128 E. HEISKANEN ET AL.
Keywords Energy conservation · Energy policy · Experimentation ·
Transition · Urban climate action
introDuCtion
Finnish energy policy is undergoing a period of transition. Previously,
policy focused on the needs of industry, which consumes almost half of
all the energy used in the country (Statistics Finland 2018a). The current government aims to increase renewable energy production to more
than 50%, phase out coal and halve the use of mineral oil (MoEE 2017).
These developments place new challenges on energy policy, where
among other issues, energy provision in urban areas has re-emerged as an
issue, after more than half a century of stability. For example, the envisaged coal phase-out problematizes the district heating system of cities
like Helsinki, where district heating is still largely produced with coalfired combined heat and power (CHP) combustion.
Home heating and domestic electricity use have been subjects of
energy efficiency policy, but not at the top of the energy policy agenda
until recently. A recent development is the increasing engagement of
cities and rural municipalities in climate policy, featuring several nationwide programmes in which cities and municipalities have committed to
climate targets and engaged in a joint search for new solutions to decarbonize the built environment (Mickwitz et al. 2011).
This penultimate chapter highlights how Finnish SECIs reflect recent
developments in Finnish energy policy. The most recent SECIs are largely
locally based, combine energy saving with other concerns, and aim to
develop combinations of technical and social solutions from the bottom up.
soCio-materiaL DynamiCs of househoLD energy
use in finLanD
Finnish residential buildings are relatively energy efficient, because about
75% of the building area was constructed after the 1970s (Statistics Finland
2018a), when energy efficiency requirements were tightened. owing
to the high level of insulation and the wide diffusion of district heating,
Finns are accustomed to stable indoor environments and well-functioning,
automatized systems. Like other Nordic countries, average indoor temperatures are rather high (about 21 °C) in Finland (Karjalainen 2009).
Keywords Energy conservation · Energy policy · Experimentation ·
Transition · Urban climate action
introDuCtion
Finnish energy policy is undergoing a period of transition. Previously,
policy focused on the needs of industry, which consumes almost half of
all the energy used in the country (Statistics Finland 2018a). The current government aims to increase renewable energy production to more
than 50%, phase out coal and halve the use of mineral oil (MoEE 2017).
These developments place new challenges on energy policy, where
among other issues, energy provision in urban areas has re-emerged as an
issue, after more than half a century of stability. For example, the envisaged coal phase-out problematizes the district heating system of cities
like Helsinki, where district heating is still largely produced with coalfired combined heat and power (CHP) combustion.
Home heating and domestic electricity use have been subjects of
energy efficiency policy, but not at the top of the energy policy agenda
until recently. A recent development is the increasing engagement of
cities and rural municipalities in climate policy, featuring several nationwide programmes in which cities and municipalities have committed to
climate targets and engaged in a joint search for new solutions to decarbonize the built environment (Mickwitz et al. 2011).
This penultimate chapter highlights how Finnish SECIs reflect recent
developments in Finnish energy policy. The most recent SECIs are largely
locally based, combine energy saving with other concerns, and aim to
develop combinations of technical and social solutions from the bottom up.
soCio-materiaL DynamiCs of househoLD energy
use in finLanD
Finnish residential buildings are relatively energy efficient, because about
75% of the building area was constructed after the 1970s (Statistics Finland
2018a), when energy efficiency requirements were tightened. owing
to the high level of insulation and the wide diffusion of district heating,
Finns are accustomed to stable indoor environments and well-functioning,
automatized systems. Like other Nordic countries, average indoor temperatures are rather high (about 21 °C) in Finland (Karjalainen 2009).