Smart use of Arctic Natural Resources and Conditions

Finland

Lapland (2016)

Country flag of Finland
Regional Government of Lapland

The northernmost region of Finland, and one of the most sparsely populated regions in EU, Lapland is a mixture of abundant natural resources, strong accumulation of Arctic expertise and unique nature. There is a constant need to balance in a sustainable way the business interests with the preservation of its unique nature and style of living.

From the very beginning, smart specialisation has been seen in Lapland as a very practical concept, bringing in new insights into regional development. Smart specialisation has been used in Lapland to become recognised as an attractive and knowledgeable partner in EU. Smart specialisation has helped us in finding new ways of working together, to think ”out of the box”, to develop common approaches towards regional development and to be active in seeking international collaboration. We have also developed a special Arctic Smartness “step-by-step” regional development approach.

The vision of the Lapland’s smart specialisation is to evolve our leading position in exploiting and commercialising Arctic natural resources and conditions while maintaining balance in sustainable development.

We are reaching our vision promoting regional clusters and ecosystems of emerging industries that focus on refining natural resources throughout the value chains. In addition to our strong traditional sectoral, smart specialisation focuses in cross-cutting interventions. With the modern clusters of Arctic industry – Circular economy, Arctic Smart Rural Communities, Arctic Design, Arctic Safety & Security and Arctic Development Environments, we are looking beyond the boundaries, looking for cross-fertilisation, best use of the regional expertise and strategic networking over the borders.
background quote

We are reaching our vision promoting regional clusters and ecosystems of emerging industries that focus on refining natural resources throughout the value chains in balance with sustainable development.