Attaining carbon neutrality in Finnish parliamentary and city council debates

Abstract

This article examines how political actors at different scales present desirable governance options for reaching carbon neutrality in Finland. The analysis is based on documentary materials and speeches in the national parliament of Finland and the city council of Helsinki in the years 2011-2015. I show how in Finland carbon neutrality serves as a broad sociotechnical imaginary that unites political actors across scales. Due to its interpretative flexibility, this imaginary accommodates different pathways to attain it. While politicians in the national parliament call for a stable and predictable policy environment, politicians on the city council demand adaptive and flexible policy measures for reaching carbon neutrality. What is presented as "good policy" for carbon neutrality differs significantly across the two levels of governance. This demonstrates the importance of distinguishing between sociotechnical imaginaries and the proposed policy means to attain them.