West Finland European Office (WFEO) is the regional office of West Finland, representing the interests of Ostrobothnia, South Ostrobothnia, Satakunta and Central Finland in Brussels. We follow closely EU policies and provide information on EU funding programmes and co-operation opportunities for our stakeholders.
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Brussels Office Address
rue Luxembourg 3
1000 Brussels
Belgium
S3 Strategy
Based on the smart specialisation strategies in West Finland, we focus on automation and robotics, energy, food and bioeconomy, cyber security, education and health. In automation and robotics the focus is, especially in the manufacturing industry. Cybersecurity provides solutions, including cyber security auditing and security, for various target groups; e.g. healthcare sector, banks, SMEs etc. Education is a crosscutting theme, where regions have excellence in all educational levels and there is a strong focus on lifelong learning. Energy includes smart grids, battery technologies and renewable energy. Bioeconomy strengths are in food production and in forestry, where regions provide novel solutions in products and processes. Circular economy is the core of bioeconomy. Health and wellbeing focus is on prevention, and enabling technological solutions.
Strategic R&I Projects
IRIS Smart Cities
The project is developed around three lighthouse cities who will work as collaborators and test-beds for four follower cities. Each city will draw upon a mix of partners to accelerate communities to adopt energy, mobility and ICT initiatives.
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IHMEC
IHMEC project creates and exports joint indoor hygiene solution of Central Baltic area SME’s into the Saudi Arabian construction market using indoor hygiene (IH) as a competitive edge.
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Working Group Leaders
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- By Martina Campajola
ERRIN and its members call on the Commission to safeguard the EU Missions and mission-oriented approach in the next MFF
More than 35 regional and local authorities urge EU decision-makers to keep the EU Missions running until at least 2030 and to keep the mission-oriented approach at the heart of Europe's future research and innovation framework. The letter underlines the strategic importance of preserving and strengthening the EU Missions and the mission-oriented approach as central pillars of Europe's competitiveness, resilience and innovation agenda.
- By Ewa Chomicz
A sneak peek into transformative innovation
Berlaymont Piazza was buzzing in the afternoon of 2 June as we heard about the first results and future plans of the EU Preparatory Action (PA) "Innovation for place-based transformation". Around 200 territories have been participating and working side-by-side with the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission in this initiative supported by the European Parliament to increase the capacities of the territories, mobilise resources and experiment to face pressing challenges, ranging from decarbonisation to digitalisation.
- By Astrid Hannes
ERRIN’s first online skills session puts Skills for Resilience at the heart of Europe’s regions
The first online ERRIN Skills Talk, held on 13 May gathered over 60 regional higher-education representatives, vocational education and training (VET) providers, regional policymakers as well as the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission. Aiming at deepening the understanding about capacity building activities that are emerging across Europe’s regions to increase the territorial resilience, several regional stakeholders presented regional initiatives to align education, research, industry and public actors around resilience skills. Read more about the regional education and training initiatives in this article.
- By Silvia Ghiretti
Regions and Net-Zero Acceleration Valleys: What role can regions play in Europe's clean industrial transition?
On 5 May, ERRIN and the West Finland European Office hosted a seminar in Brussels on the role of regions in Europe's clean industrial transition, focusing on Net-Zero Acceleration Valleys and industrial competitiveness. Speakers from the European Commission and regional representations shared updates on the European Competitiveness Fund, the Net-Zero Industry Act implementation and concrete Valley experiences.
- By Maria Bostrom
ERRIN at the European Week of Regions and Cities 2025
The 23rd European Week of Regions and Cities (EWRC) brought together over 6,000 participants in Brussels under the motto Shaping Tomorrow, Together. As the largest annual event on EU Cohesion Policy, it provided a platform for cities and regions to exchange ideas on sustainable development, innovation and inclusiveness. ERRIN and its members were actively engaged throughout the week, contributing to and supporting several sessions that highlighted the importance of strong and connected regional innovation ecosystems.
- By Maria Bostrom
ERRIN contributes to the only session clearly addressing the place-based dimension at the EU R&I Days 2025
On 17 September, ERRIN’s Director Pirita Lindholm moderated the Cities of Tomorrow session at the European Research and Innovation Days 2025, joined by representatives from ERRIN members' innovation ecosystems. Focusing on circularity as a strategy for resilience and competitiveness, they discussed how cities are driving the green transition in practice through place-based innovation and ecosystem collaboration.