Finland Shows Crisis Readiness Starts with Knowing Your Neighbours - Commu Wins City Resilience Hack

The City of Tallinn and the innovation hub Tehnopol organised the City Resilience Hack as part of Estonia's Defence Week, 24–25 September. Commu is the first Finnish company to win the competition.

Here is what City of Valencia shared of their experience with Commu:

"What we particularly valued in Commu was its community-centred approach. The platform is designed to connect people, strengthen local networks and make better use of the resources already present within neighbourhoods. We see this as an important part of building urban resilience before an emergency occurs, not only responding once a crisis is underway.

This approach responds directly to a challenge that became particularly visible during the 2024 DANA: how to better coordinate community support and volunteer networks during and, especially, in the aftermath of an emergency. Commu has the potential to strengthen existing community networks, connect them more effectively with emergency managers and municipal services, and map the people, skills and resources available locally. This could support a more coordinated mobilization of assistance when a crisis occurs, while also helping improve support for people who may be particularly vulnerable in emergency situations.

The team also stood out for its ability to listen and adapt throughout the hackathon. They incorporated the feedback provided by the city and translated it into proposals tailored to València’s context, combining an already tested solution with the flexibility to respond to the specific needs and priorities identified locally."

"We're grateful and humbled. This win shows there is demand across Europe for the Finnish way of building trust and shared security. In a crisis, help is always on offer, but it has to reach the right place fast. A digital community platform can make that happen," says Sami Ekmark, co-founder of Commu and a psychiatric nurse.

Resilience is built in everyday life. In Valencia, the pilot can reach millions

The pilot will test Commu across the Valencia region, home to around 2.5 million people. In autumn 2024, the region was hit by devastating floods. They showed how much people want to help, and how much support that willingness needs: information has to flow, people asking for help have to be matched with people offering it, and volunteers' work has to be coordinated safely with the authorities.

"People want to help, and you always see it in a crisis. A city's job is to make helping as easy and safe as possible. When residents, local associations and volunteers are already in one place in everyday life, you don't have to start from scratch when a crisis hits," Ekmark says.

Local governments across Europe are taking on a bigger role in crisis resilience. The security environment is changing, public finances are tight, and trust in other people and in institutions is under strain. Resilience doesn't come from defence or infrastructure alone. A society only functions in a crisis if people keep their ability to act and keep trusting one another.

Psychological resilience, a core part of Finland's comprehensive security model, means trust in your community and society, faith in the future, and the sense that you're not alone. It rests above all on a person's sense of security. Uncertainty is easier to face when you know what you can do, who you can do it with, and where to find help when you need it.

"In Finland, psychological resilience is a national asset. Loneliness and exclusion weaken it; community and meaningful activity strengthen it. So belonging isn't a soft value. It's part of national security, and it's built one city, one community and one good deed at a time," Ekmark says.

A tool for everyday life and for preparedness

In everyday use, Commu is where residents help and meet each other, and where local associations and non-profits become visible to residents in one place. Cities can publish news and resident benefits on Commu, and invite residents to events and to take part in decision-making. The same platform can bring together the organisations and resources involved in emergency preparedness, so residents know where to turn.

Commu is currently developing a preparedness model with the Finnish municipality of Inkoo, in a project funded by Sitra, the Finnish Innovation Fund. Over the next year, the project will define how the platform can be used to strengthen psychological resilience and preparedness. The Valencia pilot will add international experience to this work.

In Finland, Commu works with more than 30 municipalities, and its users have completed over 60,000 acts of help. Commu operates in Finland, Sweden, Norway and the UK.

"A digital platform doesn't replace meeting face to face. It creates more of it. Everyone has skills and strengths, and in a crisis, we need all of them," Ekmark concludes.