Working for the happiest country in the world – get to know our experts

Christopher Burk has lived in Washington, D.C. for eight years. How did he end up from working on Capitol Hill to working as an Advisor on Sustainable Growth and Commerce at the Embassy of Finland?

Born and raised in Texas, Christopher Burk has worked for the Embassy of Finland for a little over a year.

“I wanted to join the Embassy, because in many ways, Finland is a leading country in policies such as clean energy, climate, sustainable growth, and circular economy.”

At the Embassy, Burk is an Advisor for Sustainable Growth and Commerce. His work entails a variety of things from dealing with energy and technology to sustainable growth and congressional relations. Having previously worked on Capitol Hill, Burk also has valuable insights to the policies and personalities within Congress.

Pollution in Beijing was a wakeup call

In 2012, while working in Beijing, Chris saw firsthand some of China’s most prominent environmental problems. Pollution had ruined the air quality, and the tap water was undrinkable. At the same time, on the other side of the world, Hurricane Sandy hit New York City, flooding many homes and businesses, and leaving hundreds of thousands of people without power.

“That’s when I started thinking I need to work on these things, for the rest of my life,” Burk recalls.

Chris moved to Washington, D.C. to work on energy and climate policies and eventually started working for the House of Representatives Subcommittee on Europe, Energy, the Environment, and Cyber. He spent approximately four years working there.

After his time in Congress, working for the Embassy of Finland was a natural step. Burk felt his skills and background were a good match for the role at the Embassy.

“I have no Finnish ancestry,” Chris says. “And I don’t speak Finnish. My job is to help decipher the political and commercial landscape in the United States.”

Finns do what they promise

As a part of his job, Burk travels to different states and talks to people about Finnish innovations and how circular economy is the way to a greener, more sustainable future. Besides people in Congress, it is also important to reach people from different sections of society, especially leaders in civil society, business, academia, embassies, and state and local governments. It is vital to reach the people who make the decisions both inside Washington and outside the city.

Burk has enjoyed his time working for Finland, saying it is not only the happiest country in the world, but has many great things going for it. He mentions good government policies, equal society and environmental awareness as some of the key things he appreciates.

“Finland is good at not only proclaiming, but actually taking steps to reach their goals. Going climate neutral by 2035 is a big step.”

Finnish technology and circular economy also get high praise from Burk.

“In Finland people don’t throw things away in the same way, they try to reuse and recycle. There are solutions there that could help Americans live in more sustainable and circular ways.”

 

Text & photo: Elina Karjalainen