The Jyväskylä Citizens' Panel gave its advice to the City Board for the strategy work – the city's updated strategy will be decided at the end of the year

The Citizens' Panel highlighted youth services and support for young people, as well as the development of employment and vitality, as the most important themes of the strategy work. The panel also emphasized the importance of making Jyväskylä’s villages and residential areas pleasant, close to nature, and communal. According to the panel, services must be close to the people.

In its statement, the panel calls for investments in affordable sports opportunities and the development of nature-based sports destinations. The work must be carried out in collaboration with residents. The panel recommends that the operating conditions for cultural activities be maintained at least at the current level and that diverse cultural offerings be ensured.

Jukka Hämäläinen, Chair of the City Board, received the panel’s statement and thanked the panel for its thorough examination of the topic. The statement will be shared with all councillors as the strategy work progresses.

-It is extremely valuable that we hear the views of residents on the future direction. The statement will be closely involved in the preparatory work of councillors and council groups, and will certainly contribute to the selection of strategic priorities, said Jukka Hämäläinen.

The panel consisted of randomly selected Jyväskylä residents

SMS invitations to join the Citizens' Panel were sent to 2,500 randomly selected Jyväskylä residents. From 169 applicants, panel members were chosen to assemble a miniature version of Jyväskylä as comprehensively as possible. The panel of around 30 people met four times during April–May 2025 to draft their unanimous statement. Participants were familiarised with the city’s statutory responsibilities, as well as the goals and implementation of the city strategy update.

The Citizens' Panel events were planned and implemented by Männikkömetsä Oy in cooperation with the city’s participation services. The invitation and selection process was carried out by Tietoykkönen Oy. The Citizens' Panel is part of a project co-financed by the Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra. The project aims to establish the method of deliberative public debate as a permanent part of the City of Jyväskylä’s participation practices.