Baltic Sea - & Nordic and Northern Peripheries Region

Dense web of co-operative relationships and interlocking institutions with various memberships, scopes of activity, loci of power, resources and agendas.

Also trade and migration

Main territorial dynamics

• The north-south divide: climate conditions, settlement pattern, transport infrastructure.

• The east-west divide: administrative borders, socio-economic development aspects, transport infrastructure.

• The urban-rural divide: challenges for the regional cohesion. – partly striking differences bw the metropolitan areas and

hinterlands (ageing, outward migration, infrastructure). – Differences and diversity in the physical urban structures

across the Region (land use, polycentricity)

• Internal and external cross-border linkages vary: focus

Region of People

• VASAB LTP: Territorial development perspective 2030: Policy sectors, where the transnational cooperation in spatial planning provides a substantial added value. 1. Promoting urban networking and

urban-rural cooperation: development centres, cross-border clusters, regional variations

2. Improving internal and external accessibility: transnational connections, enhancement of cross-border links

3. maritime spatial planning and management: both territorial waters and EEZ

Region of resources?

Existing and potential oil & gas reserves and mining sites in the Arctic

Region of resources?

Marine potentials of the Arctic:- Minerals- Oil and gas- Transport- Tourism

Trends of the Region

1. Varying labour force replacement potential

2. Small economies1. Investments2. Private – Public relations

3. Natural resources: untouched nature , renewable energy, oil and minerals

1. the poor status of the Baltic Sea environment

4. Well-educated population and considerable R&D capacity

5. Climate change impacts

6. Peripheral geographical location, Poor accessibility/physical proximity

1. vs. Potential maritime transport services (Russia, far East), ICT

7. Large disparities

8. Transnational Co-operation; but lack of political commitment

9. New position in the global system?