Visitors to Espoo are often struck by its natural scenery, with 58 kilometres of coastline, 165 islands, and surrounding forests. But the city’s commitment goes beyond aesthetics: it aims to become climate neutral by 2030. Espoo’s approach has been to make climate action a shared responsibility, engaging businesses, civil society, and residents, while establishing an investment framework that turns sustainability goals into actionable projects.
Espoo faces a challenging task. While the target is an 80% reduction in emissions by 2030, current measures are projected to achieve only 60%. Rapid population growth, which has nearly doubled since 1990 and is expected to double again by 2030, adds pressure. The Climate Neutral Espoo 2030 Roadmap will be updated in 2026 to integrate new data and additional measures. Significant progress has already been made through district heating, historically the city’s largest emissions source, where reductions of 38% have been achieved and are expected to reach zero by 2030. This success is largely due to collaboration with Fortum, the private company operating the system, demonstrating the importance of partnerships.
Collaboration is ingrained in Espoo’s culture, supported by its concentration of company headquarters, universities, and research centres. This culture has been formalized through the city’s climate partnership under the Climate City Contract, as part of its involvement in NetZeroCities. The city works with 25 stakeholders, including companies, research institutions, and education organisations, with the Pilot Cities Programme (PCP) COMET project deepening these connections and extending engagement to residents.
Citizen participation is central to Espoo’s climate strategy. Recognizing that infrastructure alone cannot drive change, the COMET project works with civil society to encourage practical climate action. Initiatives have engaged 1,255 residents through activities ranging from Finland’s first Planetary Garden field station for youth to mushroom foraging trips, upcycling workshops, and bicycle maintenance training. These efforts aim to foster climate-conscious behaviour, circular economy practices, and sustainable mobility. Climate literacy and emotional resilience are also promoted through school-based Climate Ambassador programs, creative writing workshops, and targeted activities for mental health recovery.
Espoo has connected climate action with health and wellbeing. Recognizing low exercise levels among children and extensive car use for sports activities, the city collaborated with local clubs, national federations, and city departments to explore sustainable mobility and sports practices. Resources, guidance, and challenges for clubs have been shared online, combining practical skills with climate engagement.
The city has also developed a Climate Investment Framework with the Climate Leadership Coalition to attract and accelerate green investments. The framework links investors’ expectations to city actions, aligning climate goals with economic strategy, land use, and ecosystem support. It has assessed a pipeline of around €1 billion in green investments, measuring both climate impact and economic benefits. The framework is designed for adaptation by other European cities.
Espoo’s collaborative work feeds directly into the next phase of its Climate Neutrality Roadmap. Workshops with climate partners help identify additional measures to close the emissions gap and expand partner contributions. The city has emphasized enabling conditions: a stable strategic commitment across political cycles, identification of key actors, trust-building, and treating civil society as partners rather than audiences. Investments in climate are integrated with economic strategy, and the guiding principle remains simple: in Espoo, change is achieved together.
