Stakeholder perspectives on the priorities for the revision work were gathered at interaction forums in autumn
The year 2025 has been a period of intense interaction in maritime spatial planning in Finland. The sectoral meetings held in the spring were followed by interaction forums in the autumn, where stakeholders were met for discussions on reconciliation in different parts of the Finnish coast. The discussions were based on the theme-focused alternatives formed during the second round of MSP. The messages that emerged from the events highlighted a wide range of regional and sector-specific perspectives and the importance of reconciliation. The received messages will be considered in spring 2026, when the MSP draft plan will be drawn up.
During the autumn, Finnish Maritime Spatial Planning Coordination Group organized a series of six interaction forums, where stakeholders had the opportunity to present their views on the priorities concerning the maritime spatial plan to be revised. The focus in the national and regional interaction forums was on the map visualizations of theme-focused alternatives Climate-smart MSP, Security of supply and security, and Marine multi-use. Thematic priorities were highlighted in these maps. In general, most participants felt that the alternatives successfully captured the appropriate overall themes, but each alternative were received suggestions for improvements.
Map visualisations of the theme-focused alternatives used in marine spatial planning interaction forums (Climate-smart MSP, Security of supply and security, Marine multi-use). The map visualisations have been deliberately created to be general, with the most important themes emphasized. The theme-focused alternatives were formed based on the strategic priorities of the second round of MSP and one draft plan will be created based on them. The work on the theme-based alternatives was also part of the SEA process, which was launched in the coastal regional councils in 2025.
National events highlighted the importance of a healthy natural environment as the basis for all maritime activities, good transport infrastructure via ports, energy production and transmission, food self-sufficiency, and the vitality of coastal communities as well as importance of recreational opportunities. Similarly, regional events highlighted different themes in different parts of the coast: events in Oulu and Vaasa focused on the challenges posed by the long winter and issues related to migratory fish. In Turku, the importance of the fishing industry and cultural heritage was highlighted. In Helsinki, the focus was on the economic aspects of maritime transport connections and opportunities related to nature and recreation.
”When looking at the content discussed at the events in general, the received messages particularly emphasize the importance of cooperation and reconciliation at the regional, national, and international levels,” summarizes Timo Rantanen, Planner of Maritime Spatial Planning Cooperation.
Perspectives from maritime sectors on the maritime spatial plan to be revised were gathered at national (Helsinki, September 24 and November 26) and regional (Helsinki, September 30; Oulu, October 29; Vaasa, October 30; Turku, November 3) events. The photo is from the last event at the end of November.
The second national interaction forum in Helsinki on November 26, 2025, finalized the intensive interaction work carried out during the vision phase and served as a bridge to the draft plan preparation in spring 2026.
The MSP process will move on to the next phase after the turn of the year, when the draft plan will be drawn up. At that point, the observations gathered in the interaction forums and other new information will be brought to the planning tables of the coastal regional councils planners for review. Then the planners will decide how different priorities and contents will be taken into consideration in the revised maritime spatial plan. The draft plan will be completed in late spring 2026.
Read also the article on the interaction forums written from multi-level governance perspective: Multi-level governance set the frame for the MSP interaction forums | Maritime Spatial Plan MSP