Industrial transformation in an eco-welfare state

What do industrial low-carbon roadmaps tell about the conditions for a Finnish sustainability transformation?

Abstract

Welfare states like Finland are seen as promising actors in a path towards an eco-welfare state, whose task is to adapt economic development to ecological boundaries. So far, research has drawn only little attention to one crucial aspect of such eco-welfare states, namely industrial transformation. This article examines how the goals of the eco-welfare state and the sustainability transformation are implemented in the Finnish low-carbon industrial roadmaps prepared in 2019-2020. As primary data, we use the roadmaps of large industries and their background documents. This data is complemented by interviews (21) with experts involved in the roadmap process or with expertise on industrial transition. The article shows that the roadmaps can be seen as a significant contribution to the industry's understanding of the challenges of the sustainability transformation. On the other hand, the roadmaps contain several problematic framing practices and assumptions. The roadmaps perform an optimistic reading of the future, but the assumptions concerning resource availability are on thin ground. We shed light on the weakness of the roadmaps' understanding of social metabolism by examining their assumptions on the use of forest-based biomass.