Valtteri Bottas began his career when he was just six years old, racing karts in his hometown of Nastola in Finland. Now a successful Formula 1 driver, Valtteri Bottas is regarded as an international sports star. After a seven-year stint in Finland’s National Karting Squad, Bottas moved into single-seater racing, and is now a racing driver for the prestigious Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team.
In 2019, Formula One announced a new ambitious plan to be net zero carbon by 2030. By 2025 Formula One will also ensure all events are sustainable. This will involve using sustainable materials at all events; eliminating single-use plastics; and new waste management systems to reuse / recycle / compost materials.
In F1 circles, Bottas is known as an enthusiastic and nature-loving person for whom cooperation with Lahti’s European Green Capital project is a matter of immense pride.
“When you spend a lot of time abroad, you learn to appreciate the things that are commonplace in Finland and luxury elsewhere. We have clean nature, clean water, and clean air. In addition, recycling and other everyday choices are not taken for granted everywhere. Lahti is a pioneer in environmental issues in many ways, and Finnish solutions can be presented to the world,” says Bottas.
As an international racing star, Valtteri Bottas spends a lot of time on racetracks around the world but he still believes his best times are spent in nature, in particular the forests in Päijänne Tavastia.
“I want to be involved in protecting them for future generations as well. Each of us can choose our own way of working for the environment, regardless of our profession. It is much more meaningful to do every day environmental acts than not to act at all,” he says.
As the European Green Capital for 2021, Lahti wants to support Finland's climate goals; and raise awareness of the city’s long-term environmental commitments and actions both at home in Finland and around the world. Lahti wants to stimulate discussion in various circles, as the city advocates that caring for the environment is a shared responsibility. The city’s diverse programme for 2021 includes different types and sizes of events and partnership projects that the city will execute sustainably.
This year, the annual sports event that Bottas organises, the ‘Valtteri Bottas Duathlon’, will be held in Nastola as part of Lahti’s European Green Capital 2021 programme. Setting an example for responsible event management, it aims to be a carbon-neutral sporting event for the whole family. The event will remind people that everyone can do their bit for the environment and that all actions - big and small - make a difference. The race even has a one-minute time penalty for any racer seen to be littering!
In 2019, together with Loiste Energia, the carbon footprint of the Duathlon was reduced by 8,500 kg CO₂. Initiatives like the Valtteri Bottas Duathlon can help Europe to achieve its 2030 Climate Target Plan goals and can set an international example for the sporting sector. Europe is aiming to cut greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030, putting Europe on a path to become climate-neutral by 2050.
Discover all the Citizen Diaries from Lahti
Valtteri Bottas began his career when he was just six years old, racing karts in his hometown of Nastola in Finland.
In the winter of 2016, Eetu Floor was walking to a friend’s band practice in Lahti. On his way there, he chose a shortcut through the industrial area of Sopenkorpi where he found an overgrown industrial track and plot.
The Lahti Pelicans is a Finnish professional ice hockey team that plays for the City of Lahti, in the ‘Liiga’, Finland’s top professional ice hockey league.
Emmi Valli-Forsback from Lahti buys almost all of her family’s clothing and household goods second-hand; and rents a market stall to sell on what she no longer needs. She rarely considers buying something new if she can find it second-hand.
Bee doctor Kamran Fakhimzadeh knows what a miracle honey is: to produce a kilo of it, bees have to visit up to ten million flowers. At the same time, bees do us a huge favour by pollinating vegetables and fruit and berry plants.
Rikka-Liisa Aalto has always picked up litter in her local area. After becoming a mother, she started picking up litter almost every day. The Puhdas Päijät-Häme network was born out of a desire to make a connection with other people who care about the environment.
In 2015, in celebration of the 150th anniversary of the Sibelius Hall, the Lahti Symphony Orchestra initiated a project to help the City of Lahti reach its carbon emission reduction goals.
Fashion designer and entrepreneur Riikka Flink has been observing the clothing industry for over 30 years. She believes that ecology, sustainability, and responsibility are possible when production is closely monitored.
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In 2021, Lahti, Finland, stood at the forefront of sustainability as the European Green Capital. The city set new standards in clean energy, circular economy, and green urban living.