Espoo signs a strategic partnership with VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland. The cooperation produces concrete solutions for Espoo's carbon neutrality targets, the innovation environment and competitiveness.
The agreement will deepen the established cooperation, which has already produced great results. For many years now, VTT has been strongly involved in Espoo’s projects and in those by key actors in the region.
The strategic partnership agreement signed by VTT and Espoo aims to promote common, ambitious and long-term sustainable impacts in the urban community. The vision is to build a world-class pioneer city of sustainable growth by supporting the creation and strengthening of knowledge, continuous learning, social solutions, successful companies and new investments.
“Our cooperation strengthens Espoo as an innovation environment where services are developed in a resident- and customer-oriented fashion. Together with VTT and other research, development and innovation communities, companies and residents, we are building a carbon-neutral future and creating a vibrant growth platform for residents’ well-being, entrepreneurship and business operations. This is how we strengthen Espoo’s power to attract and keep international experts,” says Mayor of Espoo Jukka Mäkelä.
Cooperation with Espoo offers concrete challenges as VTT’s research input and provides a platform for innovations generated by research.
“Cities are laboratories of the future, where the daily life of people and global challenges meet. Espoo is a pioneer in how the entire urban community is involved in building a common future. With its own top expertise, VTT wants to help the city and Espoo companies to produce solutions for carbon neutral energy systems, sustainable urban transport and the circular economy, for instance. Through long-term cooperation, we are building a better home city for the people of Espoo and export products for companies to the world market,” says President & CEO of VTT Antti Vasara.
In the international leadership programme for pioneering cities, Espoo is committed to achieving the UN’s sustainable development goals (SDGs) by 2025.
The projects to be implemented under the partnership and related financial commitments will be agreed separately in line with normal project preparation practices. The partnership agreement was signed for years 2020–2025.
