Financing our work
The Foundation funds its activities with donations, grants, and income from rental and investment activities. Some of our projects also receive public funding.
Financing the activities in 2025
The Foundation funds its activities with donations, grants, and income from rental and investment activities. Some of our projects also receive public funding. The Foundation owns about 13 per cent of the shares in Kiinteistö Oy Pasilankatu 2 (aka Huolintatalo) in West Pasila, where the Foundation’s offices are also located. Due to the current state of the real estate market, a write-down of EUR 350,000 has been made on these shares. In order to finance its activities both now and in the future, the Foundation engages in investment activities that are expected to generate a steady annual return. The Foundation has a financial management plan that is updated annually.
According to the Foundation’s income statement, the surplus for the 2025 financial year was EUR 98,988 (EUR 1,648,080 in 2024). The Clean Baltic Sea Fund has now been spent, and the fund was dissolved in 2025.
At the end of 2025, the Foundation’s balance sheet total was EUR 16,459,663 (EUR 16,160,221 in 2024). Capital and reserves totalled EUR 15,451,008 (EUR 15,352,020 in 2024).
Maritime culture, income and expenses
Maritime culture covers activities falling within the scope of our “Humans and the Sea” focus area, the Foundation’s publishing activities, and their respective shares of communications and administrative expenses.
Maritime culture’s income from book sales in 2025 was EUR 48,225 (EUR 25,799 in 2024). Income mainly consists of the sale of books published by the Foundation to its subsidiary, Baltic Sea Services Oy. Although we publish books as part of our mission to share information, we have a subsidiary that handles book sales. The Foundation received EUR 53,373 in donations (EUR 45,017 in 2024) and EUR 26,921 in grants (EUR 22,567 in 2024) targeted at maritime cultural activities.
Maritime culture’s expenses totalled EUR 772,347 (EUR 558,538 in 2024), and included publishing expenses of EUR 58,272 (EUR 52,878 in 2024), EUR 30,503 in expenses related to the Foundation’s collections (EUR 67,414 in 2024), as well as exhibition and production costs, communication expenses, and personnel expenses associated with maritime content production. As our publishing activities primarily focused on publishing new books, the majority of expenses consisted of layout and printing costs. Expenses related to the Foundation’s collections mainly consist of costs associated with the care, maintenance and display of the collections. Two significant acquisitions were made during the year, and the collection’s value in the balance sheet was EUR 782,897 (EUR 735,897 in 2024).
The operating deficit for maritime cultural activities totalled EUR 641,390 (EUR 464,175 in 2024).
Marine environment, income and expenses
Marine environment includes the focus areas “A healthy and vibrant marine ecosystem”, “Cutting nutrient emissions from food production and forestry” and “Clean maritime traffic”, as well as their respective shares of communication and administrative costs.
Marine environment’s income totalled EUR 1,037,897 (EUR 659,919 in 2024). The Foundation received EUR 700,300 in public funding in 2025 (EUR 488,414 in 2024), consisting of EU contributions and other public-sector support for projects.
Marine environment expenses totalled EUR 2,514,373 in 2025 (EUR 2,302,623 in 2024). Project costs include personnel expenses, communication costs, travel expenses, expert services, costs related to the restoration of water protection sites, and logistics costs related to both the transport of manure phosphorus and gypsum and the harvesting and transport of reeds.
The total deficit for marine environment activities in 2025 was EUR 1,476,477 (EUR 1,642.704 in 2024).
The Foundation’s general expenses
The remuneration of the Board of Directors and the Foundation’s management are shown under general expenses. General expenses also include income of EUR 960 from management and administrative services sold to the Foundation’s subsidiary Baltic Sea Services Oy. Expenses totalled EUR 63,597 (EUR 90,680 in 2024), and consisted of EUR 43,195 in personnel costs (EUR 63,105 in 2024) and EUR 20,402 in other costs (EUR 27,575 in 2024).
Fundraising income and expenses
Donations received in 2025 totalled EUR 2,560,642 (EUR 2,966,990 in 2024).
Most donations were made as general donations to the Foundation’s activities as a whole. They totalled EUR 2,175,047 (EUR 2,759,259 in 2024), which is in line with the Foundation’s strategy. In addition to these general donations, EUR 332,222 (EUR 162,714 in 2024) was donated to marine environment projects and EUR 53,373 (EUR 45,017 in 2024) to maritime cultural activities in 2025.
Fundraising expenses totalled EUR 731,695 (EUR 786,072 in 2024). These expenses include salary costs, costs for marketing campaigns and materials, and costs for the development and maintenance of payment systems and automation tools.
The result for fundraising after expenses and appropriations was EUR 1,443,352 (1,973,187 in 2024).
Donated funds
Of the donations received 2025, 76 % (2 503 462 €) were used for ordinary operations, that is, carrying out marine environment work and maritime cultural activities. 24 % (794 332 €) of donated funds were allocated to general costs, such as fundraising and the Foundation’s general expenses. Donations are not used for investment or rental activities.
The Foundation’s asset management
The Foundation’s assets are managed in a planned and profitable manner. There is no active trading in financial markets for short-term profit. The Foundation seeks to diversify its assets into low-risk investments. The Foundation’s asset management portfolio is managed by LocalTapiola Asset Management and the eQ Commercial Properties Fund. The result of our investment activities in 2025 was EUR 1,041,176 (EUR 796,471 in 2024).
Rental activities
The John Nurminen Foundation owns about 13 per cent of the share capital of Kiinteistö Oy Pasilankatu 2. The premises owned by the Foundation were mostly leased during the financial year. At the end of 2025, the Foundation had around 270 m2 of premises that had not been leased out. Rental income totalled EUR 128,747 (EUR 200,709 in 2024), and the result for rental activities was a loss of EUR 36,784 (profit of EUR 17,843 in 2024). Rental activities made a loss in 2025 as a result of credit losses on rent receivables from 2024.
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Photo: Raimo Sundelin