Green growth for the bioeconomy of North Karelia through digital transformation of forest services

The goal of the project was to respond to the needs of increasing forest service business and green bioeconomy startups in North Karelia, as well as addressing the challenges of climate change in Finland and globally through forest management methods. These needs were met by seeking growth through digitalization, based on the creation of locally applicable digital solutions.

In close collaboration with forestry entrepreneurs, the project developed five service concepts: "Marketing climate-smart forestry", "Standardized service packages for forest regeneration", "Online store for forest seedlings", "Forest (house)master" and "Metsään.fi service to support customer acquisition". Concise infocards with links to in-depth information were produced for these service concepts.

Additionally, the project produced a six-part series on climate-smart forest management called “Tuottava metsänhoito muuttuvassa ilmastossa – näin myyt palveluitasi”. The playlist presents arguments for implementing climate-smart forest management in situations involving periodic and continuous cover forestry, considering aspects such as wood production and biodiversity.

The project organized eight networking events for Finnish and international students, with a total of 90 participants. All activities for students were related to bioeconomy, entrepreneurship, startups, and the operations of local businesses. International students, in particular, were active participants and had the opportunity to network extensively with local stakeholders during these events. The project also participated in showcasing Finnish forest expertise to numerous foreign delegations visiting the region and conducted three knowledge-export trips to Portugal and Spain, France, and Japan (travel reports available on the Forest Centre's project site).

In total, 48 Finnish companies and 90 students participated in the project. Additionally, in collaboration with ForestJoensuu, around ten foreign organizations were introduced to Finnish forest expertise.

The project was funded by the Regional Council of North Karelia through the European Regional Development Fund as a part of the European Union’s COVID-19 activities (REACT-EU).