At the Youth Gala, the new Youth Council was announced and €150,000 was awarded for young people’s ideas.
Helsinki celebrated the influence of young people at the traditional Youth Gala held at Tiivistämö in Suvilahti on Friday 5 December. The Gala also saw the announcement of the results of the Helsinki Youth Council election and the allocation of EUR 150,000 from the Youth Budget to implement young people’s ideas.
30 members and 5 deputy members were elected to the new Youth Council.
The Youth Council election included a record-breaking 116 young people from different parts of Helsinki as candidates. Out of these candidates, 30 were chosen as representatives and 5 were chosen as deputy representatives for a two-year term in 2026–2027. The new Youth Council will begin its term on 1 January 2026.
Almost 34,000 young people were eligible to vote in the election, with the total number of votes cast being 15 098. The turnout percentage was 44,8%, which is a new record. Voting was organised at schools, but was also made possible at youth centres and Central Library Oodi.
The best turnout was:
In smaller schools:
Cruselli Comprehensive School 90.91% ( 33 eligible voters)
Karviaisten School 88.24% (34 eligible voters)
The English Lower Secondary School 85% (100 eligible voters)
In larger schools:
Torpparinmäki Comprehensive School 88.11% (185 eligible voters)
Kottby Comprehensive School 86.73% (309 eligible voters)
Myllypuro Comprehensive School 84.62% (286 eligible voters)
Oulunkylä Coeducational School 83.63% (611 eligible voters)
- The Helsinki Youth Council for the 2026–2027 term:
Abdi Maida
Amamoo Kow
Arhio Oliver Veli
Denisov Danil
Farah Hooda
Hirvonen Fia
Huikko Emilia
Ikonen Mark
Järvinen Kasimir
Kandi Krishna Kartheek Reddy
Kovalenko Nikolai
Kuivalainen Kasper
Kuusisto Eris
Laaksonen Leo
Lam Jasmine
Lilleberg Fiona
Lilleberg Myrsky
Massamba Naita
Naeemi Hamza
Nwagu Daniel
Relander Tobias
Sabally Isatou
Sergeyev Artem
Spolander Karl-Fredrik
Suero Abigail
Taipale Lauri
Tuerdi Turkina
Umer Ammar
Valkama Elsa
Xu Jing Le Leena
Hyppölä Lilja
Kaski Juho
Maila Valle
Moro Aisha
Wadud Ehan
EUR 150,000 from the Youth Budget allocated to implement young people’s ideas
The evening also saw the allocation of EUR 150,000 from Helsinki’s participatory budgeting system for young people, i.e. the Youth Budget, to projects proposed and chosen by young people. The sum was divided evenly between the City’s Eastern, Western and Northern Youth Work.
Eastern Youth Work Unit
Itäkeskus: Cultural festivals €9,500 and K-fusion €3,500
Environment: “Suvituulen luomukset” festival €6,000
South-eastern: Excursions for young people €10,000
Vuosaari: Excursion to Linnanmäki amusement park €8,500
Kontula: Airsoft club & excursion package €12,500
Western Youth Work Unit
Munkkiniemi: Cosplay event €10,000 and Muncca Cup €10,000
Southern: Castle & museum excursions in Finland €9,000 and excursion to the Taffel factory €5,000
Helsingfors svenska ungdomsarbetsenhet: En dag på Serena €5,000 och En dag på Särkänniemi €5,000
Kaarela: Ski trip in Vihti / Iloranta trip €6,000
Northern Youth Work Unit
Pasila: A night at Rush €5,000
Maunula: Sport try-out day €4,000 and Events for young people €10,000
Viikki: Mental Health Week €5,000
Malmi: Excursions for young people €5,000 and a baking camp €4,000
North-eastern: Tähti 2026 culture and arts event & Cosplay event €7,000
North-Eastern, Malmi and Viikki: Nubu-CUP 2026, Football tournament, Basketball and futsal tournaments between schools €10,000