation renowned for innovation in healthcare, a small-town nurse is championing a transformative model of foster care.

2005

The year Helsinki Design Week, Scandinavia's biggest design fest, was founded

Life & society Nature

Where the skies speak: Finland’s southern tip is a birdwatcher’s paradise

At the Hanko Bird Observatory in southern Finland, a reporter joins biologist Aki Aintila and volunteers as they track hundreds of thousands of migratory birds and marvel at the stories the skies reveal.

Arts & culture Festivals

Magic in the Finnish summer air

Every year, music festivals fill cities, fells, forests and lakesides with live music and a peculiar kind of charm that can only be felt in the summertime. Let’s unpack the reasons that make Finland the promised land of summer festivals – and look at some unique festival experiences for those who have seen it all.

Life & society Cuisine

5 reasons to love potatoes like a Finn

In Finland, spuds and taters have no haters. There are countless reasons to love the humble potato – here are five.

Life & society Webpick

Calculating how much dairy, meat and veggies people in Finland consume

Stats compiled by the Natural Resources Institute Finland give us an estimate of the quantities Finnish people eat of different foods.

Business & innovation Innovation

7 surprising things that Finnish companies are making out of wood

Clothes, car batteries, fish feed – you name it. Some of the world’s most creative and commercially promising wood-based innovations come from Finland, and many are made from industry by-products. Here are just a few.

1902

The year Francisco Tárrega composed the waltz that later became the Nokia ringtone

things you should and shouldn’t know