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Media representations of the future are a key component of climate change and energy policies. This study integrates media analysis with futures studies and focuses on the media framings and representations of futures related to key national-level energy and climate strategy documents. It utilizes qualitative content analysis of online news articles of Finland's national public broadcasting company committed to high-quality journalism. The results show that a more multifaceted coverage of climate action increased during the study period of 2015–2020, especially in terms of frames and future scenario archetypes, and indicate gradually widening awareness of climate risks. However, climate change has been framed as an isolated policy area, and climate change mitigation and adaptation remain framed as subordinate to economic policy targets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on long-term media coverage of environmental issues has focused predominantly on English-speaking industrialized countries and on single isolated topics. This article presents a comparative analysis of the Finnish newspaper coverage of climate change and eutrophication from 1990-2014. The coverage of eutrophication showed an annual cycle with summertime peaks strongly influenced by local conditions and domestic news sources. The coverage of climate change had three distinctive peaks, influenced by several factors including international climate policy negotiations, domestic energy debates, and mild and snowless winter weather. The prospects for building public awareness of environmental issues through media representations are discussed.

Communicating about climate change is challenging not only because of the multidisciplinary and complex nature of the issue itself and multiple policy options related to mitigation and adaptation, but also because of the plenitude of potential communication methods coupled with limited resources for communication. This article explores climate change communication based on experiences from different campaigns by a national level research institution. Lessons learned are discussed in a context of increasing projectification and budget austerity. Possible solutions for enhanced communication include simultaneous use of multiple communication channels, the creation of novel partnerships, focusing on solutions, and the use of peer communication.

In 2015, all 193 member states of the United Nations (UN) agreed on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The special section contains the following articles: The special section opens with a conceptual article (Eckert et al. [10]) discussing the surprising fact that the risk concept is almost absent in the SDGs, and similarly, most risks assessments are narrowed down to sectoral approaches without references to the SDGs. The agreement comprises 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), specified by 169 individual targets, and a common understanding that these global goals need to be treated as being interconnected and interdependent rather than handled separately or even confined in silos (Dodds et al. [7]; UN [24]). [Extracted from the article]

The urgency of the sustainability transition, as emphasized by science, has not yet been fully translated to large‐scale, inspired and effective societal action. This article focuses on the transformative potential of science‐based information presented through specific sustainability storylines inside larger policy narratives. Sustainability storylines can serve as tools for learning from the past, create representations of the current situation and outline paths toward probable, preferable, or avoidable futures. The focus is on three storylines focusing on bioenergy as a renewable energy solution, green mining providing nonrenewable resources and physically active mobility allowing health and environmental benefits. The empirical focus is on Finland, a forerunner of sustainability policies with a large per capita environmental footprint. The potential of sustainable development goals to simultaneously serve as a globally shared and nationally relevant framework for sustainability storylines is discussed with a rather dismal conclusion but optimistic outlook. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The experiences can give valuable advice for revising NUA indicator metadata descriptions towards more data-driven, policy-relevant and communication-oriented approaches. The NUA presents the internationally agreed goals for urban development as outlined by the 2016 UN HABITAT III conference in Quito (UN, 2016) and introduces a wide set of indicators to assess urban sustainability. UNFEASIBLE METADATA REQUIREMENTS One serious concern is with the metadata descriptions specifying the contents of NUA indicators (UN HABITAT, 2021b). [Extracted from the article]

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) aim to provide humanity with a global roadmap to sustainability. Official SDG indicators have been intensively developed, and they have a prominent and pronounced role as a key monitoring and policy instrument. Furthermore, various complementary or alternative indicator sets have been introduced at the global, regional and national levels. This article focuses on the risks related to the national indicators. The analysis is based on experiences from the preparation processes of sustainable development indicators in Finland and insights from indicator professionals and stakeholders in Finland and Germany. The risks related to overuse, nonuse and misuse of indicators are analyzed from the perspectives of indicator contents, processes of production and communication and external context factors. Opportunities for avoiding different risks and improving the desired societal impacts and influences of indicator usage are discussed. The concept of risk is helpful in terms of empirical diagnosis and for formulating mitigation recommendations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Valtion tutkimuslaitosten perustehtävä on tuottaa ja välittää tutkimuspohjaista tietoa päätöksentekijöille ja muille tiedon hyödyntäjille. Tässä katsauksessa arvioin tutkimus- ja asiantuntijalaitoksen julkaisemien raporttien käyttöä. Katsaus perustuu tietoihin Suomen ympäristökeskuksen raporttien verkkolatauksista ja Google Scholar -viittauksista. Tietoihin liittyy lukuisia epävarmuuksia, mutta ne ovat hyödyllisiä viestinnän vaikuttavuuden yleiskuvan piirtämisessä. Lataus- ja viittausmäärien perusteella monia raportteja käytetään aktiivisesti, mutta toisaalta suuri määrä raporteista jää melko vähälle huomiolle. Viestinnän vaikuttavuutta arvioitaessa on huomioitava tapauskohtaisesti raportin tarkoitus ja kohderyhmän laajuus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Advances in remote sensing have proved to be highly valuable for light pollution research and awareness raising. Maps based on night-time satellite data can be used in communication campaigns aimed at improving awareness among policy makers and the general public of the extent and effects of light pollution and to justify appropriate management actions. However, visually appealing maps are also used in other communication settings. This article reviews different uses of light pollution maps and discusses the societal implications of such uses. Based on examples of light pollution maps in different communication settings not directly related to the light pollution debate, the review proposes that the relatively wide popularity of light pollution maps may strengthen impressions of an artificially illuminated night environment as the normal baseline for human experience. This contributes to the loss of experience of natural darkness, possibly leading to generational amnesia complicating the management of light pollution. Multiple uses of light pollution maps and other visualizations should be taken into account when campaigns and policies aimed at supporting sustainable lighting are planned and implemented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Author(s): Jari Lyytimäki (corresponding author) [1] Alan Bernstein and colleagues recommend a global grand-challenge strategy for prioritizing clean-energy research (Nature 538, 30;10.1038/538030a 2016). In my view, this 'cockpit' approach -- [...]

Various expectations are placed on national‐level sustainability indicators. Ideally, they should serve as efficient tools for transformations, leading societies to sustainable paths by creating a comprehensive, reliable, timely, and easy‐to‐understand picture of the key ecological, socio‐cultural, and economic trends. Most, if not all, indicator initiatives so far have been unable to meet such grandiose expectations. This has evoked criticism of and scepticism towards the indicator approach, but has also motivated improvement of indicator sets and knowledge brokerage processes. This article discusses the role of sustainability indicators in societal transition by examining the experiences gained from the preparation and launch of a sustainable development indicator set specifically aimed at supporting national‐level policymaking in Finland. It is concluded that better recognition of the tensions between attempts to improve the quality of indicators and attempts to enhance their use in policy is key to meeting the expectations placed upon sustainability indicators. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Greening the economy has been widely discussed as a new strategy for simultaneously reducing environmental pressures, promoting economic growth and enhancing social well‐being. Indicators are one tool that can be used to describe the development of green growth. This paper presents and evaluates the process of attempting to build a set of policy‐relevant key indicators of green growth for Finland. The challenges of developing a cross‐scale indicator set integrating different sectors and levels of society are identified and discussed. It is argued that both the experts preparing the indicators and the potential users will benefit from a collaborative process that aims not only to build a shared awareness of the key issues of green growth but also to foster a realistic understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of the indicator approach. Key challenges include data availability, right balance between different indicator selection criteria, systemic understanding of the relationships between indicators, and the variable usage contexts of the indicators. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Integrated assessment and management of water resources for the supply of potable water is increasingly important in light of projected water scarcity in many parts of the world. This article develops frameworks for regional-level waterborne human health risk assessment of chemical and microbiological contamination to aid water management, incorporating economic aspects of health risks. Managed aquifer recharge with surface water from a river in Southern Finland is used as an illustrative case. With a starting point in watershed governance, stakeholder concerns, and value-at-risk concepts, we merge common methods for integrative health risk analysis of contaminants to describe risks and impacts dynamically and broadly. This involves structuring analyses along the risk chain: sources-releases-environmental transport and fate-exposures-health effects-socio-economic impacts-management responses. Risks attributed to contaminants are embedded in other risks, such as contaminants from other sources, and related to benefits from improved water quality. A set of models along this risk chain in the case is presented. Fundamental issues in the assessment are identified, including 1) framing of risks, scenarios, and choices; 2) interaction of models and empirical information; 3) time dimension; 4) distributions of risks and benefits; and 5) uncertainties about risks and controls. We find that all these combine objective and subjective aspects, and involve value judgments and policy choices. We conclude with proposals for overcoming conceptual and functional divides and lock-ins to improve modeling, assessment, and management of complex water supply schemes, especially by reflective solution-oriented interdisciplinary and multi-actor deliberation. Integr Environ Assess Manag 2016;12:160-173. © 2015 SETAC [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Light pollution resulting from artificial lighting is a global environmental change that profoundly alters the nocturnal environment. Various ecological and health effects are caused by the alteration of natural levels of light and disruption of cycles of light and dark. Emissions of artificial light into the night environment have increased rapidly over the last decades and this trend is likely to continue due to the introduction of new cost-efficient light sources, urban sprawl, increasing traffic, population growth, and economic growth. Efficient measures to reduce light pollution are needed. Most measures so far have been based on top-down approaches such as legislation, technical norms and guidance. Based on the results from an online survey in Finland, household-level efforts aimed at reducing light pollution are reviewed and obstacles to action based on bottom-up approach are discussed. The systems intelligence is proposed as a context sensitive approach to light pollution management. Systems intelligence emphasises personal and active involvement in socio-technological systems, characterised by complex cross-scale interactions and feedbacks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Research on long-term media coverage of environmental issues has focused predominantly on English-speaking industrialized countries and on single isolated topics. This article presents a comparative analysis of the Finnish newspaper coverage of climate change and eutrophication from 1990–2014. The coverage of eutrophication showed an annual cycle with summertime peaks strongly influenced by local conditions and domestic news sources. The coverage of climate change had three distinctive peaks, influenced by several factors including international climate policy negotiations, domestic energy debates, and mild and snowless winter weather. The prospects for building public awareness of environmental issues through media representations are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Indicators are considered a key tool in assessing whether societies are progressing towards sustainability. In indicator development, the main emphasis has been on the production of new indicators. Various kinds of sustainable development indicators and indicator sets have been developed to describe and assess key trends at local, national and global level. We argue that it is at least equally important to focus on how, when and by whom indicators are actually used. In addition, the focus should be on what kinds of desirable and undesirable effects are related to the use or non-use of indicators. Here, attention is paid to the negative, unintended effects of sustainability indicators in communication processes. Starting from an earlier typology focusing on health communication, various types of negative unintended effects of sustainable development indicators are identified and discussed. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]