Finland Launches 100-Year Study to Understand Wellbeing
- 4 days ago
- 3 min read
Finland isn’t just asking what makes people happy—it’s committing the next 100 years to finding out.
That’s the bold premise behind Future Finland, a landmark initiative launched by the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare. Designed as a century-long study, the project will follow the lives of children born between 2026 and 2029, alongside their families, creating one of the most ambitious and far-reaching wellbeing datasets ever attempted.
With an expected cohort of around 200 000 families, this isn’t simply research, it’s a generational lens on life itself. By tracking how health, living conditions, environment, relationships and societal change intersect over time, Future Finland aims to uncover not just what influences wellbeing, but when and how those influences matter most.
Why Finland Is the Perfect Place for This Study
The study focuses on families in Finland who are expecting a child between 2025 and 2029, following this generation and their children over time. Finland itself offers a unique foundation for this research: the country has been ranked the world’s happiest nation for the ninth consecutive year in the 2026 World Happiness Report, with Finns rating their life satisfaction among the highest in the world.
Finland’s ability to take on a project of this scale is no accident. The country combines high-quality population data, strong public trust in science and institutions built to think beyond election cycles and into future generations. It’s a rare alignment, and one that could reshape how the world understands human wellbeing.
Getting to the root of how we truly live
For all our knowledge, wealth and technological progress, many societies are facing rising mental health challenges, increasing loneliness and growing social uncertainty. Future Finland steps into this gap with a different approach: long-term understanding instead of short-term fixes.
“Long-term research like this is part of the responsibility of an educated and forward-looking society,” says President Sauli Niinistö, patron of the project. “A century-long perspective may provide answers to questions we do not yet even know how to ask. The knowledge created through this research can benefit future generations in Finland and potentially around the world,” he says.
This isn’t just about Finland, it’s about setting a new global standard for how we think about human development, resilience, and quality of life.
How the study will shape the future
Future Finland brings together population registers, survey insights and health data to build a dynamic, evolving picture of life over time. Researchers will examine how biological, behavioural, and social factors influence wellbeing throughout life, and identify the moments when timely support could make the greatest difference.
“We believe the direction of human wellbeing can be changed within a single generation,” says Mika Salminen, Director General of the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare. “But we cannot solve problems whose roots we do not understand. Long-term research helps identify the causes of wellbeing, and the most effective ways to strengthen it,” he says.
The study will also explore some of the defining challenges of our time, including mental health, inequality, lifestyle-related diseases, and the long-term impact of global change on younger generations.
Watch a 4-minute glimpse of the future
To bring the project to life, THL released a moving four-minute documentary featuring four couples expecting a child. In an unforgettable twist, each couple is introduced to an AI-generated version of their future child, engaging in real-time conversations that blur the line between imagination and reality.
🎥 See the Future Finland short film that imagines tomorrow, today
The film closes with a powerful invitation from these ‘future children’, asking their parents to take part in the study, a moment that transforms data into something deeply personal and emotionally real.
What This Study Could Reveal
Finland’s 100-year study reminds us that wellbeing isn’t something that just happens, it’s shaped over a lifetime by choices, environments and support systems. By understanding how wellbeing develops from birth, Future Finland could provide insights that benefit families, communities and policymakers around the world.
Exploring this study offers a glimpse into the future of human wellbeing and shows the power of long-term thinking in shaping healthier, more resilient societies.
Comments