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Mission for VASAB co-operation - Challenges for spatial policies

VASAB - Vision and Strategies around the Baltic Sea - is an intergovernmental network of 11 countries of the Baltic Sea Region promoting cooperation on spatial planning and development in the Baltic Sea Region.

VASAB has a vision for a sustainable, balanced and harmonious spatial development in the Baltic Sea Region. VASAB objective is to help realize this vision with ideas and knowledge.

VASAB is creating a forum for discussing spatial framework of the Region. Spatial planning is increasingly acknowledged as an interactive, interdisciplinary and democratic instrument to promote sustainable and balanced spatial development and cohesion in the Baltic Sea Region. It is an effective tool for national governments and Pan-Baltic organisations to promote the spatial integration and competitiveness of the Baltic Sea Region.

EU enlargement is having considerable spatial impacts on the whole region. Therefore, co-operation in the framework of VASAB can help define the main spatial development needs for integration of the BSR territory and to initiate necessary action. Special attention must be paid to impacts caused by regional disparities between the "old" and "new" EU member states and their neighbouring countries and regions, such as North-Western Russia and regions of Belarus and co-operation should be intensified.

VASAB focuses its work on the following issues:

• Preparation of a long term perspective for the spatial development of the Baltic Sea Region;
• Active influence on the preparation and the implementation of Baltic programmes for trans-national and cross-border territorial co-operation;
• Active participation in the European process of territorial cohesion;
• Stimulate and support projects that create model solutions in addressing common social, economical and ecological trends that have significant spatial effects;
• Initiate and organize an exchange of knowledge and expertise on innovative spatial planning and development approaches, and to present and discuss these in international fora.

VASAB Long Term Perspective for the Territorial Development of the Baltic Sea Region till 2030

VASAB 7^th Ministerial Conference on 16 October 2009 in Vilnius, Lithuania has endorsed the new VASAB Long Term Perspective. The Ministers underlined that during present times, new common responsibilities and challenges have emerged which call for deeper pan-Baltic co-operation on spatial planning and development and integration of spatial development policies into all relevant sectors. The present economic restructuring has different effects in different places. Place-based planning and development policies have to react on that. There is a growing understanding that the Baltic Sea itself is in urgent need of maritime spatial planning. The new Long Term Perspective for the Territorial Development of the Baltic Sea Region (LTP) is an effort to define important challenges with a trans-national relevance and to illustrate how to deal with them.

Spatial planning is more than ever a cross- sectoral exercise and therefore in clear need of involvement of many actors. The array of actions in the LTP can only be identified, decided upon and implemented in close co-operation with other pan-Baltic organisations and partners from public as well as private sector. Common efforts are needed to fulfil them. Therefore, the LTP invites pan-Baltic organisations, institutions as well as national and regional authorities to co-operate in a transparent and efficient way.

VASAB Long Term Perspective is available for download here.

In order to learn opinions of relevant regional stakeholders on 21 April 2009 VASAB organized stakeholder seminar in Riga, Latvia. Representatives of the EU Commission, HELCOM, CBSS and other organizations and member states discussed policy guidelines and specific actions to achieve territorial cohesion perspective. Presentations of the seminar are available here.

The LTP policy document and background document as well as analytical reports of VASAB working groups that served as a basis for LTP are available here.

Baltic Sea Region Spatial Development Policies in European Context: Avenues to the Long Term Perspective - VASAB Annual Conference, 23 April 2008, Riga, Latvia

VASAB annual conferences provide a unique platform for knowledge exchange and dissemination of the best practises in spatial planning. In 2008 more than 150 stakeholders from 13 countries gathered in Riga to discuss long term spatial development tendencies and challenges in Europe. 28 speakers introduced the participants of the conference to the development strategies of different European macro-regions and long term development strategies of pan-Baltic organizations. Special attention was given to sustainable sea use planning.

Presentations and conclusions of the VASAB Annual Conference are now available here.

Since January 2007 VASAB Secretariat is located in Riga, Latvia and its new team is ready to support actively the goals of Baltic Sea Region cooperation. Our address:

Elizabetes street 19,

Riga, LV- 1010 , Latvia

Tel.: + 371 67350630

Fax.: + 371 67350626

E-mail: info@vasab.org