Welcome to Vaasa on 12 August – SpaceEconomy at the Wasa Future Festival

The Wasa Future Festival, held in Vaasa in August, has already become a traditional event that brings together companies, decision-makers, higher education institutions, research, culture, and civil society to examine future developments in Ostrobothnia and throughout Finland.

Now in 2026 it is already the tenth WWF, and the theme this time is new-era Nordic cooperation under the title New Nordic.

Topics to be addressed include, among others, energy systems, key competence areas in the energy and data sectors, research and development work, defence, forestry, artificial intelligence, and ... the space economy.

SpacEconomy project is involved in organising the event, and several researchers participating in the project will appear as speakers. Space will be discussed on Wednesday 12 August from 12:00 to 18:00 in the Right Wing of the Wasa Innovation Center.

From Orbit to Opportunity: The Economic Impact of Space on Finland and the Nordics

– Kvarken Space Center and the University of Vaasa, Ali Arslan, UniVaasa 
– Presentation of the national SpacEconomy project, Heidi Kuusniemi, TAU 
– Development of the roadmap in SpacEconomy project, Johanna Kalliokoski, UniVaasa 
– Building a Competitive Space Economy: The Role of Finnish Governance and Policy Reform, Tero Vihavainen, Leading Specialist, Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment of Finland 
– Nordic space cooperation, Søren Gram Riisgard, Space Denmark 
– Results of the Nordic AuroraSpace project funded by Interreg Aurora, Petri Välisuo, UniVaasa 
– Space economy and internationalization, Mikko Punnala, Sharpnav Oy 
– Panel discussion on space business, ESA BIC Finland

Participation in Wasa Future Week is free of charge but requires advance registration.