Reuse, Repurpose, and Recycle…..like a Finn - 210

One of the benefits of subscribing to multiple science magazines is there are inspiring stories of brilliant scientists and entrepreneurs who are discovering and implementing climate change solutions. There are even inspiring nations! Recently, it was Finland.

For decades, the well-educated Finnish public has known the earth is warming, the earth has finite resources, and the consequences of not acting will be catastrophic.  The last American generation to cope with limited resources was the “Greatest Generation”. They proudly found ways to enjoy life when the Great Depression stalled the economy and there simply was not much of anything to go around. Later when they had to deal with rationing during WWII, my parents (perhaps your grandparents) stepped up again. They were a generation who embraced creative reusing and repurposing. They were proud to unify as a nation to meet the challenges.  

Then came the baby boomer generation and with the boomers came the throwaway culture. Our current USA cultural/economic system is referred to as linear. The line of consumption goes like this: we take something from the earth, make something with it, and toss the “waste” into a heap. In short, it is called take, make, waste.

There are problems on each side of this three-step process. First, the earth has finite resources. You can only take so much.

And, at the end of the line, the waste piles up. What the heck do you do with it? Is there not a better way than creating more landfills? While the legacy of the ancient Egyptians is the Pyramids, will ours be towering piles of garbage?

In 2015 the European Union launched action plans to replace the linear system with what is called a Circular Economic System.

A Circular Economic System looks at waste as a potential resource. If waste can be used, then you can also reduce the “take”. With creative intelligent consideration most waste can instead be reused, repurposed, or those failing the waste can be processed into raw material capable of being used.

This can only be accomplished by adding one critical element: motivated, creative, intelligence. The addition of motivated creative intelligence bends the linear system into a circular one.  Finland has proven it has plenty of the gray matter and will-power to bend the line into a circle.

While the EU countries have been getting their circular economies off the ground, Finland is flying circles around everyone. Their plastic is recycled, non-recyclable wastes are burnt to generate power, farmers are adopting regenerative agriculture, and the byproducts from their forest products are seen as a possible sidestream resource for bioplastic, paperboard, and textiles. Swapie is a successful new Finnish startup refurbishing cell phones.

Why is Finland leading the world?  I am not a Finn so any in depth answer is beyond my knowledge base. Saying this I am going to give you a not so well researched opinion. The Finns are an educated science-based bunch with a strong love of nature. Thus, they know the price unchecked climate change will have on the country they love. They also know one way to create change via their education system.

If you investigate the Finnish Educational System in depth, and I invite you to, you will see they do things a lot different than us. Before you balk at some of the aspects of their system let me tell you where they are ranked. They are ranked #1. Their system, which might appear quirky to us, is designed to nurture creativity, participation, cooperation, and responsibility.   

The Finns back in 2015, decided to lead the way to a circular economy. They took the long view and simply found ways to create curiosity, creativity, critical thinking, and a desire to design a circular economy by introducing the basics of creative problem solving with their kids. Now those kids (now adults), and the whole of their society, are moving with enthusiasm to a sustainable Finland. What the older wiser Finns knew is, if you have a motivated teen, it will rub off on their elders.  Today, Finland is a nation committed to wise consumption and wise use. Their goal is to make repurposing and recycling a key national goal. Waste in Finland is no longer waste but simply viewed as a resource. They want to be, and are, the world’s leaders in protecting planet earth.

Finnish world ranking by the World Economic Forum:

Education: The Best

Well-being:  #1

Happiness: #1

Social Spending: #2                                                                     

Finland dedicates 29.1% of its budget vs the USA 18.7%

Social Mobility: #3 This is the ability of a child to experience a better life than their parents.

From the Christian Science Monitor:

 “Fifty years ago, Finland was known for little more than the wood pulp from its endless forests. A        poverty-stricken land of poorly educated loggers and farmers on the edge of the Arctic Circle, few paid it any attention.

Today, this small Nordic nation boasts a thriving hi-tech economy ranked the most competitive in the world, the best educated citizenry of all the industrialized countries, and a welfare state that has created one of the globe's most egalitarian societies.

Envious policymakers from far and wide are beating a path to Helsinki to learn the secrets of Finland's success.

"We have a saying here," chuckles Stefan Nygard, a university lecturer, as he swings his baby daughter gently, soothing her to sleep. "If you are Finnish, you've won the lottery."

Reference: Time Magazine Feb 14, 2022 “Closing the Circle”