Smart cities, umami flavours and Finland’s best road trips

Helppy wants to transform home care for the elderly and has now raised three million euros to achieve this. The funds will be spent on hiring developers and expanding to Central European markets, the company's founder, Richard Nordström, told Bloomberg. (Photo: Helppy)

Pekka Kuusisto captivated the audience in his last concert with the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra (SPCO) in Minnesota. The concert marked the end of six seasons of artistic collaboration between the Finnish violinist and SPCO. "The lasting memory from this farewell programme will be the most captivating Lark Ascending I may ever encounter — disarmingly vulnerable, bearing the ideal balance of hope and melancholy," writes Star Tribune. (Photo: Felix Broede)

Love road trips? According to Lonely Planet, Finland was made for them. "Travellers following open roads through the wildernesses of Lakeland and Lapland will find that each season brings a different beauty, from autumn colors to snowbound winters," the travel site writes. (Photo: Pentti Sormunen/Vastavalo)

Karhu celebrates the Highland Games with a Scottish collaboration. The Finnish trainer company and Aberdeen-based retailer Hanon have released a version of Karhu's Legacy 69 shoe "dressed in the rich colour spectrum associated with the highland dress and the great outdoors". Hypebeast has the story. (Photo: Facebook / Karhu)

Food waste meets umami in Raisio's new collaboration. The Finnish food company is working with Nordic Umami Company to explore ways to turn plant-based side streams into natural umami. The goal is to return the upcycled product to Raisio's production. (Photo: Nordic Umami Company)

If you are looking for a lakeside cabin surrounded by Finnish nature, give Rock Cabin in Saimaa or Nuuksion Taika a try. Both made it to The Guardian's list of the coolest holiday cabins in Europe. (Photo: Nuuksion Taika)

Maria Sammalkorpi has received the 1.2 million-euro Ascending Investigator Grant from Novo Nordisk Foundation. The grant was awarded for Sammalkorpi's work on computational biosynthetic materials research. Read more on Aalto University’s website (Photo: Simulation visualisations by Maisa Vuorte, Soft Materials Modelling Group, Aalto University)

This one is for urban development enthusiasts. GovInsider interviewed Ossi Savolainen, the regional mayor of the Uusimaa Regional Council, on how the Helsinki Smart Region is building citizen-centric and sustainable cities. (Photo: Kari Ylitalo / Helsinki Partners)

Helsinki is home to several allotments and community gardens, the oldest dating back to 1918. One eager urban gardener shared her experiences on how they work in practice with My Helsinki. (Photo: Julia Kivelä / Visit Finland)

Finnish heavy metal band I Am The Night has released its debut album, While The Gods Are Sleeping. "A band born from the ashes of a number of notable Finnish underground acts, they've come together to create one of the most exciting debut releases you are likely to hear this year," Distorted Sound writes in its review. (Photo: Facebook / I Am The Night Official)