Regional development

We support all levels of governance with knowledge. We collect and analyse statistical and spatial data and confirm it with the interpretation and views of experts. We have also evaluated a number of key programmes and strategies for regional development as well as rural and urban development.

Our mission is to make Finland a better place to live and work and to give it the tools to engage in continuous self-development. Our experts have been researching, developing, evaluating and weaving together networks focusing on municipal and regional development for decades.

Regional development affects cities, sub-regions, provinces, welfare areas and the national level. The issues faced in respect of urban and rural development show some similarities but also exhibit a number of differences.

Current themes in regional development include

  • strengthening vitality
  • production of services
  • attracting a skilled workforce
  • business environment
  • environmental and climate issues
  • economic factors

Population and Migration

One of the main strings to our regional development bow is analyses related to population and migration. The process of demographic change influences virtually all themes across the broad field of regional development. We analyse demographics and migration at all regional levels, from provinces to neighbourhoods. In the analyses related to population and migration, we examine the population structure of the selected area as well as changes in the population structure, for example from the perspective of the age structure, language structure or socio-economic structure. We examine the formation of demographic development especially from the perspective of migration, taking into account the diverse flows of migrants and the structure of migration flows.

Information to support regional development

We support the activities and decision-making of public and private organisations interested in regional development, among other things by carrying out current status analyses, scenario and strategy work outlining possible futures and network analyses identifying actors and networks.

Recently, we have studied the current state and status of multi-location and place-independence, the preconditions for feminist vitality and have sparred a number of municipalities in relation to their strategy work.

More information