How Finland can provide a model for prosperity in Glasgow

Of course, there are other factors at play – Finland enjoys a high level of social cohesion, its political culture places a strong, typically Scandinavian emphasis on equity, and it benefits from an excellent transport and digital infrastructure.

The Finnish governmental system may also be an advantage – authority (including tax-raising powers) is heavily devolved to the Helsinki city government, which can mobilise significant resources to support economic development. But it is the way the local stakeholders come together to foster innovation that is most striking, and it is a story we have much to learn from. 

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One of the most impressive things the Finns have done is to turn the entire city of Helsinki into a testbed for new products and services, bringing ideas and innovations closer to market, at pace.  Each year, the team at Testbed Helsinki facilitates about 50 projects, some of which are the result of procurement calls and others are proposed by companies, both local and international.  A surprising number of these companies are based in the city’s incubator units, which provide new businesses with up to three years of accommodation and wraparound support; notably, Helsinki’s incubators are about to undergo a dramatic expansion.  

The testbed projects cover a wide variety of subjects, but most fall into five categories – health and wellbeing, educational technology, the built environment, smart mobility (using technology to make transport systems more effective and efficient) and digitalisation.  The latter stream is assisted by a ‘digital twin’ of the whole city region – an electronic model of the area which allows new concepts to be tested in a virtual environment.  Live testing is carried out in a variety of settings including schools, care homes for the elderly, hospitals, businesses and across public transport and communications systems.  Different parts of the city host elements of the various types of testbed.

The initiative has multiple aims but the main goals are to create new business opportunities for companies (both startups and firms that are scaling up), accelerate research and development, and improve the quality of life for local people.  Once tested, the ideas are usually scalable and ready for transformation into marketable services and products. The testbed approach brings innovation to its communities and in many cases, solutions are co-created.

To give only a few examples, one company has used the testbed to develop a medical device therapy which modulates the brain areas responsible for alcohol craving (substance abuse being a challenge in Finland as it is in Scotland).  In response to an open call from the Helsinki Testbed team, another firm has invented a digital translation solution to be used with the city’s burgeoning immigrant population.  And a third has worked with the metro systems and healthcare partners to develop sound beacons to assist visually and other impaired users of the city’s underground system.

A further major focus has been to advance the city’s sustainability agenda.  In this space, initiatives include efforts to test and improve air quality, reduce the environmental impact of demolition projects and create new, greener construction materials.  The testbed has brought together over 100 local organisations which support each other to advance recycling, carbon reduction and the circular economy.

Almost all of this is highly relevant to Glasgow and its wider region.  Glasgow City Council’s ambitious economic strategy aims to deliver higher levels of economic activity and greater prosperity while improving the quality of life for all.  Indeed, it has set itself a target for the city to have the ‘most innovative, inclusive and resilient economy in the UK, by 2030’. This can only be achieved by keeping a laser-sharp focus on high-impact innovation and the creation of sustainable jobs for local residents.

One important step was taken recently when the former Scottish Government Minister Ivan McKee announced that the Glasgow Riverside Innovation District (GRID) would become Scotland’s first whole-system testbed for innovation.  In reality, the testbed (to be called GRID Discovery) will reach well beyond the geographical bounds of the riverside – it will involve partners across business, the public sector, health service and higher education.  

The first steps to developing our approach will be focused on one or two areas where Glasgow City Region has well-established research and innovation strengths.  Working with our partners, we will move quickly in adapting the Helsinki model to suit our Glasgow city region context.  We will use the testbed to take forward a small number of projects which draw on world-class research expertise at the University of Glasgow and our neighbouring institutions.  

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An early priority will be medical technology – this is already a key strength in the city and one which will be greatly enhanced by a newly-signed partnership between University of Glasgow and GE Healthcare.  Our efforts will also build on the recent success by Glasgow City Region in securing £33m accelerator funding from the UK Government’s Department for Science, Innovation and Technology.  This will support 11 major innovation pilots across west-central Scotland.

As Helsinki has shown, the Glasgow testbed initiative will only succeed if all the essential players participate actively.  So far, the signs are propitious – there is clear support from Scottish government, significant funding from UK government, and a galvanised and determined local authority which has built strong partnerships across the city region.  The innovative capacity of our universities has never been greater, and there is growing interest from businesses, both large and small.

If we get this right, we can use the testbed to find innovative solutions to a range of challenges – health inequalities, carbon emissions, traffic congestion, access for disabled people and better use of resources to name but a few.  What is more, we can trial new policies and ways of delivering services, alongside new products which will generate wealth for the local community. 

There will be obstacles on the road but we will learn form others and work to overcome them.  The case has already been proven in Helsinki, and we have the knowledge and resources to do something equally transformative here in Glasgow. 

And if we succeed in this vitally important endeavour, we will surely increase the sum of human happiness in this fantastic city.

David Duncan is Chief Operating Officer and Uzma Khan is Vice Principal for Economic Development & Innovation at the University of Glasgow.