Competition results
The results of the competition were announced on 13 March 2024 at the Event Square of the Helsinki City Hall.
Rethinking the Heart of Helsinki, evaluation minutes (pdf)
Award-winning proposals:
- 1st prize, EUR 15,000: Dallaillen (“Moving around”)
Contributors: Anne Kantola, Jan Mustonen and Venla Varkila
View Dallaillen (pdf, in Finnish) - 2nd prize, EUR 6,000: Joy in Movement
Contributors: Selina Zander, Laura Jaunākā, Nea Vesterinen, Linda Autio and Katarina Jakobsson
View Joy in Movement (pdf) - 3rd prize, EUR 4,000: Teidän Helsinki (“Your Helsinki”)
Contributors: Veera Annala and Cecilia Aintila
View Teidän Helsinki (pdf, in Finnish)
Honourable mentions:
- Ihan kujalla – Helsinki haltuun askel kerrallaan! (“Totally clueless – Take control of Helsinki, one step at a time!”)
Contributors: Otto Tarnanen, Ida Maunula and Inkeri Mankkinen - JMKSNKV – Vetovoimaa Kaisaniemen puistoon (“JMKSNKV – A more attractive Kaisaniemi Park”)
Contributors: Johanna Maria Kannas and Sini Nuppu Kristiina Virtanen - wonders – City of Pockets
Contributors: Eeva-Maija Ekman, Roban Colyer, Sara Soimasuo and Varpu Kurkilahti
In brief
The competition starts on 13 September 2023 and entries must be submitted by 16 January 2024.
We encourage participants to look broadly at the city centre and come up with creative ideas for solving its key challenges. We would like to see a bold take on things and willingness to create a dialogue.
We hope that teams will register for the competition in good time. However, there is no deadline for registration, so it is still possible to register for the competition when you submit your entry.
Competition area
The competition area is the heart of Helsinki, and its focal point is in front of Helsinki Central Railway Station. The competition examines the area within a radius of approximately one kilometre from the railway station. However, the competition area is not clear-cut. Participants may also submit proposals that extend beyond the indicated competition area. The competition area includes the city centre blocks between the railway station and the Esplanadi streets, Senate Square and its surroundings, Kaisaniemi, Kamppi and the Töölönlahti area.
Who can take part?
All participants must be university students studying a bachelor’s or master’s degree or students at universities of applied sciences on the day they submit their competition proposal. A team submitting a proposal may consist of an individual student or a group of students. There is no restriction on the size of the team. The team may consist of a student or students from one or several study programmes. We encourage participants to form diverse teams across study programmes and educational institutions.
Competition assignment
The main competition assignment is to analyse the vitality and appeal of Helsinki city centre and to prepare a proposal aimed at increasing the number of visitors to the city centre and the time spent there.
Further information about the competition can be found in the competition programme (pdf, 8.6 MB).
Prizes
EUR 25,000 will be awarded as prizes to the best ideas as follows:
- First prize: EUR 15,000
- Second prize: EUR 6,000
- Third prize: EUR 4,000
Jury
Juhana Vartiainen, City of Helsinki, Mayor, Chairman of the jury
Janne Prokkola, City of Helsinki, Unit Manager, Detailed Planning
Pia Pakarinen, Helsinki Region Chamber of Commerce, CEO
Aija Staffans, Aalto University, Senior Research Fellow
Sami Moisio, University of Helsinki, Professor of Spatial Planning and Policy
Mari Männistö, City of Helsinki, Culture Director
Mirkku Kullberg, Glasshouse Helsinki, CEO
Sanna Puutonen, Ylva Palvelut Oy, Communications & Marketing Manager
Publishing the competition results
A total of 23 entries were accepted.
The results of the competition will be announced on Wednesday 13 March at 10 a.m. at the Event Square of the Helsinki City Hall by the Mayor of Helsinki Juhana Vartainen.
Answers to the questions asked by students
Students had until 17 October 2023 to ask further questions about the competition programme. Here you will find the questions and answers sent by the competitors by the deadline.
The feasibility of the proposals is assessed by comparing them with each other and by the judgment of urban planning experts. There is no single benchmark to follow, but contestants may, for example, analyze ongoing or completed projects in Helsinki and abroad for reference. Project feasibility in general lacks specific metrics and is therefore evaluated at a high-level overview.
The originality and innovation of entries are evaluated both in relation to each other and the broader discourse on urban planning and city development. Contestants should examine ongoing projects in Helsinki and other cities and propose innovative entries that bring up new ideas in comparison with existing processes in urban environments.
Contestants have the freedom to structure the communication section according to their own vision, and it does not necessarily need to represent the perspective of the City of Helsinki. However, taking the City's perspective into account is a good approach. The primary purpose of the communication section is to outline how the suggested plan, idea, or entry could be effectively communicated to different stakeholders in urban planning.
Academic referencing practices are not mandated. While we encourage all contestants to provide citations for any literature they use, it's at each team's discretion how they format and include references. Any bibliography should be included within the 15-page limit.
The competition is intended for students studying at the bachelor's or master's stage in a university or university of applied sciences. Students from other educational institutions are excluded from the competition.
On behalf of the City of Helsinki, it's also possible to transform the competition proposal into a thesis, although you should have a discussion about this with your thesis advisor.
An existing employment is not a hindrance to participation. The exclusion from the competition applies to city employees who have been directly or indirectly involved in the organization of the competition.
Is it possible to create a plan that partially contradicts the original city plan for a specific area, or is the competition looking for plans that align as closely as possible with the city's goals for that area, and thus, with any existing plans, if possible?
The plan does not have to align directly with the city's previous decisions, and even significant changes in the use of downtown spaces and the like can be proposed. It's up to each team's discretion whether to present proposals that adhere more closely to the city's previous guidelines or not. The competition is seeking new suggestions, and therefore, discrepancies with the city's policies are understandable and, in some cases, even desirable.
You will not receive a confirmation email for your registration. The registration software will, however, display a success message on your screen upon a successful registration. As there is no registration deadline, you can re-register when submitting your proposal, in case there were any issues during your initial registration. The registration is a requirement to provide the City of Helsinki and other competition organizers with participant count information and to enable communication from the organizer to the registered competitors if needed.
The city of Helsinki can provide proof of participation and submission for those named in the registartion.
The City of Helsinki does not, by default, guarantee participants any academic credits for their involvement in the competition. Only the Urban Studies and Planning, as well as the Spatial Planning and Transportation Engineering Master's programs at the University of Helsinki and Aalto University, along with their respective departments responsible for education, provide five credits to their students for accepted competition submissions. Other participants should discuss the possibility of receiving academic credits directly with their own educational institution's staff.
Competition schedule
- The competition will start on 13 September 2023
- Questions from participants by 17 October 2023
- Answers to participants by 31 October 2023
- Submittal of competition entries by 16 January 2024
- Publication of results and prize ceremony planned for March 2024
Registration and competition entries
Register your team and submit your competition entry(Link leads to external service)
You can also find this page at hel.fi/heartofhelsinki.