Responsible future of wood use discussed at the 10th Karelia Symposium at the University of Eastern Finland
Authors: Dr. Henrik Heräjärvi and Satu Helenius
The 10th Karelia Symposium: Responsible Future of Wood Use took place on April 16 2026, at the University of Eastern Finland (UEF) in Joensuu. Supported by the Teollisuusneuvos Heikki Väänänen’s Fund and co‑funded by the European Union, the symposium brought together researchers, students, industry representatives, and policymakers to explore and discuss how wood-based value chains contribute to sustainability transition and responsibility questions.
The programme combined invited keynote presentations, a panel discussion, poster pitching, presentations by previous grant recipients, announcement of the 2026 grant recipient, and the Best Poster Award. Throughout the day, discussions were framed by responsibility, strong sustainability, circular bioeconomy solutions, and the need for cross-sectoral collaboration.
From circular forest industries to strong sustainability
Keynote presentations addressed the transformation of forest-based industries in response to climate change, biodiversity loss, and evolving societal expectations driven by consumer awareness and normative guidance.
Professor Leena Aarikka‑Stenroos (Tampere University) examined pathways towards circular and low‑carbon forest-based industries, highlighting that technological innovation, business models, and societal acceptance must develop in parallel. She emphasised smart value chains, industrial symbiosis, and higher value creating solutions as key enablers of sustainable competitiveness.
An industry perspective was provided by CEO Mika Rytky (Kontiotuote Ltd.), who discussed sustainability as a critical success factor in the built environment. Log construction was presented as a long‑lasting carbon storage and a low‑emission alternative for the construction sector that is the largest greenhouse gas producing sector globally.
In a joint keynote, Dr. Anu Laakkonen and Katri Rusanen (University of Eastern Finland) explored the question “What is enough?” in the Finnish forest-based sector. Their presentation introduced strong sustainability, sufficiency, and regenerative thinking, stressing that economic activities should be embedded within planetary boundaries – a great challenge for humankind that currently consumes the resources of several planets. Forests were discussed as socio‑ecological systems that provide multiple values, including biodiversity, climate change mitigation, cultural meaning and human well‑being, alongside products and energy that reduce the need to use nonrenewable resources.
Panel discussion: Bridging responsibility gaps
The panel discussion, chaired by Sandra Lupien (University of Eastern Finland / Michigan State University), synthesised insights from the keynote talks. Discussion focused on how responsibility can be operationalised across forest-based value networks. Keynote speakers, supplemented by Dr. Kathryn Fernholz (Dovetail Partners, USA), ended up highlighting the need to clarify what responsible wood use means for practitioners.
Key takeaways included the importance of radical cross‑sector collaboration, the recognition that much of the required knowledge and technology already exists, and the need to connect this knowledge into action through social licence, policies, and market demand. The discussion emphasised that sustainability should be de facto strong, with business value propositions centred on nature, planetary boundaries, and ethical paths for growth. Many woodworking companies, small and medium-sized in particular, already obey the rules of responsibility, while not necessarily even recognising it.
Posters, student research, and emerging solutions
Poster pitching and student presentations showcased a wide range of current research topics related to responsible wood use and forest bioeconomy at the UEF. These included biochar applications, indoor air quality in timber buildings, life‑cycle carbon impacts of end‑of‑life wood, biomass valorisation, use of bark beetle-damaged logs, and bio‑based alternatives to synthetic wood preservatives. Presentations by previous recipients of the Teollisuusneuvos Heikki Väänänen’s Fund illustrated the breadth and societal relevance of research supported through the fund.
Grant recipient and Best Poster Award
The symposium concluded with the announcement of the 2026 PhD grant recipient of the Teollisuusneuvos Heikki Väänänen’s Fund. The grant was awarded to Ville Oskari‑Komu for his research project “Cascade utilisation of idle forests – Enhancing the value of forests and forestry side streams through cultivation of Inonotus obliquus for spalted wood and nutraceuticals.” The Best Poster Award – decided by audience votes – was presented to Viivi Berg for her poster “Birch wood and fibre hemp biochar – safe additives in bio‑based composites?”.
Concluding the symposium day
The 10th Karelia Symposium: Responsible Future of Wood Use conveyed a clear and shared conclusion: responsibility in wood-based value chains cannot be framed as incremental improvement, but requires fundamental rethinking of how value, growth, and sustainability are defined.
Across all presentations and discussions, participants highlighted that responsibility is not only a technical or efficiency question. Instead, it involves clarifying what “responsible” means in practice, recognising ecological, societal, and economic boundaries at the same time. Responsibility goes beyond the sustainability norms and regulations, involving a strong presence of ethics.
Overall, the Karelia Symposium underscored that achieving a responsible future for wood use is not the task of any single actor. It requires shared definitions, system‑level re-thinking and long‑term commitment.