Finland – sharing from its success
Last October news about Finland as the world's most prosperous country was spread. The British think thank Legacy had compared the world's countries on eight parameters, measuring factors of economy, democracy and government. Finland scored the best points.
At the same time I was seated together with 30 Finnish experts from different fields, all of us invited by the Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra, thinking, what vital Finland would be like. It was clear to us that if Finland cannot renew its welfare model and find skilled leadership as well as new entrepreneurs, India, China and other growing countries will take welfare from our reach.
Success in the prosperity index indicates that we must have done at least something right. In the last hundred years we have learned to create welfare and share from it sensibly. In functional Finland common sense and low hierarchies have helped us to create a good society.
Internationally speaking, this culture of sharing has become visible in eight different ways. We are considered one of the Nordic countries that have succeeded in building a globally unique welfare state. To be considered as something is not much - what counts is what is actually executed. Linus Thorvalds has created the world's most interesting operating system by following the basic principles of the Finnish society: openness and the opening up of possibilities for participation.
The vital Finland -report was published in May. Its central message was that more actors are needed. This means that all Finns must get involved in the building of our society. However, without open access to information and the sharing of power this cannot be done. What makes this direction interesting is that through technological development and networks information, and though that, power becomes less and less exclusive. Perhaps our welfare will not be taken from us, but through the principles concretized by Linux, we can also help others.
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