Sustainability
Sustainable development is a continuous and managed social change taking place globally, regionally and locally, with the goal of securing good living opportunities for current and future generations. This also means that the environment, people and the economy are taken into account equally in decision-making and operations.
Since sustainability is built into the operations of the government, it is also an essential part of the operations of the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK) as it carries out its statutory tasks for the benefit of the society. Ministries, agencies and institutions also have a responsibility to work towards the United Nations’ (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The purpose of STUK’s operations is to protect people, society, the environment and future generations from the harmful effects of radiation.
This fits in well with the goals of the UN Global Agenda for Sustainable Development, the 2030 Agenda. As instructed by the central government, STUK’s sustainability measures both increase STUK’s handprint and systematically reduce its footprint.
All government agencies publish reports on their work for sustainable development. This also helps with identifying areas that have room for improvement. In June 2023, STUK published its second sustainability report on 2022.
Read more about STUK's sustainability reports in Finnish:
Sustainability report 2022 (PDF)
STUK promotes several sustainable development goals
In 2022, STUK promoted several themes concerning sustainable development and responsibility in its regular operations. In particular, the UN Sustainable Development Goals 3, 7 and 16 and their sub-goals (3.4, 7.1, 16.6, 16.8, 16.a) are seen as naturally linked to STUK's activities.
STUK monitors the safe use of radiation by granting safety licences for radiation practices in medicine, industry and research and by conducting in-practice inspections at places of use of radiation. Properly targeted requirements and controls create the conditions for the safe and legitimate use of radiation both in industry and for the detection and treatment of diseases in the medical use of radiation. STUK continuously has an accurate picture of the Finnish population's exposure to ionizing radiation and radioactive substances.
The methods for monitoring radiation safety are constantly being renewed towards higher accuracy and sensitivity and a better focus on matters that are essential for safety. STUK operates in close cooperation with universities, research institutes and university hospitals to meet the national needs for competence and research on radiation safety.
STUK campaigns to raise public awareness of the harmful effects of radon and solar UV radiation. STUK has the capability and readiness to respond to radiation hazards and to support other authorities with its expertise in protecting the population in hazardous situations.
STUK monitors the safety of the use of nuclear energy in Finland. STUK is an active participant in the development of international regulations in the field, for example, under the auspices of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and shares its own national experiences and good practices in its international expert work.
STUK’s international expert service activities promote the building of efficient and accountable institutions and contribute to the promotion of peaceful societies. STUK’s expert service projects support the development of nuclear and radiation safety authorities in the target countries, as well as the principles of good governance. Efficient and accountable governmental institutions contribute not only to safety, but also to the peaceful use of nuclear energy and contribute to the strengthening of the international system of treaties, including the control and management of nuclear materials.
STUK also acts as an expert and national authority in the monitoring of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban treaty and offers its expertise in the prevention of international nuclear terrorism.
STUK's footprint on its operating environment
From the point of view of responsibility, the footprint of an organization’s existence and operations consists of their negative ecological, social and economic impact on the operating environment. The aim is to reduce the footprint of operations.
In STUK's operations, direct adverse environmental impacts occur mainly in energy consumption, travel, waste generation, procurement and paper consumption. The construction of STUK's new premises began in the winter of 2020, and the move into the new premises took place in March–June 2022. The floor area of the entire building is 12,700 gross square meters. The new premises use space more efficiently than the previous premises. The premises utilise geothermal heating and solar energy and also contain building automation that optimizes energy consumption. Another means for reducing energy consumption is automatically controlled LED lighting. Right from the start, the electricity consumption of the new building was only half of that of the old one.
STUK aims to be a workplace where employees are treated fairly and equally and which provides a good working environment and community, with clear responsibilities and interesting and meaningful work tasks. In 2022, STUK supported the work ability and well-being of the personnel by offering ePassi (a sports, wellbeing, cultural and lunch benefit), the possibility to use STUK’s gym and recreational activities organised by STUK’s staff association. STUK offers comprehensive occupational health care services and a low-threshold psychological wellbeing coaching service where employees can discuss life’s challenges with professionals.
STUK develops the competence of its personnel systematically, taking into account the needs of the organization as well as individual employees’ needs for professional development. Systematic competence management also seeks to respond to the challenges posed by the constantly changing operating environment. In 2022, STUK carried out a wide range of activities to develop the employees’ competence. The development of supervisor work and leadership continued, with the provided training concentrating on themes like safety culture and various orientation training.
According to STUK’s VMBaro job satisfaction survey 2022, gender equality is implemented well in the workplace, as is equality between people. STUK's Equality and Non-discrimination Plan was updated in 2021 in a Collaborative Working Group and was approved by STUK's Management Board in January 2022. Objectives and measures were set in the areas of recruitment, career development and competence development, equal pay and other terms and conditions of employment, reconciliation of work and family life, development of working conditions, and sexual harassment and other inappropriate treatment.
STUK uses its funds responsibly, accurately and appropriately. One of the goals of STUK's strategy for 2018–2022 was “Stable finances secure our operations”, which emphasises cost-awareness in STUK’s operations. Also our new strategy takes into account that cost-effectiveness enables development: when we operate cost-effectively, the costs of our regulatory control activities remain reasonable for customers and money is left over for the development of our operations. The procurement guidelines in STUK's management system describe the principles of responsible procurements. The principles of social and environmental responsibility are taken into account in procurements appropriately and are assessed on a case-by-case basis. STUK's own tendering procedures require that tenderers have properly met their social obligations, paid their taxes and social security contributions, and comply with their legal obligations regarding environmental protection, occupational health and safety, working conditions and terms of employment.