7. Comparison and synthesis

The preceding country-specific chapters show that each Nordic country has initiated various efforts to actively engage the private sector in achieving national climate targets. However, the countries have taken different approaches, influenced by variations in climate targets, administrative structures, and norms and traditions regarding public-private collaborations. Consequently, each initiative is tailored to its unique circumstances and approaches. Nonetheless, several similarities are evident among the initiatives studied, particularly concerning their overarching objectives, the division of responsibilities between the public and private sectors, and the intended use of outcomes.

While this study is limited to five selected government-led initiatives, it shows a trend of rapidly increasing public-private climate collaboration within the Nordic region. Among the initiatives examined, the oldest is Fossil Free Sweden, which dates back to 2015 during Sweden’s preparation for COP21 in Paris, with its roadmap program starting in 2017. Both the Danish Climate Partnerships and the Finnish Low-Carbon Roadmaps initiatives were launched in 2019. Formal public-private climate collaboration in Iceland and Norway began later, in 2022 and 2023 (respectively), though built upon prior private initiatives.

This chapter aims to identify key similarities, shared elements, and differences in the approaches taken in the selected public-private collaboration initiatives. The comparison will center on the five following themes:

→ Objectives

→ Sectoral coverage and participants

→ Access to information

→ Structure and organization

→ Use of outcomes

Within the discussion of structure and organization, examples will be provided of both best practices and challenges.

The overarching objectives and the primary motives for public-private collaboration in the Nordic countries appear to be largely similar. The initiatives studied in the present project are typically intended to accelerate the green transition and achieve national climate targets by establishing effective communication and information exchange platforms and by creating shared commitment and mutual trust between the government and private sectors.

Publicly accessible information and feedback from informants suggest that these initiatives are opportunity-driven and business-oriented. They all place emphasis on aligning private sector interests with national climate goals in such a way that moving toward the goals enhances the competitiveness of businesses, thereby also bolstering the country’s position globally.

In addition to their core focus on engaging economic actors in climate efforts, most of the initiatives also prioritize broader economic, societal, and environmental objectives. They seek to implement the green transition in a manner that safeguards and strengthens the competitiveness of private sectors, promotes exports, supports job creation and prosperity, and addresses issues of inequality so as to enable a just transition.

The present study highlights a widespread willingness among private sectors in the Nordic countries to contribute to national climate targets. Informants from all countries highlighted the mutual interest, shared by governments and the private sectors, in joining forces on ambitious climate action. Many also mentioned the significance of EU climate-related requirements as a major driver in this context, with businesses recognizing the benefits of the competitive edge gained by participating in and supporting ambitious national climate efforts.

The study shows considerable differences in the sectoral coverage of collaboration initiatives. These variations may primarily be attributed to differences in national circumstances and emissions profiles. In part, they may also be explained by the fact that some initiatives have been operating longer than others, and participation is thus more evolved.

Additionally, there appear to be several differences as to who represents participating actors. For example, the representation of the government varies between countries; while relevant ministries are typically involved, participating ministries span a wide array of topics, including climate, environment, energy, business, trade, industry, transport, agriculture and forestry, and economic affairs.

Sweden’s Fossil Free Sweden office stands out as regards public sector representation. It is a public body created specifically for this cooperation and has a unique situation between the government and the private sector. Denmark’s Green Business Forum also creates a special arrangement for public-private collaboration, with its structured dialogue platform which focuses on broader participation and expert involvement.

Across all the initiatives, the private sector involvement is typically led by business leaders and organizations. Labor associations seem to be more directly involved in the process in Norway and Denmark than in the other Nordic countries. According to informants in both Finland and Iceland, concerns have been raised over insufficient participation of labor associations, given the need to address social aspects.

The participation of other actors varies, including that of environmental organizations, independent experts, and the general public.

Information about the selected initiatives is generally accessible through online sources. This enables the public and stakeholders to understand the main aspects and elements of these collaboration projects. The extent of available information varies between countries, however.

For example, a document outlining the roles of actors, procedures, and the mandate of relevant actors is publicly accessible in Sweden (kommittédirektiv), Denmark (kommissorium), and Norway (general agreement). In Finland, the government has published instructions for the private sectors participating the Low-Carbon Roadmaps. In contrast, in Iceland a memorandum describing the role of participants is not publicly available.

Apart from Iceland and Norway, information in English about the initiatives is readily available. Denmark and Sweden particularly stand out for their focus on information sharing regarding their approaches. Finland has also made significant efforts in disseminating information about the Low-Carbon Roadmaps in English.

While all the initiatives are driven by the government, the formulation of the outputs (roadmaps and recommendations) can in all instances be characterized as sector-led. Private sectors are given substantial autonomy to develop and implement their roadmaps based on their own situations, knowledge, and priorities. Participating private sectors are thus generally responsible for organizing their work on roadmaps and recommendations.

The role of the public sector, on the other hand, is to oversee, support, facilitate, and to some extent to coordinate the work of the private sectors. The extent of public sector involvement varies between countries. The private sectors generally bear the cost of their work, although in some cases the public sector shares the costs of workshops and seminars.

The country-specific chapters demonstrate that in practice, the initiatives studied vary significantly in structure and organization. Some have a well-developed structure, while other initiatives are operated more loosely. Denmark and Sweden use highly structured approaches, whereas Finland’s initiative is less structured but maintains relatively clear roles and responsibilities for each actor. On the other hand, Iceland and Norway appear to have the least structured initiatives, based on a ‘learning by doing’ approach.

Based on feedback from informants across these initiatives concerning the structure and organization of the collaboration, the following examples of best practices and main challenges emerged. Given the limitations of the study, these should not be considered comprehensive; rather, they are illustrative examples providing insights into the experience gained in the initiatives studied.

The study has highlighted the practical advantages of public-private collaboration, primarily centered around the sharing of information and knowledge. The idea underlying most of these efforts appears to be that the public sector provides long-term goals, stability, and predictability, while the private sector offers innovation and investments crucial for achieving national climate targets. Across all five countries, the outcomes of these initiatives are explicitly intended to facilitate needed private-sector investments and actions, and to assist the government in identifying and addressing barriers to effective measures for meeting national targets.

Numerous examples from the Nordic countries already demonstrate how information and proposals from the private sector have contributed to improvements in the regulatory and institutional environment. However, establishing a direct link between private sector proposals generated by the selected initiatives and actual policy measures often proves challenging.