As society is facing rapid change and increasing volatility, the need for societal resilience has become an important strategic factor. How vulnerable is Finland to changes in its external and internal environments, how do people respond to changes and how do key institutions function?
As a society faces rapid changes and challenges, it is important to have a common understanding of what that society stands for. Societal polarization and marginalization create fragmentation and vulnerability to external influence and one-sided narratives. Values and institutions that strengthen societal cohesion may be the most important tools of defence. At the end, social policy and security policy are actually two sides of the same coin of national defence.
These topics were discussed at a conference organized by the Mannerheim Foundation, The Mannerheim League for Child Welfare and the Finnish Institute for International Affairs: A Crisis-resistant Finland - Resilience in Society and in Security Policy (in Finnish).