VILPE is a corporate partner of the John Nurminen Foundation
VILPE is a corporate partner of the John Nurminen Foundation for 2025–2027. The company will donate €5,000 per year to the foundation, amounting to a total of €15,000 over three years. The goal of the John Nurminen Foundation’s projects is to improve the condition of the Baltic Sea by reducing environmental burden and problems affecting the sea, such as eutrophication and biodiversity loss.
In addition to the wider Baltic Sea region, the foundation’s work also focuses on areas such as the Kvarken Archipelago and the Laihianjoki River. This is important to VILPE, as the company’s factory and headquarters are in Korsholm, near Vaasa.
“Vaasa is a beautiful coastal city, and the region is home to a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We want to support their protection. The foundation has long been working to improve the condition of the Baltic Sea and rivers, and we are convinced of their work,” says Tuomas Saikkonen, CEO of VILPE.
The John Nurminen Foundation’s efforts in the Kvarken area and the Laihianjoki River are part of the ACWA LIFE project (Actions for Waters from Source to Sea Life). The project aims to improve water quality by developing catchment area planning and related measures in five areas, one of which is the Laihianjoki River basin.
The condition of the Kvarken marine environment also depends on the Laihianjoki River, which carries significant amounts of nutrients into the sea. This nutrient load is one of the main causes of eutrophication in the waters off Vaasa. The Kvarken Archipelago is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
One of VILPE’s ongoing charity initiatives
“The saying that the sea is protected from the land is especially true in the Ostrobothnia region, where rivers carry nutrients causing eutrophication into the sea. With donated funds, the John Nurminen Foundation works, for example, to reduce nutrient loading from agriculture and forestry and to strengthen people’s connection to the sea. Thank you to VILPE for the donation, which enables us to continue our important work to save the Baltic Sea and its heritage,” says Annamari Arrakoski-Engardt, CEO of the John Nurminen Foundation.
The cooperation with the John Nurminen Foundation is one of many charitable initiatives supported by VILPE. Each year, the company donates 0.3% of its turnover to charity, amounting to approximately €60,000 annually. Between 2020 and 2025, VILPE has provided sponsorships and donations totalling €723,000 in Finland. Of this amount, €239,000 has been direct donations and €484,000 sponsorships.