13/05/2009
Finland has been ranked as the second “hottest” innovation environment in the world by the respected American publication Harvard Business Review.
According to the publication, Finland’s innovation system has benefited from the strong role played by the state following the innovation decisions the country made during the last recession. The publication commends Finland for flexibly investing research funds both in the public and the private sectors. It also praises the effectiveness of Sitra, the Finnish Innovation Fund and Tekes, the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation, and other state-supported institutions.
The new Aalto University, which has been created through a merger between the Helsinki School of Economics, the University of Art and Design Helsinki and the Helsinki University of Technology, is also seen as one of the best examples of a holistic approach to innovation in Finland. Aalto University shows in a concrete way how innovations are best created by merging different ways of thinking, according to the Harvard Business Review.