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1. Governance

2. Cross-sectorial cooperation

Governance

Main actors
There is no national-level governance approach for promoting young people’s contribution to global policymaking processes. Instead, various actors at different levels of governance involve young people in their decision-making processes. The ministries, as well as public and non-public actors relevant to promoting young people’s participation in global issues, are presented below.

Ministerial level 
The Ministry of Education and Culture allocates funding for youth organisations and youth centres in accordance with the Youth Act (1285/2016) (Nuorisolaki, in Finnish). To be eligible to apply for state aid, these organisations must adhere to the core values of the Act and support their realisation. The core principles are solidarity, cultural diversity, internationalism, sustainable development, healthy lifestyles, respect for life and the environment, and cross-sectoral cooperation. 

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs is responsible for the global policymaking process, including Nordic cooperation, human rights, development policy and development cooperation, EU affairs, Team Finland activities, and several other global issues. The Ministry strives to gather information about young people’s attitudes towards foreign policy issues. An example of a recent report is the ‘Young people’s values in foreign and security policy – Behavioural overview of the values of young people in Finland’ (Nuorten arvot ulko- ja turvallisuuspolitiikassa – Käyttäytymistieteellinen katsaus suomalaisten nuorten arvoihin, in Finnish), published on 19 June 2025. 

The Ministry of the Environment is responsible for Finland’s international climate policy. On 20 February 2023, it was announced that a new young people’s climate change and nature group would be established under the Prime Minister’s Office. The Youth Nature and Climate Group (NUOLI) was established later in spring 2023.

Publicly funded agencies and institutions
The Finnish National Agency for Education promotes international mobility and cooperation and provides information about internationalisation, as well as concrete possibilities that the agency offers to young people. For more information, see YouthWiki/Finland 2.8 Cross-border Mobility Programmes.

The State Youth Council monitors international development and cooperation in the youth field, in line with section 6 of the Youth Act (1285/2016) (Nuorisolaki, in Finnish).

The National Youth Work Centres of Expertise promote the international orientation of young people and sustainable development in accordance with sections 2 and 19 of the Youth Act (1285/2016) (see also the Finnish Youth Centre Network).

The Finnish National Youth Council and Youth Sector is a politically and religiously independent organisation with over 140 national youth and educational member organisations. It represents Finnish youth work in Finland and in international forums. The organisation provides training, disseminates information, and arranges youth exchange programmes abroad. 

The Human Rights Centre monitors and promotes the implementation of fundamental and human rights in Finland. It is an autonomous and independent expert institution operating in connection with the Office of the Parliamentary Ombudsman. In 2022, the Centre launched a Young Experts Programme that supports emerging young experts in the human rights field.

Relevant non-public actors

SITRA
The Finnish Innovation Fund SITRA promotes and finances future-oriented research and policymaking in Finland. SITRA operates under the Parliament, and it receives funding from the investment returns on capital received from the Parliament. However, tax money is not used to finance SITRA’s activities.
SITRA includes young people in its projects and produces publications that address issues related to youth and the world. Recent relevant publications and projects include:

• What if young people lose faith in the future? (published on 18 March 2026)
•  WCEF (World Circular Economy Forum) 2025 Summary Report (published on 24 June 2025)
•  What do you think about security? -project (published on 10 April 2025)
  
  In addition, SITRA has developed the Megatrend Cards, which aim to increase knowledge of and discussion about global issues (for more information, see YouthWiki/Finland 9.4 Raising awareness about global issues).
   

Fingo
Fingo (Finnish Development NGOs) is a non-governmental umbrella organisation of almost 250 Finnish civil society organisations (CSOs) in the fields of development cooperation, sustainable development, and global citizenship education, and acts as an expert on global development. Fingo’s official website provides more information about the organisation’s vision, mission, and basic tasks.

General distribution of responsibilities
The general distribution of responsibilities between top-level and regional or local authorities takes the form of cooperation between national agencies, such as the Finnish National Agency for Education, and the schools that implement the Agency’s national-level frameworks and objectives at the local and regional level. According to the European Youth Portal, one goal under the thematic area Youth and the World is to promote ‘bilateral events between the EU and non-EU countries which promote intercultural dialogue and understanding between young people’. The National Agency for Education coordinates the Transatlantic Classroom programme (in Finnish), which local high schools can join by applying to the programme. 
 

Cross-sectorial cooperation

There is no mechanism for promoting cross-sectoral cooperation between ministries, departments, and agencies specifically regarding youth cooperation or contribution to global policymaking processes. Instead, as described in YouthWiki/Finland 1.5 Cross-sectoral approach with other ministries, cross-sectoral cooperation is one of the general principles laid out in the Youth Act (1285/2016) (Nuorisolaki, in Finnish). The key instrument for cross-sectoral youth policy is the National Youth Work and Youth Policy Programme. See the Programme’s section 'Towards coordinated and cross-sectoral youth policy' (pp. 13–15) for more information about the current framework for cross-sectoral cooperation.

The National Youth Work and Youth Policy Programme 2024–2027 (VANUPO) outlines that Finland promotes the participation of youth delegates at the global level (in addition to the Nordic and European levels). Young people were also consulted in the preparation of the most recent VANUPO. During the consultation, climate change was mentioned as a key global issue by young people.