On 25 July 2025, the Finnish Environmental Institute (Syke) held their case study’s inception workshop, in Raasepori, Finland. The workshop, attended by around 30 external stakeholders, mostly farmers and land users, included a demonstration of the maintenance of the studied two-stage channel (a river restoration). 

During the event, the project partners shared general information about LAFERIA, and more specifically in regards to the project’s plan of action for the Finnish case study, focusing on wet and grassy landscape features (LF) for water management. They also went over participants’ previous knowledge on the topic, and other landscape feature related points. 

The demonstration of the two-stage channel landscape feature, which was known to be of particular interest to participants, was done using mowing machines aimed at cutting and removing the vegetation to desired height in desired areas of the landscape feature. The workshop gathered farmers and landowners’ perceptions on the landscape feature at hand and the needs for further technical, financial, and policy development required for its mainstreaming. This information will feed into future plans for the project’s stakeholder collaboration, and other activities. Participants expressed strong general interest in the benefits of landscape features, opening a space for discussions, where they could also voice their concerns, and views regarding the development needs of LF. 

Inception workshop, Raasepori, Finland, 2025. Photo by Syke.