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__It's said that every athlete dies twice. But what's that got to do with sustainable development or Asuntoyhtymä's reason to exists? Our Head of Sustainability Antti Niskanen answers these questions in his blog post.__

Every athlete dies twice is indeed a common saying. It's also said that, when the end is near, people look back and assess how they've lived and the choices they've made. Only then do many realise that their life didn't go quite right – and that's another common saying. 

Dying twice may sound like a trial, but it's actually a blessing. The good thing is, you'll still get up from your first death bed, accompanied by all the experiences of your first life and the visions of your death experience.

I ended my days as an athlete – if you count bouncing a basketball as being an athlete – last spring. A moment ago I was seen as the wise old sage, older than my coaches, and now I'm suddenly young again. That wise old sage might not be able to teach a youngster the principles of circular economy or the details of property automation, but what he can do is ponder what basketball can teach us about life – human life and the life of company.

![Photo: Erkki Hautaviita](//images.ctfassets.net/nuypofklqhtg/14Jid7OVb3U61lYP4TMvV6/ff396ca6c3b49f5ebc56897743b50b2e/Antti-2_Photo-Erkki_Hautaviita_Photography.jpg)

## Why do we do what we do? 

Giving up something I love once and for all was tough to start with, but little by little, the grief was replaced by relief and wonder: how on earth did I play so long and so hard? It was absolutely exhausting! Only from a distance could I see the taxing side of basketball – and there was plenty to that, too. Until then, I'd just considered it all a part of normal life.  

The wonder subsided once I understood the reason why I used to be able to do it. It was the passion within me – I loved playing and getting the best out of myself and genuine team play. It was my thing, the best way for me to spend my time. When you love something, nothing is too taxing, but when you don't, everything is. That's the greatest lesson of all.

Team athletes often comment in interviews that what they'll miss most after retirement is the dressing room, the friends and the ambience there rather than the game itself. I don't doubt or belittle this, but my experience is completely the opposite. 

I already knew while playing that I would specifically miss the game. Those moments when you find something within yourself or your team that you didn't know existed – or maybe you did, but you also knew that it would only come out in those precious moments when your skills and passion are in perfect flow, the entire team becomes a single organism, and even the opponent in the same space contributes to making everything exactly right.  

Even then I realised that playing good basketball represents a higher state of being, which I'll probably never reach again after ending my career. It used to make me sad, but now I'm happy to be aware of such a state and the fact that I had the chance to experience it.

Now that it's all in the past, what do I do instead? Well, I continue to try and find myself and perhaps even personal fulfilment. It's time to focus on the other things I love. The question of what sustainable development can mean in a company has fascinated me for a while already, so I'm not at all lost. I'm actually very lucky, I know and admit it. But enough about me. Where's the connection to Asuntoyhtymä?

## Why do we do what we do at Asuntoyhtymä? 

Different people are interested in different things. Since they were young, the founders of Asuntoyhtymä, Jaakko Niskanen and Erik Selin have each been fascinated by the property business, keen to understand it as well as to use that understanding to find a balance between property business and other things in life. To focus as fully as possible on what they love. That, in a nutshell, is Asuntoyhtymä's reason to exist. 

Of course a company shouldn't just exist to enable its owners or directors to mess around doing whatever they like without a care for the rest of the world. A company like that wouldn't stay afloat very long. When you invest in property, you must not only look after the property itself but also the people who use it. Suddenly, you have plenty of things on your plate and you need people with plenty of different skills. What begins with property ends with people. 

After and in the midst of big life changes we should always remember this: people need to do what they love. Enabling that for employees, both at work and at leisure, leads to the best possible results, and not only for them but also for their customers and other people. Here would be a great opportunity for me to digress and discuss the Joo Kodit promise of carefree rental living and their many ambitious objectives, but let's leave that to another time. There's no shortage of objectives and our to-do list is long.

Instead, I will add one final thought. Even though I've been saying we should try to find ourselves and do what we love, we can't just turn our gaze inwards. The real reason for us to exist, the true meaning, is found our connection to other people and perhaps even this world at large. This connection, however, is a great way to fulfil our own passions, too! 

__[Subscribe to the Asuntoyhtymä newsletter](https://www.asuntoyhtyma.fi/en/newsletter "Subscribe to the Asuntoyhtymä newsletter")__ and get an email whenever Antti posts something new. 

Kuva: Erkki Hautaviita

Our Head of Sustainability Antti Niskanen ponders Asuntoyhtymä's reason to exist in his blog.

What is Asuntoyhtymä's reason to exist?

__In his very first blog post, Asuntoyhtymä's head of sustainability, Antti Niskanen, looks back at the first four months in his new job and explains why he prefers to talk about sustainability rather than responsibility.__

When I joined Asuntoyhtymä in August, I wasn't given an exact and specific job description or a to do list, and that was fantastic! I could just start to examine the company's work from different points of view and make up my mind about what sustainability and sustainable development in particular should look like at Asuntoyhtymä. 

Of course I've also had lots of practical things land on my desk – like different kinds of energy issues – over the autumn. It's become very clear to me that my job will involve constant time travel between the now and the distant future, as distant as I can begin to imagine. We can envisage a wonderful, sustainable future, but the decisions within the company on how we'll get there need to made now. Now, right now, and always now.

## Thinking of sustainability broadens your horizons

This job can easily make your head spin. That's why, to clarify both what's happening and what I want to happen in the future, I need to distance myself from all the various external pressures, current trends, and corporate responsibility frameworks. Talking about responsibility actually feels too narrow to me, though it's definitely a positive concept. 

On the other hand, I find the ideas of sustainable development, or just sustainability, more holistic and unconstrained. They help me analyse how all kinds of things and systems work as well as to determine where this company belongs in the world.

What do I mean by this? If we take sustainability as just something or someone's capacity to exist or thrive in the long run, it will be considered important by all those who desire longevity. In that case, we don't need to wonder or argue about the limits of corporate responsibility, or whether responsibility even needs to be in the picture. 

Instead, we can start building an action plan, first in our minds and then in practice, of operations that can be successful in the long term in variable circumstances and therefore become part of a sustainable system – and a sustainable world. Of course money needs to be considered, too, but only as a part of a bigger whole. 

We can build on this basic idea of sustainability when we think of what's most important in our own, our colleagues' or our neighbours' lives, the values, processes and strategies of the company, the operations of the property and building industry, and eventually the entire society and the world. Sounds really nice and easy, right?

![Antti Niskanen vastuullisuusblogi kuva](//images.ctfassets.net/nuypofklqhtg/pYZ4mX0zzDlcgKnlacVxJ/94c22a40ba845e79788507644c0aae04/1509-asuntoyhtyma___6982.jpg)

## Sustainable development must be embraced by all

Making decisions in as long a term as possible has always been at the core of Asuntoyhtymä's thinking, so in that sense sustainability is nothing new here. However, once we start to more consciously analyse things on all different levels, from individuals to the entire planet, we can see the company's role as part of a broader system and its sustainable development from a new perspective. It takes a lot of hard work to bring all these levels together, as well as skills and knowledge that I believe no one in the world has quite yet. 

If there's something we know already, it's that we all have to take responsibility for sustainable development, both within the company and beyond. I encounter things I'm unfamiliar with every day, but I've accepted that and I try to find as many wise people and organisations to help me and us as possible. 

So, if you meet me one day, be ready to answer questions, follow-up questions, and follow-up questions to follow-up questions. Hopefully we can have an interesting chat, too. By building networks everywhere we can, we'll all become wiser together and achieve things beyond our wildest imagination. 

[Subscribe to the Asuntoyhtymä newsletter](https://asuntoyhtyma.fi/en/newsletter) and you'll be the first to know about Antti's latest posts.

Antti Niskanen vastuullisuusjohtaja Asuntoyhtymä 

Antti Niskanen vastuullisuusjohtaja Asuntoyhtymä kuva 2

In his first blog, our Head of Sustainability Antti Niskanen reveals why he rather talks about sustainability than responsibility.

I prefer to talk about sustainability rather than responsibility

Press release 29.9.2021 
Mangrove Oy & Asuntoyhtymä Group

New, high standard rental homes will soon be available in the attractive Laajakallio neighbourhood of Kirkkonummi, thanks to the Kirkkonummen Saaga apartment complex commissioned by Asuntoyhtymä Group. The two-storey blocks of self-contained apartments are built by Mangrove.

Kirkkonummen Saaga will comprise two apartment blocks with a total of 34 apartments. Their construction started in August, and residents will be welcomed in autumn 2022.

Laajakallio is a tranquil neighbourhood with essential services from day care to a primary school and grocery shops nearby. Excellent traffic connections make commuting easy. The entire apartment complex has been designed with comfortable living and convenience in mind. 

"Asuntoyhtymä already manages more than 250 Joo Kodit rental apartments in Kirkkonummi. The Laajakallio and Masala neighbourhoods stand out with their proximity to nature, sports facilities and transport connections. We believe in the lasting attraction of this area and want to further develop its community spirit. That’s why Joo Kodit decided to sponsor Masala’s newly opened Joo.Arena sports centre, too," says __Jaakko Niskanen__ from Asuntoyhtymä Group.

![Kirkkonummen Saaga ulkokuva](//images.ctfassets.net/nuypofklqhtg/7p02Iy0O8OBJPqywir7ymk/62adfe190124fba3ea188b549de5257d/Mangrove_Kirkkonummen_Saaga_ulkokuva.jpg)

## Building materials that save energy and reduce carbon footprint 

The size of the new homes varies from 30.5 m2 studios to 58 m2 two-bedroom apartments. They all combine efficient use of space with modern Scandinavian materials. Water-based underfloor heating and heat recovery ventilation with apartment-specific controls provide round-the-year comfort.

The residents will also enjoy access to a common room, sauna department, and 35 covered parking spaces to rent. Geothermal heating helps minimise the buildings’ carbon footprint.

“Mangrove and Asuntoyhtymä share the same agile and non-hierarchical working philosophy, along with values that drive sustainable development. That’s why it was so easy to embark on this project together,” says the CEO of Mangrove, __Antti Lundstedt__. 

Sustainable choices have been a priority in the planning and design of the new buildings.

“At Mangrove, we make detailed energy and carbon footprint calculations for all our developments. These help us optimise the energy efficiency of the buildings’ technical solutions and structures. Energy efficiency plays the biggest role in a building’s lifetime carbon footprint and cost. This is why we chose geothermal heating for Saaga, as well as set our sights for energy efficiency class A, the highest class possible,” Lundstedt explains.

![Kirkkonummi vuokra-asunto Joo Kodit](//images.contentful.com/nuypofklqhtg/136rbsODsWrHHxkKogAhnV/4203e246dd5538f729c500f17d731f13/Mangrove_Kirkkonummen_Saaga_sisa__kuva.jpg)

## Joo Kodit offers carefree living without rental deposits

Asuntoyhtymä is a property developer, owner and manager, which focuses on high standard rental homes in major growth centres.

It’s new consumer brand is called Joo Homes, which makes all Asuntoyhtymä-owned rental apartments Joo Homes. Joo Homes are new or near-new apartments for people embarking on new adventures and want a carefree life. No deposits are required, and pets are welcome.

“Joo, which means yes in Finnish, stands for carefree rental living. To us, carefree means many things, one of the most important of which is the ability live more sustainably. Together with Mangrove, enabling sustainable living comes easily,” says Jaakko Niskanen.  

### For more information, please contact

Mangrove Oy
Antti Lundstedt, CEO
tel. 050 572 5200

Asuntoyhtymä Group Oy / Joo Kodit 
Heta Kärki, commercial director
tel. 050 566 2798 

__About Mangrove__

*Founded in 1994, Mangrove is a Finnish family-owned housing specialist. The company contracts, builds and manages affordable homes, which support sustainable development and the well-being of the environment. In addition to building residential properties for private individuals to own and rent, Mangrove collaborates with property owners and investors as a general contractor and project partner. Mangrove operates in Pirkanmaa, Southwest Finland and Uusimaa regions as well as in parts of Western Finland. The group’s parent company is Mangrove Yhtiöt Oy. Mangrove’s turnover in 2020 was more than 40 million euro. The company employs approximately 100 people. www.mangrove.fi *

__About Asuntoyhtymä__

*At Asuntoyhtymä, we develop, rent out and manage properties in Finland’s growth centres, such as the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, Tampere region, Turku, and Oulu. As a responsible, long-term owner, we want to promote new ways of sustainable living and housing. Looking after our apartments, residents and the environment is at the heart of everything we do. The mission of Joo Homes is to enable carefree rental living. Joo means yes in Finnish – yes to life’s opportunities, adventures and dreams.*

Kirkkonummen Saaga ulkokuva

New, high-quality rental apartments by Joo Kodit will be completed in Kirkkonummi in autumn 2022.

Laajakallio in Kirkkonummi gets new, upmarket rental homes

__Antti Niskanen (MSc) has been appointed as Asuntoyhtymä’s head of sustainability. Niskanen, who started in his role in mid-August, is in charge of Asuntoyhtymä’s sustainability work, while going through all the group’s operations to make them as sustainable as possible.__

“The concept of sustainable development inspires me. It puts me in a visionary mindset and gives me new ideas about a company’s existence in the longest possible term," Niskanen sanoo.

Niskanen is involved in Asuntoyhtymä’s daily assessment and decision making processes. The practical issues he deals with include, for example, the building materials and energy sources for future properties. Niskanen hopes to clarify the meaning of sustainable development throughout the organisation.

Asuntoyhtymä was already drafting its strategy for sustainable development prior to Niskanen’s arrival, but the plans will now be crystallised and fine-tuned to perfection with his help.  Sustainability, however, has always played a part in Asuntoyhtymä’s decision-making. This year the last of the company’s fully-owned properties that weren’t yet using renewable energy have begun to do so. Energy class A for highest energy efficiency is the target for every new development. Niskanen has been enthusiastically welcomed by his colleagues. 

“Putting sustainable development and social responsibility into practice requires dedicated expertise and time. Appointing a head of sustainability for Asuntoyhtymä was crucially important, as to make a real difference, you must put in the effort, too,” says Jaakko Niskanen, the CEO of Asuntoyhtymä.

![Antti Niskanen vastuullisuusjohtaja Asuntoyhtymä kuva 2](//images.contentful.com/nuypofklqhtg/6tnggzdtMDaYYPqWyTaYAW/0a49784eec22e2588ebbe5f1386024ce/1509-asuntoyhtyma___6877.jpg)

## Sports background helps Niskanen aim high

Niskanen has graduated from Aalto University with an MSc in Production Economics. His Bachelor’s and Master’s theses have focused on sustainable business and development. Until last spring, however, he had a career playing professional basketball.

“The benefit of the sports background in my current role is that I’m used to taking full responsibility for my own work and always doing my absolute best. You must aim as high as you can, both in basketball and in continuous organisational development,” Niskanen says.

After his first month in the new job, Niskanen feels content. He is happy to have the chance to drive Asuntoyhtymä’s sustainability and enthusiastic about looking at the company’s operations through the lens of sustainable development. This means safeguarding the ongoing existence of not just the company but also the entire industry and the modern society. 

“In the end, sustainability is a key issue for the entire building and property industry as well as our society. The current system isn’t sustainable, so we need changes,” Niskanen claims.

![Antti Niskanen vastuullisuusjohtaja Asuntoyhtymä ](//images.ctfassets.net/nuypofklqhtg/7z4f5bS9x7KYo4cfDBSqKa/76b299026c9f9bfd69225764d78aaca5/1509-asuntoyhtyma___6998.jpg)

## Success depends on social responsibility

Besides environmental sustainability, Asuntoyhtymä focuses heavily on the holistic well-being of its tenants as well as on social responsibility. To prevent loneliness, the company provides tenants opportunities to meet their neighbours and spend time together. Asuntoyhtymä’s Joo Kodit apartment complexes are designed to have communal spaces, and the residents of its Kirkkonummen Manhattan apartments are offered a regular shift to exercise in the new Joo.Arena sports centre. 

“Social responsibility is a crucial part of business. For a company to be as successful as possible, it must ensure the happiness of all its stakeholders. In our case that means everyone from employees to our properties’ residents,” Niskanen says.

Next up, Niskanen will collaborate with Asuntoyhtymä employees to discover ways to further improve the wellbeing of everyone connected to the company. 

Niskanen will share his thoughts about Asuntoyhtymä’s sustainability journey in the company’s blog. He plans to first open up the concept of sustainable development and to showcase the sustainability thinking at Asuntoyhtymä in more detail. In the future, he wants to focus on the practical actions the company is taking to make its operations ever more sustainable.  

His first major objective in his role will be to specify and express the company’s sustainability programme in writing. At the same time, he will push small concrete steps from solar panels to eco-friendly floor materials. Niskanen is up for the challenge. 

“The lofty words of a head of sustainability aren’t enough. That’s why I’m ready to work my fingers to the bone.”

Join us on our sustainability journey and [subscribe to the Asuntoyhtymä newsletter](https://asuntoyhtyma.fi/en/newsletter).

Antti Niskanen vastuullisuusjohtajaksi Asuntoyhtymään

Antti Niskanen (Msc) has been appointed as Asuntoyhtymä's Head of Sustainability.

Asuntoyhtymä’s new head of sustainability: “Lofty words aren’t enough – we need action.”

PRESS RELEASE 20.9.2021

__Asuntoyhtymä homes are now called Joo homes. As one in three residents have experienced loneliness, the re-branded rental homes company, Joo Kodit, aims to breathe new life into communities ¬– for example by enabling shared sports activities. Joo Kodit currently comprise 3200 rental apartments in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area as well as in Turku, the Tampere region, Oulu, and Vaasa. More than a thousand new homes are under construction.__

Say hello to Joo Kodit! All Asuntoyhtymä properties are now rented out under the new consumer brand Joo Kodit. Joo Kodit continues what Asuntoyhtymä started: all its apartments are new or nearly new, made for carefree living and different life stages. No deposit is required and pets are welcome. 

### Joo. Carefree rental living that brightens up communities 

Environmental sustainability is a given for Joo Kodit. In addition to that, however, Joo Kodit takes pride in its residents’ well-being and in social responsibility. 74% of Joo Kodit residents live alone.  While there’s a clear need for apartments for singles, people are also eager to get to know their neighbours and share leisure activities with them.

“We want to develop services around rental living and already consider how living alone might look like ten years from now. Living alone can mean lonely living, and that’s a problem we want to help solve,” says Asuntoyhtymä’s Commercial Director __Heta Kärki__.

According to a customer survey*, 31% of the residents of Joo Kodit experience at least some degree of loneliness – same as the comparison group living in another provider’s rental housing. Typically, the residents of Joo Kodit are facing a new phase in their life. This could be anything from moving to an unfamiliar area to getting divorced, or starting new studies.

What’s more, 59 % of Joo Kodit residents are open to the idea of getting to know their neighbours better and spending time with them. As they are more interested than average in sports and exercise, Joo Kodit wants to offer them regular opportunities to do sports together. Residents of the new development Manhattan in Kirkkonummi, for example, can enjoy communal exercise shifts at the new sports centre Joo.Arena sponsored by Joo Kodit.  

Joo Kodit is also exploring other ways to make living more communal. The concept of a common room for residents is under development, and the first such shared space will open in a new property in Masala, Kirkkonummi, this autumn. In Oulu, Joo Kodit is planning a Joo Café as part of an apartment block to let residents interact and make friends with each other.

### For more information about Joo Kodit, please contact: 

Commercial Director 
Heta Kärki
050 566 2798
heta.karki@asuntoyhtyma.fi 

Read more: [joo-kodit.fi/en ](http://www.joo-kodit.fi/en)

The survey was conducted by Innolink as a combination of an electronic questionnaire and a consumer panel in March 2021. The target group for the customer survey comprised the current residents of Asuntoyhtymä’s apartments and the potential market, meaning 16–65-year-old Finnish consumers living in rented accommodation. The survey results are based on 1629 responses, 628 to the customer survey and 1001 to the overall market survey.

*At Asuntoyhtymä, we develop, rent out and manage properties in Finland’s growth centres, such as the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, Tampere region, Turku, and Oulu. As a responsible, long-term owner, we want to promote new ways of sustainable living and housing. Looking after our apartments, residents and the environment is at the heart of everything we do. The mission of Joo Kodit is to enable carefree rental living. Joo means yes in Finnish– yes to life’s opportunities, adventures and dreams.*

Joo logo 

Asuntoyhtymä homes are now called Joo Kodit. Joo Kodit aims to enliven communities, for example by offering sports facilities.

New rental home brand takes action to prevent loneliness 

__Yoga, dance, exercise classes, gym, racket sports, climbing, bowling – and much more. Joo Kodit is the main sponsor of the brand new indoor sports centre Joo.Arena. The holistic wellness centre opened in the Masala neighbourhood of Kirkkonummi in September 2021.__

“The indoor sports hall that served Masala since 2004 has been replaced by an expanded and renovated facility, which offers double the amount of space – up from 5000 to over 10000 square metres,” says the sports hall’s Managing Director __Taisto Koivumäki__ .

![Joo Arena ulkokuva ](//images.contentful.com/nuypofklqhtg/4ax2d3pdwrz7JLEP0qytas/34cb94e14040c4f10429a171056cd560/Joo_arena_ulkokuva)

## Joo Kodit is the main sponsor of a new sports centre 

The main sponsor of the sport centre, Joo Kodit, is property developer Asuntoyhtymä’s new rental home brand, which provides apartments in Uusimaa, Tampere, Turku and Oulu. Joo Kodit comprise approximately 3200 rental homes, with over 1000 more being built.

Joo Kodit currently have 250 apartments in the Masala and Tolsa neighbourhoods of Kirkkonummi. A new development called the New York block is under construction in the Tinanpuisto park opposite the sports hall. Its first part, Manhattan, will be completed towards the end of 2021. Once finished, the New York block will be home to over 300 apartments.

“Many of the inhabitants in this area are facing a new phase in their life. They may have just started their studies or moved to a new region. As the main sponsor and a local stakeholder we want to boost up community spirit and our tenants’ well-being. Providing opportunities for exercise is just one part of that,”, says Asuntoyhtymä’s Commercial Director __Heta Kärki__ .

![Joo Arena kiipeily](//images.contentful.com/nuypofklqhtg/3NlvNGRRIsSxSkMwuymB2z/68fd73e499b40afbb55083e4928680c0/joo_arena_kiipeily.png)

## A sporty community close to home 

Measured by size, Joo.Arena is one of the top 10 indoor sports centres in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area. In terms of the number of sports available, however, Koivumäki puts it in the top 3. Facilities will open gradually over the course of the autumn, and the centre’s official inauguration is planned for November.  

According to a customer survey, the residents of Joo Kodit prefer to spend their free time doing exercise and enjoying the company of friends. The plan is to offer four free communal sports shifts per month for those living in Joo Kodit near the sports centre – two floorball shifts and two exercise classes in alternate weeks.

Koivumäki sees the new sports centre becoming host to a broad spectrum of communal activities. Joo Kodit advocates carefree rental living and thriving communities, so making Joo.Arena an active meeting place for local residents comes naturally.

“We give people of all ages the chance to try a wide variety of exercise. It’s great to have a local company like Joo Kodit attracting sporty residents to our neighbourhood. We look forward to working together,” Koivumäki says.

Koivumäki hopes that the myriad of sports available will inspire people to exercise, even those who aren’t as naturally active. Padel, for example, is a low-threshold option to try, as it requires no experience in playing sports. What’s more, there will be plenty of sports classes and courses for children and adolescents who are keen to try a healthy new hobby. 

“I hope that Joo.Arena will lead the way as a venue for varied sports activities in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area .”

Read more at [jooarena.fi](https://jooarena.fi/).

Joo Arena ulkokuva 

The newly opened Joo.Arena sports centre gets the residents of Kirkkonummi moving with its varied facilities.

Joo Kodit is the main sponsor of a new sports centre 

The Board of Green Building Council Finland has accepted Asuntoyhtymä Group into its network of members. Green Building Council Finland (FIGBC) is a collaborative association to promote a sustainable built environment, which is carbon neutral and fulfils the demands of the circular economy, while still maintaining a high quality of life. 

"To us, joining Green Building Council Finland is a natural step in line with our strategy. We now own 3000 rental homes in Finland’s largest cities, meaning our contribution to the built environment is already significant. As a long-term developer, owner and provider of rented accommodation, ensuring sustainability in our homes throughout their lifecycles is both a passion and a duty for us," says Asuntoyhtymä’s CEO __Jaakko Niskanen__ says.

The people at Asuntoyhtymä have high hopes for the membership. Besides concrete tools and information, they hope to engage in a rich and varied dialogue with different industry stakeholders. 

"It’s wonderful to have a network like Green Building Council Finland, which allows organisations in our industry to share their best practices for sustainable development. We want to lead the way when it comes to sustainability, as well as to actively develop urban living. We’re, of course, more than happy to share everything we’ve learnt so far, too, Niskanen elaborates. 

### Efficient solutions for ecological living 

Residential housing contributes the largest share of the total carbon footprint in Finland.  Asuntoyhtymä is tackling this challenge by choosing responsible partners and investing in efficient use of space. 

"We’re always on the lookout for more ecological ways to both build and live. This year, for example, the last of our fully owned properties have made the switch to renewable energy. We’ve also made the decision to aim for the highest energy efficiency class, class A, for every one of our new developments,” Niskanen says. 

Asuntoyhtymä’s residents are predominantly young, mostly under 35. A customer survey recently highlighted that they’ve chosen rental living for its ease and flexibility, which matches their current situation in life.

"Young people are looking for eco-friendly and easy living. Thanks to changing values and the rise of the sharing economy, owning things has lost its charm. Consumer focus has shifted to experiences and services that make life easier. Our energy-efficient apartments surrounded by services and good transport connections support this transition and sustainable development," Niskanen explains.

FIGBC logo

The Board of Green Building Council Finland has accepted Asuntoyhtymä Group into its network of members. 