Engaging the United Nations’ Agenda 2030 in strategic governance of “Europe’s most sustainable city”

ABSTRACT

In the face of the climate crisis, cities have committed to ambitious sustainability targets. The UN Agenda 2030 and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide a globally shared language for decision-makers and policymakers regarding their sustainability objectives. Espoo, Finland’s second-largest city, has become a pioneer in implementing the Agenda, not least due to its recent nomination as ‘Europe’s most sustainable city’. This article investigates the use of the Agenda in strategic governance in Espoo with the aim to identify challenges and opportunities of SDG localisation. Although the Agenda has affected many aspects of policymaking in Espoo and ambitions have been high to shine as an SDG pioneer, a systematic integration of sustainability concerns into policymaking is not yet achieved. Moreover, there is a need to question the reliance of the Agenda framework on the ecological modernisation paradigm, which does not see economic growth and ecological sustainability at odds.

KEYWORDS:

• Ecological modernisation
• limits to growth
• sustainable development goals
• SDG localisation
• SDG 11: Sustainable cities and communities
• local government
• Espoo
• sustainability

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Academy of Finland [338335].

Notes on contributors

Anni Halko

Anni Halko is a doctoral candidate at the Department of Built Environment, Aalto University. Her research focuses on the role of local governments in the sustainability transition, especially the management of the Agenda 2030 by cities.

Raine Mäntysalo

Raine Mäntysalo is a professor of strategic urban planning at the Department of Built Environment, Aalto University, and an Adjunct Professor at University of Oulu. His research interests include planning theory, strategic urban and regional planning as well as democracy, learning, and power in spatial and land use planning.

Eva Purkarthofer

Eva Purkarthofer is a post-doctoral researcher at the Department of Built Environment, Aalto University. Her research interests include European spatial development and EU Cohesion Policy, strategic urban and regional planning, planning cultures and planning systems as well as the role of actors and institutions in planning.