Think local, act global! CLiC+ framework of thematic entrepreneurial development and ecosystems

Kari Mikkelä: URBAN MILL & Espoo Innovation Garden
Think local, act global!
CliC+ framework of thematic entrepreneurial development and ecosystems
Kari.Mikkela@urbanmill.fi,
Chinese
FinTec
Visitors
9.12.2019
Co-working and Co-creation Platform for Urban Innovations
Espoo, Finland www.urbanmill.org
CLiC!

CLiC!
Urban Mill Innovation Platform
A Gateway to Espoo Innovation Garden’s People and Services
Betonimiehenkuja 3E, 02150 Espoo, Finland www.urbanmill.org
Urban Mill Co-working and Co-creation Platform for Urban Innovations is a Finnish public-private-people
partnership run by a private company, Järvelin Design Ltd, and the City of Espoo as one of the main partners. It is
situated at the heart of the Espoo Innovation Garden at Aalto University campus in Helsinki Metropolitan area.
Urban Mill community includes change makers from public and private sector, researchers, entrepreneurs,
students as well as local residents and other users of urban environments.
Activities run in the Urban Mill respect open collaboration, cherishment of serendipity and open-doors
philosophy and thus support a shared co-learning process. Entrepreneurial spirit and participation of all (including
citizens, academics, business and public actors) is a characteristic feature of the Urban Mill. The Urban Mill
experience shows the importance of focusing on a common theme to generate a bottom-
up/open/participatory innovation process that delivers new capabilities, operational models and
sustainable solutions to urban challenges
MSc (Tech) Kari Mikkelä, Executive Producer, Urban Mill Innovation Platform
Kari Mikkelä has extensive international experience in initiating, developing and orchestrating innovation communities,
platforms and ecosystems for global excellence. Kari is co-founder of the Urban Mill Innovation Platform

CLiC!
• We have stepped to a Postnormal VUCA Era
• Old operational models don’t fit to the new reality
• Individuals innovate, not institutions!
• Meaningful purposes motivate and engage people
• Multi-talented and -disciplinary teams thrive
• Connected platforms enable people to contribute
• Entrepreneurial thinking and new business models emerge!
• Ecosystems and networks are new working contexts
• Systemic gaps need to be filled and wicked problems solved!
• Ambidexterity rules: think local and build global impact!
Think Local, Act Global!
A great opportunity for connecting local
actors within a global world:
Kari Mikkelä, Urban Mill Innovation Platform, 2017

CLiC!
VUCA & Postnormal Era
VUCA Era (US Army)
• Volatile (vision needed), Uncertain (understanding needed),
Complex (clarity needed), Ambiguous (agility needed)
Postnormal Era (Stowe Boyd)
“Organizations are becoming fast-and-loose, reconfiguring around social
networks instead of business processes, becoming more decentralized and as
autonomy increases, more egalitarian. We will belong to our networks – which
are our own – and not to institutions that require us to subordinate our interests
and selves.”
Main characteristics:
• low or no predictability
• non-linear development
• emergence of new, unexpected combinations of competences and business models
• legacy organizations face huge transformation challenges
Source: Kakko & Mikkelä: Platform thinking within the third generation
science park concept - emerging cases from Finland and the Netherlands

CLiC!
Cities and their specialized local sub-
centres are the Future Innovation Hubs
Now over 50 % of the people are living in
Cities
In the near future 2/3 of the whole
population lives in Cities!
Cities are the creative hubs of the world!

and Community in Action
Public-Private-People partnership (PPPP) Case in the City of Espoo’s application for
Intelligent Community of the Year (ICY) 2018
Kari Mikkelä & Lars Miikki, Urban Mill 4.4.2018
CLiC!

CLiC!
Urban Mill Innovation Platform supports and facilitates
inclusive co-creation in Espoo Innovation Garden
• Urban Mill community includes change makers from public and private sector, researchers,
entrepreneurs, students as well as local residents and other users of urban environments.
• Activities run in the Urban Mill respect open collaboration, cherishment of serendipity and open-
doors philosophy and thus support a shared co-learning process.
• Entrepreneurial spirit and digitally supported participation of all (including citizens, academics,
business and public actors) is a characteristic feature of Urban Mill.
• The Urban Mill experience shows the importance of focusing on a common theme to generate a
bottom-up, open and participatory innovation process that delivers new capabilities, operational
models and sustainable solutions to urban challenges
• Urban Mill Co-working and Co-creation Platform for Urban Innovations is a public-private-people
partnership operated by a private company, Järvelin Design Ltd, and the City of Espoo as one of
the main partners. It is situated at the heart of the Espoo Innovation Garden at Aalto University
campus in Helsinki Metropolitan area.
7

CLiC!
Urban Mill enables multi-stakeholder collaboration in international
knowledge-intensive context
8
A community: We open doors for
passionate pioneering developers
and early adopters of innovations to
co-learn, co-design and co-deploy.
A platform: Our physical and digital
spaces and platform network are
ideal for promoting, testing,
developing and exhibiting new
solutions which support urban life.
An ecosystem node: We are
connected to a spectrum of global
networks through our community
members and partners. Thus we are
able to bring our complementary
thematic expertise to several
ecosystems.
A global hub: We engage and bring
together actors from around the
world to co-create solutions to
wicked urban challenges and share
our learnings openly to our partner
and member networks.

CLiC!
Orchestration of smart networked platforms supporting creative
knowledge work
9
Espoo Innovation
Garden
Sustainable
solutions
Challenges
Capabilities
Knowledge
Business
models
People
Networked Smart
Working Methods
& Space
Co-learning
Co-design
Co-effectuation
Physical &
Digital
Environment
Social &
Cultural
Networks
Energizing Urban Ecosystems Research Program 2012-2016 Lars Miikki & Kari Mikkelä, Järvelin Design Oy 21.8.2012 / 20..2017
A Smart Networked Co-Working Space supporting Creative Knowledge Work
WORLD
Impact Driven!
• Energizing creative and
innovative people
• Impact and outcome driven
• Supports creative knowledge
work
• Facilitates co-learning, co-design
and co-effectuation
• Enabled by networked physical
and digital platforms

CLiC!
Facilitated by Urban Wheel ™ Innovation Acceleration Process
10
“Life is lived
forwards,
but understood
backwards.”
”If you want to go
fast, go alone;
if you want to go
far, go with
others.”

CLiC!
Urban Mill’s operational model: platform, community and ecosystem
service elements
11
ECOSYSTEMS
NODE
MULTIPLE
COMMUNITIES
CONNECTED
PLATFORMS

CLiC!
Examples of experimental open public events in Urban Mill
MALLIKUVA
Residential Forums organized by local Otaniemi
and Suur-Tapiola resident associations in Urban
Mill have been successful.
Since 2016, the experimental Otaolut small brewery
festival has brought together thousands of represen-
tatives of different disciplines, local residents and
visitors from other parts of the metropolitan area.
Children get acquainted with science, experiment
and learn at the Science days for families, arranged
by Urban Mill’s partner TEK (Academic engineers
and architects in Finland) 3-4 times a year.
HoT Bike Center service experiment in Urban Mill
2013: 150 local bikers fixed up their bikes in HoT
demo day.
”Uusimaa Innovates” event on Uusimaa week 2016:
regional RIS3 actors was presented to the public.
The theme was new work and new forms of work.
”Experimenting at Otaniemi Innovation Alley” event
has collided hundreds of citizens to entrepreneurs
and researchers on Espoo Days since 2013.
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CLiC!
Examples of co-design workshops co-organized and facilitated by
Urban Mill, preparing sustainable solutions for societal challenges
In 2017 Urban Mill co-organized an expert forum with
Espoo and VTT and facilitated a workshop “Finland as
a Pilot Base for Flexible Energy - Otaniemi / Metro-
politan area as the spearhead for linked pilots”.
Urban Mill produced and facilitated the Arctic
Space Workshop 2016 in collaboration with ESA,
The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment
and the Finnish Meteorological Institute.
Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment:
TEM Open Space session facilitated by Urban Mill:
Innovation ecosystems and international human
capital @ Microsoft Flux, Helsinki 25.4.2017.
Workshop produced for the Committee for the Future in
2017: AR, VR, etc. digital tools and digit. supp. working
methods for the development of infrastructure and work
in the new creative space of the Parliament Building.
2014: Urban Mill facilitated workshops for the staff
and delegates of the Academic Engineers and
Architects in Finland TEK (70.000+ members) to
develop the digital strategy for the organization.
Urban Mill gathered experts and entrepreneurs and
facilitated three Databusiness Espoo / IoT West
Metro Zone Open Data workshops at Urban Mill in
the fall of 2015.
13

CLiC!
Examples of strategic expert forums assembled and facilitated by Urban
Mill
Innovation ecosystems as drivers of research–
industry cooperation 2016-2017: Urban Mill acted as
a co-producer in this Prime Minister's Office’s
assignment (part of the implementation of the
Government Plan for Analysis, Assessment and
Research for 2016). Urban Mill assembled the
project’s expert pool, facilitated co-operation with it
and organized a national kick-off workshop. In
addition Urban Mill acted as a co-producer of
regional innovation ecosystem workshops and
facilitated them in Espoo, Helsinki, Vaasa and Oulu.
Link to the report: https://bit.ly/2q4dFKm
Urban Mill has hosted a number of expert
forums for the development of the innovation
ecosystem of Otaniemi-Keilaniemi-Tapiola, the
heart of Espoo Innovation Garden, such as
seminars and research workshops for the
Energizing Urban Ecosystems research project
2013-2016. The metaphor and the working
philosophy of Espoo Innovation Garden was
emerged and co-created in these workshops.
Orchestrating Regional Innovation Systems –
Espoo Innovation Garden:
https://urbanmillblog.files.wordpress.com/2015/
05/eka_updated_lowres.pdf
Growth factors and bottlenecks for business
start-ups 2015-2016: Urban Mill acted as a co-
producer in this Prime Minister's Office’s
assignment (part of the implementation of the
Government Plan for Analysis, Assessment and
Research for 2015). Urban Mill assembled the
project’s expert pool, facilitated co-operation
with it and organized the Otaniemi
Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Workshop, which
brought together key actors from Otaniemi area
and high level experts of the scene.
Link to the report: https://bit.ly/2GxM8qM
14

CLiC!
Examples of pilot experiments co-created with Urban Mill
Experimenting the Lunch Talk
concept with Pohjois-Tapiola high
school (local School-as-a-Service
school) in October 2017.
Autumn 2017: Samocat Sharing's kick
scooter service pilot in Otaniemi in
collaboration with ACRE, Espoo and
Urban Mill (home base in Finland for
the startup and the pilot).
Espoo Day events 2014: testing mobile
service offered to the citizens
including a network of QR / NFC tags
distributed across the physical urban
environment.
Digital theme route prototype for the
Helsinki-Uusimaa Regional Council:
finding Finland100 anniversary event
details from Google Maps and from
physical event locations using QR codes.
.
Experimenting Mini-pdp course with
Aalto Design Factory and Startup
Sauna coaches for nearby Lauttasaari
high school students 2013.
Urban Mill hosted 70 Entrepreneurship
students from Mondragon Team
Academy (San Sebastian and Madrid)
in Otaniemi for six weeks in the
beginning of 2018.
Startup Garden entrepreneurial
summer course in Urban Mill for
South Korean students in 2015, 2016
and 2017.
Pre-school children participating in
urban farming initiative at Urban Mill
in the spring of 2015.
15

CLiC!
Examples of emerging ecosystems accelerated by Urban Mill
Gathering creative knowledge and cultural
workers and their organizations and linking their
work with volunteers and hobbyist has begun in
Creative Ring Espoo's preparatory process.
Urban Mill has for more than five years built
networks from Otaniemi with hundreds of
companies, public organizations, research and
educational institutions, projects, international
networks, professional and local associations.
Urban Mill mapped, contacted and exported to a
digital map the co-working spaces and
accelerators of the Helsinki-Uusimaa region
(UUSAIKA project 2015-2017).
Urban Mill has supported the collaboration at
Otaniemi Innovation Alley formed by Urban Mill,
Aalto Design Factory and Startup Sauna.
Supporting and accelerating co-operation
between entrepreneurship and business in
Otaniemi.
Urban Mill was home base for the Energizing Urban
Ecosystems (EUE) research programme ecosystem
throughout the programme 2012-2016.
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CLiC!
Examples of digital tools and platforms, part of the holistic digital
architecture experimented and used by Urban Mill
Digital co-working environment:
REAL collaboration platform, Humap
Software Oy
Smart tags and mobile services,
Bonwal Oy
Large touch screens and Android
platform for content applications for
global distribution, Kuori Oy
Machine vision for tracking and
profiling people flows, Delicode Oy
Digital service platform for company
information, Datascouts
Future foresight tool, Futures
Platform
Digital content and display solutions,
3D-Cave technology, Satavision Oy and
Aalto Built Environment Lab (ABE)
Mobile apps for Events support and
global service, mFabrik Oy
17

CLiC!
Example of an innovation programme produced by Urban Mill:
UUSAIKA – Regional smart specialisation initiative for Citizen City
18
UUSAIKA project was implementing a part of the Helsinki-Uusimaa Region’s RIS3 strategy (Research and Innovation Strategy for Smart
Specialisation) from October 2015 to march 2017. The project was financed by Helsinki-Uusimaa Regional Council, the City of Espoo and
Järvelin Design Ltd. The project was produced and orchestrated by Urban Mill.
UUSAIKA project applied and tailored the Urban Mill model for the Helsinki-Uusimaa Region in order to activate and connect the innovation
actors and activities of the whole region focusing on the RIS3 spearhead theme Welfare City (2018 Citizen City).
During 18 months UUSAIKA project contributed to 200 thematic events which brought together 12,000 participants from 1,000 organisations
and which provided communal activities, inclusive for all people from children to seniors and from public servants to entrepreneurs. The
project mapped and visited a network of 80 co-working spaces from the Helsinki Metropolitan Area and supported the work of over 50 startup
or development teams. The Co-working spaces were openly published on the Google map and the teams promoted through Urban Mill’s social
and digital channels.

CLiC!
CLiC! - Creative Life in a City! initiative scales the collaboration
model to the Helsinki metropolitan area
19
CLiC!
CLiC!
Myllypuro
CLiC!
Myyrmäki
CLiC!
Leppävaara
CLiC!
Aviapolis
CLiC!
Helsinki Downtown
CLiC!
Pasila
• Based on 5 years preparatory actions and
experiments the CLiC! project further
develops an Region-as-a-Service
engagement and collaboration model for
the heart of the Espoo Innovation Garden
(Otaniemi-Keilaniemi-Tapiola area).
• The innovative model and its practices are
opened and disseminated through an
inclusive approach, enabled by digital
means, to other knowledge intensive urban
centers of Helsinki metropolitan area and
later to the whole Uusimaa region.
• International cooperation between
knowledge-intensive urban centers, cities
and regions is central to the project.
Otaniemi-Keilaniemi

CLiC!
Think Local, Act Global!
A great opportunity for connecting local
actors within a global world:
What’s the FinTec’s glocal role in this
process?

Urban Mill – Urban Transformation and Innovation Hub
www.urbanmill.org
Kari
Mikkelä
&
Lars
Miikki,
Urban
Mill,
14.3.2017
version
0.9
EN
Scientific Research (3)
Regional and Interregional Collaboration (1)
People and Communities of the World (8)
Urban Mill Facilitation Processes:
Engagement, Curation, Uplifting, Orchestration
Innovation & Experimentation (5)
Biz Devel. and Startups (6)
Learning and Education (4)
Enabling Environment (2)
URBAN MILL 2013-16
Ecosystem
Community
Platform
85.000 Visits
2.300 Events
1.000 Pioneers
500 Organizations
200 Protos/demos
50+ SMEs / Startups
IT
Middle
photo:
Joni
Viitanen,
City
of
Espoo
KIGALI
Private and Public Services (7)
MIDE
400+
Private & Public &
Industry
Organisations

CLiC!
Response to the challenges: create and
leverage Local Sticky Knowledge!
“Creep into the Mind”
• Movements/ quality in Japan, environment in Germany
• Cultural assumptions (Fashion, Music, Arts)
• R&D approach
“See through the Eyes”
• Vision statements
• Management processes
• Customer Service Manuals
• Consumer Behavior Reports
“Jump into the Shoes”
• Practices and skills
• Simple procedural routines
“Take a Picture”
• Technical blueprints
• Patents
Explicit Knowledge
Endemic Knowledge
Simple
“See & Study”
Experiential Knowledge
“Experience & Practice”
“Study and Live”
Existential Knowledge
“Feel and Live”
Complex
Source: Yves Doz, INSEAD, 2003

Smart Networked Co-creation Hubs configure
Distributed Creative Knowledge Work
Espoo Innovation
Garden
Sustainable
solutions
Challenges
Capabilities
Knowledge
Business
models
People
Networked Smart
Working Methods
& Space
Co-learning
Co-design
Co-effectuation
Physical &
Digital
Environment
Social &
Cultural
Ecosystems
Energizing Urban Ecosystems Research Program 2012-2016 Lars Miikki & Kari Mikkelä, Järvelin Design Oy 21.8.2012 / 7.3.2017
A Smart Networked Co-Working Space supporting Creative Knowledge Work
WORLD
Impact Driven!
Transforming Challenges
to Sustainable Solutions
Co-creating new Business
models with talented people
Developing new capabilities
from existing global knowledge

CLiC!
What Creates local ‘Rootedness’ in a Global
context?
1. The Presence of Complex ‘Sticky’ Knowledge Locally
- Collective, tacit, interactive, complex ‘knowing’
2. Strong Linkages with Co-Located Players/Partners
interacting to create and exploit complex knowledge
- Customers
- Suppliers
- Alliance Partners
- Knowledge Creation Centers
- Competitors
Source: Yves Doz, INSEAD, 2003

Framework for Open Innovation at Urban Mill
Adopted from
CatLabs Catalunya

Open & Smart Ecosystem Platform Service
Platform
Ecosystem
Community

CLiC!
From pipeline thinking
to platform thinking
Source Kakko & Mikkelä: Platform thinking within the third generation
science park concept emerging cases from Finland and the Netherlands

Serendipity & Innovation orchestration
elements and tools
Platform
Community
Ecosystem

CLiC!
• PPP partnership with City of Espoo including school activities
• Innovation camps for public servants and schools of City of Espoo
• Two School-as-a-service (SaaS) design camps with Royal College of Arts, UK
• Information and Training sessions for teachers and students of SaaS implementation
• Opening up local Ecosystems, Platforms and Networks for new working contexts
• Open events presenting SaaS concept and school experiences
• Initiatives for TET innovation with OPOs (working life liaison facilitators of the schools)
• Design courses and projects with Aalto University for students
• TET work possibilities and projects for students
• School parties and other social events for teachers and/or pupils
• Entrepreneurial Lunch Talk concept for students
• Exhibition booths for students for presenting their entrepreneurial projects and services
• Building global impact by opening up project possibilities for students through Start North co-initiation
• Systemic Global Innovation Ecosystem Service development with City& Schools and other actors
Example: Urban Mill support activities for Schools!
Using the opportunity for connecting schools with
local actors and global world:

CLiC!
From project management to Serendipity
management
Source: Ilkka Kakko, Jari Kaivo-oja, Kari Mikkelä: “How to Support and Develop
the Innovation-oriented Entrepreneurship in Turbulent VUCA conditions?”

CLiC!
Space as a Service: Transforming the Aalto University Campus into a
unique collaboration hub by welcoming partners to thematic areas
Networking for a better future: Universities, cities,
companies and regions
University campus development supports
multidisciplinary, thematic collaboration and open
innovation in Helsinki Metropolitan region.
1. Espoo Innovation garden (Keilaniemi – Otaniemi
symbiosis)
2. Multidisciplinary Otaniemi
3. Design ecosystem
4. Business division with Helsinki centre
Regionally the University is a part of a larger
innovation ecosystem with our partners around
Laajalahti Bay, including the centre of Helsinki, Espoo
Innovation Garden, business parks and for example
Meilahti Health Capital initiative.
Different parts of this ecosystem have varying
emphasis on thematic branches of research and
business.
We will build a vibrant campus centre, which offers
attractive opportunities for partnering, collaboration
and sharing ideas and experiences.
PRELIMINARY SKETCH – NOT
DECIDED – UNDER PROVISION –
ARTISTIC VISION OF POSSIBILITIES
Antti Ahlava, Vice President, Campus Development, Aalto University

CLiC!
Lab for Learners | Jarmo Suominen 2014
Otaniemi Shared Use resources
18.2.2021 32

CLiC!
Case by Prof. Jarmo Suominen
SCHOOL AS A SERVICE
Jarmo Suominen / City as a Service 2018
OTANIEMI, ESPOO
33

CLiC!
Jarmo Suominen / City as a Service 2018 34

CLiC!
EDUCATION
PROGRAMS
HOME
WORK
SHOPS
HEALTH
PERSONAL
ACTIVITIES
SOCIAL
EVENTS
LESSONS
A PLACE
CALLED SCHOOL
DIGITAL ENVIRONMENT

CLiC!
Drivers
Internal efficiency
Control of resources
Independent Management
STAND ALONE SOLUTION
“School as a Product”
PRODUCT INNOVATION
Internal efficiency
Control of resources
Independent Management
Value embedded to the product

CLiC!
Service System
Service platform
SYNERGETIC SOLUTION
“School as a Service”
SERVICE INNOVATION
Optimized Synergy
Use of resources
Resource operator
Value in use
Drivers
Resource efficiency
Use of resources
Flexibility
Adaptability

External resources: Music, arts and sports
Physics, chemistry and mathematics are using
mainly external resources. Career services are
mainly outside the Laine building. Cafeterias
and lunch restaurant are 100% external
resources.
Source: ACRE / Haukilahti School
SCHOOL AS A SERVICE
LEARNING TOGETHER
IN AALTO CAMPUS

Reconfiguration of Value-creating Systems:
From Production through Relationships to
Organisation of value creation competences!
Source: Richard Normann: Reframing Business:
When the Map Changes the Landscape

CLiC!
A vision: Co-create locally meaningful and
globally connected innovation hubs supporting
local entrepreneurship?
1. Ask how could local knowledge sources complement/support
entrepreneurial efforts?
2. Ask how locally available knowledge can be complemented with global
knowledge sources?
3. Ask how do local entrepreneurs globally exploit and leverage the
capabilities they co-create enabled by the hubs?
Can local innovation and co-creation hubs open an
opportunity for co-evolution between local entrepreneurial
ventures and global knowledge networks?

CLiC!
M.Sc. Kari Mikkelä, Executive Producer
9 December 2019
Local Context:
Smart Co-creation in
Espoo Innovation Garden (EIG)
CLiC!

CLiC!
Lessons Learned: We Cannot Reach our Target by Incremental Small Steps
Focus Must Be on Learning Together and Co-Creating the Ba and
This Is Showed by the Metaphor of Gardening
EIG showcases how to co-create “a Joint Regional Innovation Ecosystem”
Inventing the future: Working and learning together
Fruits of global pioneering
to the use of all
Today
The picture is based on the results of the Aalto Camp for Societal Innovation 2011: Markku Markkula
Gardening to enable uniqueness
The upside-down tree metaphor originates 1992 by Leif Edvinsson

CLiC!
The whole EIG area is already by now the European pioneer as a
Place-Based Innovation Ecosystems (from TH via QH to RIE)
There are a huge number of European projects and other activities
speeding up the implementation of the so-called SMART CITY
concept. At the core of these seems to be the fast developments of
regional and local innovation ecosystems.
The future smart cities function as mutually complementary
ecosystems, where different actor groups and actors collaborate to
discover the optimal balance in:
1. urban economic activities,
2. comfortable, invigorating and human-scale
living environments,
3. synergistic innovation processes by several
actor groups (including strong citizen
involvement) for continuous renewal.
This means that future urban ecosystems can be seen in a much
broader context than before: as orchestrated platforms for testing
emerging concepts and technological solutions for a sustainable
tomorrow.
Furthermore, Europe needs to investigate how to turn the
accumulating know-how into competitive and successful business
models, processes and other operations.
Markku Markkula, CoR
JRC publication EUR 28545
JRC has made this “Place-Based
Innovation Ecosystems” study focusing
on the EIG experience. This is the 1st of
this kind as a model for the others.

CLiC!
The Helsinki-Uusimaa Region (also called
Helsinki Region or Uusimaa Region), is at the
heart of northern Europe. It is situated on the
south coast of Finland, and it is home to around
1.6 million inhabitants, which is 30 percent of
the country’s total population.
ESPOO INNOVATION GARDEN BEARS
FRUIT FOR THE ENTIRE METROPOLITAN
AREA AND ALL OF FINLAND
Espoo Innovation Garden refers to innovative
ways of working and a culture of collaboration
and co-creation; it's a communal way of thinking
and doing things in the City of Espoo.
The heart of Espoo Innovation Garden is at the
Keilaniemi-Otaniemi-Tapiola area, the biggest
innovation hub in the Northern Europe. It is home
for e.g. Aalto University and VTT Technical
Research Centre of Finland. People of 100
different nationalities working in the area make
it a creative community of strong international
character.
Espoo Innovation Garden in the Heart of Helsinki Region!

CLiC!
Espoo
Innovation
Garden
EIG
HELSINKI
VANTAA
ESPOO
Espoo is
the 2nd largest
city in Finland,
the western
part of the
Helsinki
Metropolitan
Area

Markku Markkula
Espoo Story with the Focus
the Most Sustainable city in Europe
The Espoo Story is the strategy of the city. It is
also implemented through cross-
administrative development programmes to
react to the central challenges of Espoo. These
development programmes penetrate all
sectors of the city organization.
The cross-administrative development
programmes for the council term 2017-2021
are:
• Participatory Espoo
• Inspiring, dynamic Espoo
• Sustainable Espoo
• Healthy Espoo

CLiC!
Main Focus of the Espoo strategy:
Sustainable Development
1. Sustainable Espoo Target Benefit 1:
We will build and develop Espoo using smart solutions
The transport of Espoo residents will become more streamlined
and diversified
Emission-free energy production and smart energy solutions
Espoo residents will act responsibly
The nature benefits and recreational opportunities of the local
environment will increase
Each of these includes several priority action points (with detailed
activity plans): TOTAL 18 ACTIONS. A 24 page sustainable Espoo plan
approved by the Espoo City Board on 12.2.2018.

CLiC!
Implementing Smart Specialisation Strategy in Helsinki-Uusimaa Region
Smart specialisation is an innovative approach that aims to boost growth and jobs in Europe, by enabling each region to identify and develop
its own competitive advantages. Through its partnership and bottom-up approach, smart specialisation brings together local authorities,
academia, business spheres and the civil society, working for the implementation of long-term growth strategies supported by EU funds.
Smart specialisation is an increasingly influencial concept and an essential part of the EU Structural Funds in the European Commission, the
European regions and the EU Member States.
The smart specialisation strategy for Helsinki-Uusimaa has been approved by the Regional Board in 2014 and updated by the board in 2017.
Helsinki Smart Region is an ongoing process facilitated by Helsinki-Uusimaa Regional Council specialising in technology, wellbeing, cleantech
and digitalisation. Different players from the whole Helsinki region - business, cities, public sector, research, education centres, start-ups and
the citizen - create smart innovations and tests together. The aim is to double the effects of the regional innovative potential and to create
international partnerships and establish different forms of EU cooperation. Helsinkismart.fi website shows the best examples from the region
and links new partners from all over Europe. Projects which implement the smart specialization are regularly funded. -> www.helsinkismart.fi
First ever smart
specialisation innovation
fair covering all strategic
spearheads in Helsinki-
Uusimaa region was
arranged in 2016 in Urban
Mill by UUSAIKA-project,
Urban Mill, the City of
Espoo and Helsinki-
Uusimaa Regional Council.

CLiC!
Regional Smart Specialisation Case:
UUSAIKA – Co-creation Initiative for Citizen City
UUSAIKA project was implementing a part of the Helsinki-Uusimaa Region’s RIS3 strategy (Research and Innovation Strategy for Smart
Specialisation) from October 2015 to march 2017. The project was financed by Helsinki-Uusimaa Regional Council, the City of Espoo and
Järvelin Design Ltd. The project was produced and orchestrated by Urban Mill.
UUSAIKA project applied and tailored the Urban Mill model for the Helsinki-Uusimaa Region in order to activate and connect the innovation
actors and activities of the whole region focusing on the RIS3 spearhead theme Welfare City (2018 Citizen City).
During 18 months UUSAIKA project contributed to 200 thematic events which brought together 12,000 participants from 1,000 organisations
and which provided communal activities, inclusive for all people from children to seniors and from public servants to entrepreneurs. The
project mapped and visited a network of 80 co-working spaces from the Helsinki Metropolitan Area and supported the work of over 50 startup
or development teams. The Co-working spaces were openly published on the Google map and the teams promoted through Urban Mill’s social
and digital channels.

CLiC!
6Aika – Open and Smart Services
The Cooperation Strategy of the Six Cities
Flagship of Finnish urban development; Based on the joint ambitions and challenges of the six biggest cities of Finland: Helsinki, Espoo,
Vantaa, Tampere, Turku and Oulu; Carried out as part of Finland’s structural fund programme for sustainable growth and jobs 2014-2020;
Utilizes both ERDF and ESF funding. See https://6aika.fi/in-english/
How and why we work together:
• Cities as experimentation environments for new products and services to create world-class reference sites
• Collaboration to create economies of scale
• Agile co-operation during and after the Six City Strategy to create and embed an operating model for joint urban development on different
levels of city administration.
Three focus areas
• open innovation platforms
• open data and interfaces
• open participation and customership
We create
• new know-how,
• new business
• new jobs
by utilizing
• openness,
• digitalization
• partnerships

CLiC!
Modernizing Triple Helix: Aalto & Espoo Innovation Garden –
A Successful Example of Place Based Innovation Ecosystem
• Concentration of highly skilled human capital and
research infrastructure
• Vision, political commitment and collaborative culture of
Helsinki-Uusimaa Regional Council and Espoo City
• Emergence of a strong orchestrating actor: Aalto
University, with its
• Local culture of innovation and entrepreneurship
• Focus on the potential and capability of people
• Financial and policy support from central government
• Successful involvement of entrepreneurs
EU Joint Research Centre Policy Report: Place-Based Innovation
Ecosystems: Espoo Innovation Garden and Aalto University
(Finland), EUR – Scientific and Technical Research Report, 2017.
-> http://bit.ly/2r2yJit

CLiC!
Startup Growth Path in Espoo Innovation Garden

CLiC!
Urban Mill – Co-working and Co-creation Platform
for Urban Innovations
A community: We open the door for
passionate pioneering developers
and early adopters of innovations to
co-learn, co-design and co-deploy.
A platform: Our physical and digital
spaces are ideal for promoting,
testing, developing and exhibiting
new solutions which support urban
life.
An ecosystem node: We are
connected to a spectrum of global
networks through our community
members and partners. Thus we are
able to bring our complementary
thematic expertise to several
ecosystems.
A global hub: We engage and bring
together actors from around the
world to co-create solutions to
wicked urban challenges and share
our learnings openly to our partner
and member networks.

CLiC!
Urban Wheel ™ – Ecosystem Acceleration Process Elements
“Life is lived
forwards,
but understood
backwards.”
”If you want to
go fast, go
alone;
if you want to go
far, go with
others.”

CLiC!
Case: West Metro Growth Corridor as Platform for Citizen Engagement /
Aalto Camp for Societal Innovation ACSI / City of Espoo
See Innovation Camp Methodology Handbook (based on ACSI) on the EU Commission’s Smart Specialisation Platform: http://bit.ly/2GlWB90

CLiC!
Case: Iso Omena Service Centre / City of Espoo
Your Innovation Platform
The Iso Omena Service Centre, located in one of the biggest shopping centres in Finland, is a new kind of service concept for public services
grouping together multiple city service units, such as a library, a health centre and youth services. The Service Centre is strategically located
next to commercial services and excellent transport connections to make it easier for residents to use public services.
The Service Centre also operates as an open innovation platform, bringing citizens, companies and communities together to develop open,
smart and customer-oriented services and products together with city service units.
There are for available for all stakeholders including companies to develop and showcase products and services: Pop-Up Spaces; Paja Maker
Spaces; Agile pilots for co-creation which enables companies to offer and test solutions tailored to the Service Centre’s development needs.
www.espoo.fi/en-US/Housing_and_environment/City_centres/MatinkylaOlari/Iso_Omena_Service_Centre

CLiC!
Case: School as a Service (SaaS) / City of Espoo & Aalto University
Systemic Solution - Versatile Service Supporting Learning
Jarmo Suominen / SCHOOL as a Service 2016
The operating model was awarded in the international Quality Innovation Award competition. SaaS is the award winner in the category of education sector 2016. With
the SaaS innovative service architecture Espoo and Aalto University have developed tools for further development, methods to measure the impact and concept for
future implementations. The City of Espoo and Aalto University are now executing next phases, with the second and third SaaS projects, and potentially utilizing City as a
Service concept to other public services. The SaaS operating model will also be applied in a similar project to be started by Tongji University in Shanghai, China.
www.espoo.fi/en-US/Childcare_and_education/Espoo_innovation_School_as_a_Service_gai(113490); https://aaltocre.fi/en/school-as-a-service-building-a-new-learning-
environment/
The SaaS experiment started in 2015 when
Haukilahti Upper Secondary School was
chosen to be relocated on decentralized
premises on the Aalto University campus in
Otaniemi, Espoo. In 2017 Pohjois-Tapiola
Upper Secondary School moved to the
campus and became the second School
applying the concept.

CLiC!
Case: Make with Espoo! (KYKY Model / City of Espoo)
Accelerated Co-creation by Schools and Companies
The KYKY-operating model, KYKY Co-Creation with Schools and Companies, began in 2016. Through the KYKY model, the school community
develops products and services to support learning and growth with companies and communities.
The aims is to develop both new learning environments and business opportunities. The KYKY operating model guarantees an easy and safe
way to co-create with different actors systematically and efficiently, providing the participating companies a real-life development environment
and understanding of the daily life of schools, teachers and pupils.
In 2017, over 30 companies, more than a half of Espoo schools as well as some early childhood education units have already taken part in KYKY.
”Co-created with the City of Espoo Schools label” has already launched companies (such as Mightifier) to international markets in Asia and the
US. The operating model is not only being scaled up to other Espoo services, but also to other cities in Finland, such as Oulu and Turku.
• KYKY is an operating model for promoting the digitalisation of
schools.
• New products and services are created in real-life environments.
• KYKY provides guidelines for co-creation by schools and
companies in accordance with the new Finnish National
Curriculum.
• The co-operation is based on a development need recognised by
the school.
• For more information: https://citybusiness.fi/en/alustat/espoon-
koulut-living-lab-2/

CLiC!
Case: Robot Buses Pilot Project – SOHJOA-6Aika / Metropolia
University of Applied Sciences / Helsinki, Espoo and Tampere
Two robot buses have been on trial in Helsinki, Espoo and Tampere. The unique experiment aims to solve the challenges of
urban mobility
For companies, the robot buses offer a platform to develop and test their solutions in practice
Finalist in the European Commission's Regiostar 2017 awards
Latest step started in autumn 2017: Interreg BSR Baltic SOHJOA
More information: sohjoa.fi/sohjoa-in-english
SOHJOA-6Aika is part of a Finnish cities’ collaborative 6Aika -
project family funded by European Structural Fund. Main partners
are Aalto University, Forum Virium Helsinki, Finnish Geographical
Institute and Tampere University of Technology.
Operation of automated vehicles in Finnish environment is tested
as part of the NordicWay - project funded by Finnish Transport
Safety Agency Trafi and Finnish Transport Agency.
NordicWay project tackles the challenges of new traffic services
and road transport automation.

The ongoing construction works in Keilaniemi-Otaniemi-Tapiola by
SRV are around 200 000 sqm and by other companies around 100
000 sqm. In addition more than 200 000 sqm are on planning
phase. Total additional can be at least 1 million sqm.

62
VÄRE Aalto
University
Total area 33 000 sqm
Construction started in
February 2016 and was
completed 2018.
Business premises for
grocery shops, special
stores, and restaurants will
be built in the Metro
centre. An ambitious
energy class A will be
pursued by utilising both
geothermal and solar
power.
University’s spaces and
business premises will be
completed by April-June.
Second phase to be
completed by turn of the

63
Significant, international
headquarters located in
Keilaniemi, right next to the Aalto
University. Housing has been
planned close by, next to work
places.
Project includes covering of Ring
Road I with a roof as well as
development and construction of
4 residential tower blocks.
Deck area between Otsolahti ja
Keilaniemi to be freed for building
a park along with pedestrian and
bicycle ways
Covering of Ring I started in 2017
and construction of first tower
block to be started in 2019.
STATUS
IDEA
DEVELOPMENT
LEGAL CITY
PLAN
BUILDING
PERMIT
CONSTRUCTION
COMPLETE
Keilaniemi
Hybrid project, Espoo
4 residence
towers new
total 72
000 sqm
High Tech Center
Keilaniemi
Office building
complex located in
Keilaniemi, Espoo,

64
Tapiola
centre
Hybrid project, Espoo
Tapiola centre will be
renewed: out of this the SRV
1st construction phase is
11,600 sqm, 127
Apartments were completed in 2017
28,000 sqm
Shopping centre Ainoa was completed in
2017
SRV 2nd construction phase:
16600 sqm, about 195
Apartments will be completed 4/2018
34900 sqm
Shopping centre and areas to be built for
the city of Espoo will be completed
1/2017-10/2019 & 6/2014-12/2018

CLiC!
Future option?: Renewing the Finnish Railway System with the Tallinn
Tunnel. Keilaniemi Will Have Fast Direct Connection to the Helsinki
Airport. But Also to All Major Cities: Turku, Tampere, St Petersburg,
Tallinn.

CLiC!
#FinEstBayArea
Tallinn seminar 7.2.2018, see videos

CLiC!
67
URBAN MILL
Co-working and Co-creation Platform Prototype for Urban Innovations – Entrepreneurial
Thought in Action!
Your access to Espoo Innovation
Garden’s people and services!
Additional information
www.urbanmill.org/stories
Urban Mill on Facebook
www.facebook.com/UrbanMill
Subscribe to our newsletter!
http://bit.ly/2rhtnkC
Contact
Ecosystems & RDI Services Community and Space Services
Kari Mikkelä, Executive Producer Lars Miikki, Landing Location Manager
kari.mikkela@urbanmill.fi lars.miikki@urbanmill.fi
+358 50 5004 048 +358 40 5036 630
Betonimiehenkuja 3 E, 02150 Espoo FINLAND
www.urbanmill.org
Thank You!

Think local, act global! CLiC+ framework of thematic entrepreneurial development and ecosystems

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