In January 2022, the panel of experts on sustainable production and consumption gained new strength when Professor Mikko Mönkkönen, an applied ecology specialist, joined the group. The Sustainability Panel now consists of six leading experts from Finland, who evaluate products and services submitted to Infine’s Ostavastuullisesti.fi platform. The other panel members are Professor Minna Halme from Aalto University, Jyri Seppälä, Director of the Center for Consumption and Production at the Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE), Markus Terho, leader of Sitra’s Sustainable Everyday Life project, Anne Liimatainen, program manager for Climate Responsibility in Education at the Finnish National Agency for Education, and Antti Majava from the BIOS Research Unit.
Mönkkönen will bring a particular focus on biodiversity conservation and provide tools for companies seeking to lead the way in creating a positive nature impact. Having studied biodiversity extensively, he believes companies and consumers play a key role in addressing the sustainability crisis. In an interview, Mönkkönen talks about his background and how applied ecological research can help companies succeed.
How can applied ecological research be utilized in responsibility assessments?
“When Minna Halme, the chair of the Sustainability Panel, asked me to join, I eagerly accepted. I am interested in seeing the practical steps companies are taking towards sustainable business and the challenges they face.”
“On the other hand, I also feel a great responsibility in this new role—there is a real opportunity to influence key factors for companies’ success in the future. Managing the economy sustainably is possible, which is why I’m excited to see the challenges companies face and help them move towards sustainability.”
Mönkkönen, a professor at the University of Jyväskylä, researches the sustainability of natural resource use—essentially how to make it sustainable. His work focuses on issues of biodiversity and explores how we can maintain biodiversity and ecosystem functions, which our existence and well-being ultimately rely on, even while using natural resources. Ecosystems like forests provide us with a range of services and resources.
“Besides wood as a raw material, forests also provide recreational services, climate regulation services, non-timber forest products, and cultural services. My work aims to create a holistic understanding of how we can utilize these different forms of natural resources while ensuring well-being and maintaining a resilient ecosystem.”
What is essential for business development from an ecological perspective?
In ecological research, examining a company’s natural footprint is crucial for sustainability. While environmental footprints often focus on carbon cycles, the natural footprint assesses the broader impact of human, corporate, or societal activities on ecosystems. The concept of a positive natural handprint describes the beneficial impacts of a company’s efforts to promote biodiversity.
In his role as an expert, Mönkkönen intends to apply his knowledge to assess companies’ natural footprints and help them develop their activities.
“A key question is: what is the company’s natural footprint, how can it be minimized, and how can any residual negative impact be compensated through a natural handprint to create even a positive impact on nature? Assessing the natural footprint and creating a natural handprint are complex issues, but I hope to help companies bringing their products and services to Ostavastuullisesti.fi address these aspects.”
The drivers of the sustainability transition will be decisions made by individuals—both decisions to avoid consumption and to consume responsibly, as well as how companies themselves pursue a more sustainable economy.
In addition to his professorship, Mönkkönen also leads the research group for the MultiForest project. The group explores how political decision-making plans and tools address issues related to preserving biodiversity and using natural resources sustainably. The research aims to create an overview of the potential effects of current policies and provide knowledge to support political decision-making.
“We examine the impacts of policy objectives on biodiversity and ecosystem services. We assess how much the implementation of these objectives leads to welfare losses. Many policies are sector-specific. Our network investigates contradictions between different policy instruments and programs and explores how we can create better cohesion between sectoral policies.”
“For example, in Finland, we have a National Forest Program that sets multiple objectives for forest use, emphasizing wood production and guiding forest management. We already know there are conflicts between these objectives—achieving them simultaneously is not possible. There are even greater conflicts between different policies, such as between the Forest Program and Finland’s biodiversity strategy.”
What are your thoughts on your new role as an expert in the Sustainability Panel?
Mönkkönen brings his expertise in the sustainable use of natural resources to the Sustainability Panel’s evaluation process. As a forest enthusiast, sustainable living is based on making meaningful and well-considered choices. He believes that everyday decisions will play a critical role in creating a sustainable future for all of us.
“A sustainability transition is necessary to preserve the habitability of our planet. Due to the slowness of political decision-making, I believe companies and consumers will drive the solution to the sustainability crisis. The drivers of the transition will be the individual decisions people make—not only decisions to reduce consumption but also how companies take steps towards a more sustainable economy. Politicians will eventually follow.”