Baltic Sea Action Group has launched a striking environmental campaign that replaces Finland's iconic blue cross with green, confronting the nation with the reality of its polluted sea.
Launching on Zacharias Topelius Day, January 14th, 2026, the campaign returns to the origins of the Finnish flag. In 1863, author Zacharias Topelius proposed blue and white as Finland's colours: blue for the open sea, white for enclosing ice, the colours of the northern waters that defined the nation.
Over 160 years later, those waters tell a different story. Eutrophication has turned the Baltic Sea green. Winters without ice are becoming the norm. The campaign's central message is deliberately uncomfortable: "Once blue and white, now green and dirty."
The new flag with its cross in murky green and grey replacing the familiar white and blue, serves as both protest and wake-up call. The flag was raised at Liuskasaari today, capturing the moment Finland's most recognisable symbol reflects an unwanted truth.
The campaign extends across print, outdoor and digital media, each execution anchored by the new flag of the Baltic Sea and Topelius's original words. Rather than avoiding the provocation, the work leans into it: if the Finnish flag truly represents Finland's relationship with the sea, shouldn't it now show what that relationship has become?
Beyond awareness, the campaign mobilises action. All communications drive donations supporting concrete Baltic Sea restoration efforts. The campaign carries a dual message: this is what we've done, and this is what we can undo.
The flag can return to blue and white, but only if the sea does first.
