Sustainability

Our sustainability priorities

On the basis of a materiality analysis, we selected three key ESG themes that are important to us with regard to our stakeholders and employees.

These are effective action; happy, healthy and skilled employees; and trusted partnerships. We also set 2030 targets for each theme

• Effective action (aka the Foundation’s handprint) encompasses all of our concrete efforts to save the Baltic Sea and its heritage. Our goal is to significantly reduce the phosphorus load in the Baltic Sea and to strengthen people’s “maritime citizenship”, that is, their willingness to donate money and take other action to save the Baltic Sea.
  
  We also identified which UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) our operations are promoting, and calculated the carbon footprint of our own operations.
  
  We measure the effectiveness of our action using metrics based on our strategy. The key outcomes of our work are presented in the sections covering the John Nurminen Foundation’s projects and activities. We also measure emissions from our own operations, which we calculated for the first time in 2025
• Healthy and skilled employees are our most important asset, and we want to both maintain and enhance their expertise. We focus on developing skills, increasing wellbeing, and enhancing the employee experience.
  
  Our goal is to encourage our employees to act in a way that both maintains and improves their health, wellbeing and motivation, so that our overall score for motivation remains above 4.3 (on a scale of 1–5), perception of leadership remains above 4.2, and encouragement for professional development remains above 4.1.
  
  We measure our employees’ wellbeing at work and job satisfaction twice a year with the aid of anonymous surveys. Every second year, we also survey our stakeholders to gauge their views on our leadership and employer image. The target for these metrics is to remain above 3.7 (on a scale of 1–5). Results relating to employee wellbeing are presented in the “Personnel” section.
• Trusted partnerships are based on open communication, minimising risks and further developing the partnership. We are aiming for our stakeholders’ perception of our transparency and sustainability to be above 4.3 (on a scale of 1–5) and for our overall reputation to be above 3.8. We also communicate openly about how we use donations, and our goal is to allocate at least 70 per cent of donated funds to our ordinary activities. We also aim for 90 per cent of our partners to accept our Code of Conduct.
  
  The metrics for these targets are based on surveys that measure reputation and willingness to donate (Hyväntekeväisyystutkimus and Reputation&Trust), our financial statements, and the number of partners who have adopted our partnership principles.
  
  In 2025, we updated our partnership principles and revised the sustainability section of our website. We included sustainability risks in our risk assessment, and provided our management with training in crisis communications.

Emissions from our own operations

As part of our sustainability programme, we also calculated the emissions generated by our own operations in 2025. The calculations took into account all relevant Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions as per the GHG Protocol. They were automated calculations based on accounting data, so the results are only approximate and have always been rounded up.

According to our calculations, the carbon footprint of our operations was 808 tons of CO2e, of which Scope 1 emissions accounted for 0 per cent, Scope 2 emissions for 7 per cent, and Scope 3 emissions for 93 per cent. We used consumption-based emission factors from the Exiobase 3.4 database as the basis for our calculations. Our relatively large carbon footprint is due to the nature of our work. We are actively involved in protecting the Baltic Sea, which includes infrastructure construction, the transport of a variety of materials, and publishing activities.

• Scope 1 emissions: 9.5 tCO2e
  
  Direct emissions from our own operations consist of travel expenses related to our project work. These emissions are generated in the process of advancing the first goal of our sustainability programme: effective action. We aim to reduce emissions by, for example, encouraging the use of low-emission modes of transport.
• Scope 2 emissions: 38 tCO2e
  
  The indirect emissions from our own operations are related to our leased office premises. These emissions include electricity and heating. Most of our Scope 2 emissions are associated with the premises that we rent out in our office building, as we are a minority shareholder in the Huolintatalo property.
• Scope 3 emissions: 760 tCO2e
  
  The indirect emissions resulting from our operations are generated in the process of carrying out our work. These emissions mainly arise from transport services associated with our projects (the transport of gypsum and manure, and the transport and harvesting of reeds), as well as restoration activities in peatlands and forests. Other emissions are generated by the services we use, the goods we purchase, and the costs associated with managing our collections. The “Purchased goods and services” category accounts for approximately 70 per cent of our total emissions. To reduce emissions, we encourage all of our partners to employ sustainable practices with regard to the Baltic Sea and to reduce emissions in their own operations. To support this, we will be revising our procurement guidelines next year and ensuring that our partners commit to our partnership principles.

Our work and the UN SDGs

We are committed to promoting and advancing five of the Sustainable Development Goals defined by the United Nations:

• 6 Clean water and sanitation
  
  We improve water quality by reducing pollution and minimising emissions of hazardous chemicals. We protect and restore water-related ecosystems, such as wetlands and peatlands. Some of our projects have also involved wastewater treatment.
• 12 Responsible consumption and production
  
  We encourage the adoption of sustainable practices and reporting on them. We ensure a widespread awareness of sustainable development and nature-friendly lifestyles.
• 13 Climate action
  
  Our goal is to integrate climate change action into Finnish national policy, strategies and planning. We increase knowledge about slowing down and adapting to climate change, and mitigating its impacts.
• 14 Life below water
  
  We prevent and reduce marine pollution by minimising the amount of land-based waste and nutrients that end up in seas and oceans. We protect marine and coastal ecosystems in many ways, such as strengthening their resilience and undertaking restoration efforts to safeguard healthy and productive marine areas.
• 15 Life on land
  
  By 2030, we are aiming to protect and restore terrestrial and inland freshwater ecosystems and the ecoservices they provide, and particularly forests and wetlands. We promote the adoption of sustainable management practices for all types of forest.

In addition to these UN Sustainable Development Goals, we are strongly committed to promoting cultural sustainability at both individual and societal level by strengthening people’s relationship with the sea and preserving cultural heritage.