Kimmo Rautanen

Kimmo Rautanen serves as a Planner at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, Åbo Akademi University, where he is affiliated with the Experience Lab. He holds Principal Investigator roles for multiple EU-funded projects including METACITY (URBACT, 2023-2025) and INCLUDE ME II (Erasmus+, 2023-2026).

His research centers on urban planning and digital transformation, with specialized expertise in virtual reality applications for citizen engagement and democratic processes. Key focus areas include metaverse development for urban planning, pandemic-responsive digital co-creation frameworks, and innovative methods for youth participation in democracy through playful approaches. His work directly supports UN Sustainable Development Goals related to sustainable cities and quality education.

Recent publications (2022-2025) demonstrate a clear trajectory toward immersive technologies in civic contexts, with three 2025 studies examining metaverse applications for urban planning and three publications addressing digital co-creation mechanisms under pandemic constraints. His research consistently bridges technical innovation with social science applications.

No scientific awards were documented in available sources.

Rautanen currently leads active projects METACITY (URBACT, 2023-2025) and INCLUDE ME II (Erasmus+, 2023-2026), while previously directing the Experience Lab/Business initiative (2017-2019) and contributing to IoT in Energy systems research (2017-2019). His funding portfolio exclusively features EU mechanisms including URBACT, Erasmus+, and European Regional Development funds.

As a core member of Åbo Akademi's Experience Lab, he collaborates extensively with Backholm-Nyberg, Andersson, Bengs, and Acquah on urban digital transformation projects, with particular emphasis on developing virtual platforms for citizen participation in municipal planning processes.