Sustainable SMEs first face to face meeting in Jyväskylä, Finland

On 20-21 August 2025, Sustainable SMEs project staff from Finland, Sweden, Ireland and Iceland got together in Jyväskylä to discuss about the next steps of the project and how to engage the project’s target groups, SMEs and SME stakeholders in the fields of bioeconomy and manufacturing, in the project’s activities. The main themes of the meeting were developing co-learning workshops, the creation of piloting process, and the project’s communication. This was the first time the project staff got together face-to-face, with the exception of one online participant.

On the first day, the project staff discussed the best ways to conduct interviews with the project’s target groups and worked on the process of creating a co-learning workshop. The discussions included some group work in smaller groups and lively discussions with the whole project staff. In addition to the project staff, a representative of one of the project’s associated organizations, Enni Huotari from the Regional Council of Central Finland, was present at the meeting and shortly presented her organization and their motivation to join the project as an associated organization.

The project staff also got a taste of authentic Finnish culture when traditional sauna healer Johanna Teräväinen hosted a short traditional sauna session, although without an actual sauna. The session, accompanied with products from nature and the sound of traditional bells, helped everyone wind down in the middle of the intensive day.

The second day of the meeting started with a balancing QiGong session hosted by project member Elena Bezborodova, who is a QiGong instructor. This session helped everyone start the day with a clear mind. In the morning two experts from Jamk gave presentations on the topics of the meeting: Sanna Nieminen presented observations and tips about organizing a workshop, and Sari Karppala gave a short overview of sustainability reporting. During the rest of the day the project staff discussed communication topics and identified their key target groups, and briefly went through the basics of a piloting process, which is the essence of the second work package of the project. The day ended with discussing the horizontal principles in each organization and reviewing the next steps in the project. 

The meeting concluded with a dinner at the beautiful lakeside restaurant of Hotel Alba, enjoying good company and some Finnish cuisine. During the two days the project staff not only discussed official matters, but also their concerns, opinions and thoughts on the activities and contents of the project. Everyone was very happy to meet in person, as this kind of more personal contact makes it easier to ask questions and continue conversations later on in the project. This highlights the importance of face-to-face meetings to support the work that takes place online.

 
Many thanks to everyone who participated in the meeting and shared their thoughts and knowledge!