Sirpa Pietikäinen (born 19 April 1959) is a Finnish politician and

Member of the European Parliament A member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been Election, elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the European Coal and S ...

(MEP) from

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

. She is a former member of the

National Coalition Party The National Coalition Party (NCP; , Kok; , Saml) is a liberal conservatism, liberal-conservative List of political parties in Finland, political party in Finland. It is the current governing political party of Finland. Founded in 1918, the ...

, part of the

European People's Party The European People's Party (EPP) is a European political party with Christian democracy, Christian democratic, liberal conservatism, liberal-conservative, and conservative member parties. A transnational organisation, it is composed of other p ...

. She has been a

(MEP) since 2008, and was re-elected in

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

and

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

. In the

2024 elections This is a list of elections that were held in 2024. The National Democratic Institute also maintains a calendar of elections around the world. *2024 United Nations Security Council election *2024 national electoral calendar *2024 local electoral ...

, Pietikäinen was not elected and was placed on the reserve list. When

Henna Virkkunen Henna Maria Virkkunen (; born 4 June 1972) is a Finnish politician who serves as Executive Vice-president of the European Commission for Technological Sovereignty, Security and Democracy since 1 December 2024. She has been a Member of the Europ ...

stepped down as an MEP to become a European Commissioner on 30 Nov 2024, Pietikäinen became an MEP again.

Political career

Role in national politics

Pietikäinen was in the Hämeenlinna town council (1981-1992). She was then a Member of Finnish Parliament until 2003 and served as Minister for the Environment in the cabinet of

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Esko Aho Esko Tapani Aho (born 20 May 1954) is a Finnish politician who was prime minister of Finland from 1991 to 1995. Early life and career Aho was born in Veteli, Finland. Prior to attending university, he began a career in politics. From 1974 to ...

between 1991 and 1995. Pietikäinen was the Chair of Finnish United Nations Association between 1996 and 2007. She was the

World Federation of United Nations Associations The World Federation of United Nations Associations (WFUNA) (French: ''Fédération Mondiale des Associations pour les Nations Unies'', FMANU) was founded in 1946 as a Federation of national associations. Its objectives are to promote the values ...

chairwoman between 2000 and 2004. She has also worked for the

International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance The International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA) is an intergovernmental organization that works to support and strengthen democratic institutions and processes around the world, to develop sustainable, ef ...

and One World International.

European platform and elections

Pietikäinen sees the European Union should proceed towards a Europe of people, which guarantees the respect of human rights, equal opportunities for all, social inclusion and the access to high quality services. In her opinion, the Union needs to further involve organisations and citizens in the community decision-making process, from the preparatory phase of the work onwards. Also the Union should be more transparent. Pietikäinen states that the objectives and strategies, such as the

Lisbon Strategy The Lisbon Strategy, also known as the Lisbon Agenda or Lisbon Process, was an action and development plan devised in 2000, for the economy of the European Union between 2000 and 2010. A pivotal role in its formulation was played by the Portugue ...

, are not enough. The Union would need an enhanced surveillance of the financial sector, obligations in terms of solvability as well as transparency in Europe and worldwide. She also supports reinforcing cooperation and negotiation procedures between employees and trade unions, in order to contribute to the stabilisation of growth. The future growth, in her opinion, spurs from investments in the education and research sectors, in particular in green business. When it comes to the environment, Pietikäinen states that political will is at the core of the environmental challenges: Europe should build an ecologically sustainable model in terms of way of life, transport, production and consumption, as well as the economic and legislative tools which will allow the shift towards this model. During her campaign for the 2014 European elections, Pietikäinen spent a total of €183,700, making her the biggest spender of the country's 13 elected MEPs. According to a Finnish media report, a third of Pietikäinen's budget was a bank loan, she contributed €49,000 from her own pocket and received €10,000 from the Trade Union Pro, Finland's largest private sector union.

Member of the European Parliament

Pietikäinen has been a

since 2008. She first came to the European parliament to replace

Alexander Stubb Cai-Göran Alexander Stubb (, born 1 April 1968) is a Finnish politician who has been the 13th president of Finland since 2024. He previously served as Prime Minister of Finland from 2014 to 2015. Rising in politics as a researcher specialis ...

in 2008, and was re-elected in the

2009 European elections 9 (nine) is the natural number following and preceding . Evolution of the Hindu–Arabic digit Circa 300 BC, as part of the Brahmi numerals, various Indians wrote a digit 9 similar in shape to the modern closing question mark without the bot ...

and 2014. In parliament, she is a member of the

European People's Party Group The European People's Party Group (EPP Group or simply EPP) is a political group of the European Parliament consisting of deputies (MEPs) from the member parties of the European People's Party (EPP). Sometimes it also includes independent ME ...

(EPP). Upon entering parliament, Pietikäinen first was a member of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety from 2009 to 2012 and then vice-chairwoman of the

Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection The Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) is a Committees of the European Parliament, committee of the European Parliament. Work of the committee The committee is responsible for: * Coordination at Community level of na ...

between 2012 and 2014. Since 2014, she has been serving on the

Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs The Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON) is a committee of the European Parliament which is responsible for the regulation of financial services, the free movement of capital and payments, taxation and competition policies, oversight ...

. In addition to her committee assignments, she has been a member of the parliament's delegation for relations with the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

since 2009. In her capacity as alternate member of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety, she authored a report on

organic farming Organic farming, also known as organic agriculture or ecological farming or biological farming,Labelling, article 30 o''Regulation (EU) 2018/848 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2024 on organic production and labelling of ...

in 2015 and served as rapporteur on the

circular economy A circular economy (also referred to as circularity or CE) is a model of resource Production (economics), production and Resource consumption, consumption in any economy that involves sharing, leasing, Reuse, reusing, repairing, refurbishing, and ...

. Pietikäinen also serves as vice-president of the

European Parliament Intergroup on LGBT Rights The European Parliament Intergroup on LGBTI Rights is an intergroup of the European Parliament's legislators which focuses on the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) persons both inside and outside the European Uni ...

; as board member of the European Parliament Intergroup on the Welfare and Conservation of Animals; as member of the European Parliament Intergroup on Children's Rights; as member of the European Parliament Intergroup on Youth Issues; as member of the European Parliament Working Group on Reproductive Health, HIV/AIDS and Development; as a vice-chairwoman of the cross-party Working Group on Fair Trade (sponsored by Fair Trade Advocacy); and as member of the MEP Heart Group (sponsored by the European Heart Network (EHN) and the European Society of Cardiology (ESC)). She is part of the Elie Wiesel Network of Parliamentarians for the Prevention of Genocide and Mass Atrocities and against Genocide Denial as well as of the MEP Alliance for Mental Health. Pietikäinen served as rapporteur also for the proposal on funds for

venture capital Venture capital (VC) is a form of private equity financing provided by firms or funds to start-up company, startup, early-stage, and emerging companies, that have been deemed to have high growth potential or that have demonstrated high growth in ...

and

social entrepreneurship Social entrepreneurship is an approach by individuals, groups, Startup company, start-up companies or entrepreneurs, in which they develop, fund and implement solutions to social, cultural, or environmental issues. This concept may be applied to ...

, which became regulation 2017/1991. She was also co-raporteur (with Dutch MEP

Bas Eickhout Bas Eickhout (born 8 October 1976) is a Dutch politician who has been a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) since the 2009 elections. He is a member of the GreenLeft, part of the European Green Party. Education and early career Eickhout w ...

) for the regulation on the

EU Taxonomy for sustainable activities The EU taxonomy for sustainable activities (i.e. "green taxonomy") is a classification system established to clarify which economic activities are environmentally sustainable, in the context of the European Green Deal. The aim of the taxonomy ...

, approved in first reading in March 2019.

Biography

Early life and education

Pietikäinen has an MBA degree from

Helsinki School of Economics The Aalto University School of Business (; ), is the largest business school in Finland. Founded in 1911, it is the second oldest business school in Finland and one of the oldest business schools in the Nordic countries. The school became part of ...

. She has received The Knight Commander's

Order of the White Rose of Finland The Order of the White Rose of Finland (; ) is one of three official orders in Finland, along with the Order of the Cross of Liberty, and the Order of the Lion of Finland. The President of Finland is the Grand Master of all three orders. The ...

(1993). She speaks Finnish, English, French, Swedish and German.

Publications

Her articles have been published in: * Vanhuus kaupungissa, WSOY 1996 * Naisen seitsemän elämää, WSOY 1998 * Maapallohaaste, Otava 1999 * Kaikesta jää jälki, Avain 2008 * Making the Green Energy Switch at a Time of Crisis (2009)

Other

Sirpa Pietikäinen is member of: *

World Future Council The World Future Council (WFC) is a German non-profit foundation with its headquarters in Hamburg. It works to pass on a healthy and sustainable planet with just and peaceful societies to future generations. FuturePolicy.org The futurepol ...

Energy Watch Group The Energy Watch Group (EWG) is an international network of scientists and parliamentarians. The EWG conducts research and publishes studies on global energy developments concerning both fossil fuels and renewables. The organization states that ...

(EWG) In 2003, Pietikäinen was convicted of aggravated drunk driving after moving her car in a parking lot at midnight. She was fined, given a suspended prison sentence and banned from driving for five months.Moni poliitikko on ollut tekemisissä virkavallan kanssa
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References

External links

Sirpa Pietikäinen's website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pietikainen, Sirpa 1959 births Living people People from Parikkala National Coalition Party politicians Ministers of the environment of Finland Members of the Parliament of Finland (1983–1987) Members of the Parliament of Finland (1987–1991) Members of the Parliament of Finland (1991–1995) Members of the Parliament of Finland (1995–1999) Members of the Parliament of Finland (1999–2003) MEPs for Finland 2004–2009 MEPs for Finland 2009–2014 MEPs for Finland 2014–2019 MEPs for Finland 2019–2024 21st-century women MEPs for Finland National Coalition Party MEPs Women government ministers of Finland 20th-century Finnish women politicians Women members of the Parliament of Finland MEPs for Finland 2024–2029