News and articles of the forum can be found here: “Securing the Future – 16th EUSBSR Annual Forum“.
Photos from the event can also be viewed in our Photo Gallery

EUSBSR Annual Forum 2025
“Securing the Future: Stronger Together – Building Stability in Times of Uncertainty”

There is no shortage of topics within the EUSBSR to put “Securing the Future” into the Baltic Sea Region context. The Forum programme focused on future-proofing societies, enhancing our resilience to adversity and unpredictability, and protecting the environment and natural resources.

With a vision of a Baltic Sea in good environmental health, capable of supporting diverse activities, the “Save the Sea” priority focuses on reducing pollution, protecting biodiversity, and promoting a circular economy. “Connect the Region” tackles energy security, resilient infrastructure, Meanwhile, “Increase Prosperity” emphasises workforce development, education, green innovation to ensure economic and social resilience in an unpredictable future and the integration of culture and tourism, strengthening regional ties and the Baltic identity.

The forum encouraged collaboration on strategies in the Baltic Sea Region to tackle the challenges of stability and sustainability in changing times.

The host for the Annual Forum 2025 was the Pomorskie Voivodeship and the Forum was organised together with the Council of the Baltic Sea States Secretariat (CBSS) in close collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Republic of Poland and the Baltic Sea Strategy Point. The event was funded by the Interreg Baltic Sea Region Programme, the Pomorskie Voivodeship and the Council of the Baltic Sea States Secretariat.

You can now watch video recordings from the Forum on our YouTube channel “Annual Forum 2024“.
News and articles of the forum can be found here: “Sustainability, Resilience and Security in the spotlight – Annual Forum 2024“.
Photos from the event can also be viewed in our Photo Gallery

Engagement: The side event on 29 October was an opportunity for not yet engaged stakeholders to get acquainted with the Strategy and learn how the Strategy can support their strategic objectives. Participants were welcome to present their initiatives and to discuss them with 12 of the 14 policy area coordinators. The target groups for this day are civil society, youth organisations, the business sector, local authorities and Ukrainian stakeholders.

Co-creation: Interactive workshops, panel discussions, and seminars invited participants to discuss challenges and to elaborate on solutions. These sessions emphasised cross-sectorial, transnational, and multilevel collaboration, designed to generate practical outcomes, and foster ongoing cooperation. All activities were related to the Action Plan of the Strategy and ongoing processes or projects in the 14 Policy Areas.

Policy Dialogues: Central to the Forum were policy dialogues addressing the strategic objectives of the EUSBSR. These discussions ranged from large plenary sessions to focused panels, each tackling key aspects of the Strategy and exploring solutions to enhance the Baltic Sea Region’s development.

Networking Village: The Networking Village served as a social hub for informal exchanges and spontaneous connections. Located at the heart of the Forum, it was a place for participants to meet between sessions, start new conversations, and spark collaborations. The 14 Policy Areas, Pan-Baltic organisations, the Interreg Baltic Sea Region Programme, the Swedish Institute, and other financial programmes were represented.

The Forum continued building relations with Ukraine following the initiative taken by the Swedish EUSBSR Presidency.

The two hosts for the Annual Forum were the Swedish Government together with the Nordic Council of Ministers. The organisers were the Gotland County Administrative Board in close collaboration with the secretariat of the Nordic Council of Ministers, the Government Offices of Sweden, the Norden Association Sweden, the Swedish Institute, Region Gotland and the Baltic Sea Strategy Point. The event was co-funded by the Interreg Baltic Sea Region Programme, the Swedish Government, the Nordic Council of Ministers, the Swedish Institute and Region Gotland.

On 4–5 October 2023, Riga organized the 14^th Annual Forum of the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region (EUSBSR).

The organisers steered the Forum towards these four main goals:

• exchange of best practices of cooperation,
• stronger integration within the Baltic Sea Region and beyond,
• forming synergies between various priority areas, and
• creating links between the Strategy and the general public.

Keeping in mind the main objectives of the Strategy – save the sea, connect the region, and increase prosperity – and the Action Plan 2021, special attention with the aim to encourage debate was paid to the climate affairs and green energy. And since the main agents of change and progress are young people, we will place a strong focus on the importance of youth engagement in decision making and have a strong youth representation.

The event was organised jointly by the Riga City Council, Union of the Baltic Cities and VASAB, in close cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Latvia and the Baltic Sea Strategy Point.

The 2022 Annual Forum of the EUSBSR took place on 28-29 September in Lappeenranta, Finland.

The organisers of the Annual Forum follow with distress the tragic events unfolding in Ukraine. Cooperation in the Baltic Sea region remains important. The Forum was organised in accordance to the sanctions imposed on Russia and Belarus in response to their aggression, as well as other relevant decisions such as those taken by the EUSBSR National Coordinators Group and the CBSS regarding the suspension of cooperation with Russia and Belarus.

The event was organized jointly by the City of Lappeenranta, the Council of the Baltic Sea States (CBSS) secretariat and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland.

2021 Annual Forum of the EUSBSR took place from 27 September to 1 October 2021. The 12^th Annual Forum focused on green recovery and invited the participants to REVITALISE the Strategy, to RECOVER after COVID-19 together and to RECHARGE for greener and more resilient Baltic Sea Region.

The Forum was organised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania, Kaunas City Municipality, Klaipėda City Municipality and the Union of the Baltic Cities. Due to the pandemic the Forum was fully virtual.

Due to the Coronavirus outbreak, the 11th Annual Forum was held online on 20 October 2020.

The event was organised by the City of Turku and the Council of the Baltic Sea States in cooperation with the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland.

In 2019, the 10th Annual Forum took place in Gdansk on June 12-13.

The theme of the Forum was “Circular and sharing economy as an answer to demographic changes and environmental challenges in the Baltic Sea Region”.

The 3 main thematic sessions of the Forum included:

• ‘Going circular – a pathway to well-being in the Baltic Sea Region’
• ‘Business-driven approach to circular economy in the Baltic Sea Region’
• ‘Demography and circularity in the Baltic Sea Region: interdependent or disconnected?’

The main theme of the 9th Annual Forum was the Baltic Sea Region After 2020. The Forum discussed how to improve the implementation of the EUSBSR in the framework of the future EU Cohesion Policy. It discussed also the current state of the ecosystem in the Baltic Sea as well as how to advance the Region as a global digital hub.

The Forum was hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Estonia together with the Baltic Development Forum in close cooperation with the European Commission, Ministry of Environment and other partners. About 800 participants from governments, international organisations, NGOs, universities, local and regional administrations, media and businesses came together to discuss developments and challenges in the Baltic Sea Region.

The 9th Annual Forum was co-financed by the European Union Interreg Baltic Sea Region Programme.

The 8th Annual Forum of the EUSBSR was hosted by the Federal Foreign Office together with the CPMR – Baltic Sea Commission and in close cooperation with the European Commission on 13-14 June 2017 in Berlin. About 800 participants from governments, international organisations, NGOs, universities, local and regional administrations and business discussed a broad range of issues relevant for the Baltic Sea Region.

The theme of the 8th Annual Forum was connectivity. This motto highlighted the necessity to intensify contacts throughout the Baltic Sea Region including its neighboring regions and to develop a better awareness of each other’s perspectives. Cooperation in form of mutually beneficial projects may have beneficial spill-over effects and contribute to confidence-building in politically difficult times. Furthermore, connectivity relates to efficient and comprehensive collaboration among all levels of government. Be it in communication, cultural exchange, energy, research activities or transport – connectivity is crucial for modern, network based and outward looking business.

The 7th Strategy Forum of the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region (EUSBSR) was hosted by Sweden together with the Nordic Council of Ministers and in close cooperation with the European Commission. The Strategy Forum was held on 8-9 November 2016 at the Brewery Conference Centre in Stockholm, Sweden.

The overall thematic focus was the future for the Baltic Sea Region and a desired vision for 2030. The Strategy Forum was used to discuss how the EUSBSR can or should contribute to a desired development within its three objectives: Save the Sea, Connect the Region and Increase Prosperity.

The conference attracted 1,300 participants representing 42 countries and four continents, which is an all-time high.

The sixth annual European Union Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region Forum “Achieving e-Quality by Connecting the Region” was held in was held on 15-16 June in Jūrmala, Latvia It was one of the large-scale international events hosted during the Latvian presidency of the Council of the European Union and integrated the Presidency priorities: Competitive, Digital and Engaged Europe. It discussed issues of digital connectivity, digital equality and touch upon issues how the information and communication technology is transforming the region and changing the lives of the citizens.

The debates sought answers to questions like:

• how to build new foundation for growth in the Baltic Sea Region
• how to improve infrastructure that will deliver digital connectivity
• how to convert barriers into a drive for economic growth, jobs, better competitiveness and social inclusion
• how to empower e-citizenship and ensure equal access to technology and services
• can the EUSBSR be a more workable tool in enhancing economic and social well-being of the people by promoting digital culture?

The fifth annual European Union Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region Forum was held in Turku, Finland on 3-4th June in 2014.

The forum was entitled ‘Growing together – for a prosperous, inclusive and connected Baltic Sea region’, and was held together with the 16th Baltic Development Forum Summit.

The event was part of the Turku Baltic Sea Days which included an array of many different events having the Baltic Sea region as a common denominator.

The 4th Annual Forum of the European Union Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region (EUSBSR) was held on 11-12 November 2013 in Vilnius, Lithuania. The event, entitled ‘Baltic Sea, Baltic Growth, Baltic Environment’, focused on the environmental challenges faced by the Baltic Sea region, and the potential to turn these challenges into opportunities for economic growth, competitiveness and job creation. The agenda focused on questions like:

• What are the openings for green growth and resource efficiency in the Baltic Sea region?
• How can economic sectors in the Baltic Sea region reduce the effect that their activities have on an already fragile environment?
• How can the Baltic Sea region become a world-class model of sustainable growth?

The event was hosted by the European Commission jointly with the Lithuanian Presidency of the Council of the European Union in collaboration with the Secretariat of Council of the Baltic Sea States and INTERACT Point Turku.

The 3rd annual European Union Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region Forum was held in Copenhagen, Denmark on 17-19th of June in 2012. It was held under the auspices of the Danish Presidency of the EU Council. The event focused on Public-private cooperation for a smart and green infrastructure in the Baltic Sea Region.

The forum brought an unique platform for all the Strategy’s stakeholders, from government, local and regional administration, political parties, business, academia and civil society, to discuss cooperation possibilities and growth initiatives in the Baltic Sea Region.

The second annual European Union Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region Forum was held in Gdansk, Poland on 24-26th of October 2011. The event was organised jointly with the 13th Baltic Development Forum.

The main issues of debate turned around the review of the EUSBSR based on the Council Conclusions and the implementation of the Strategy keeping in line with the EU 2020 Strategy under the headline “Smart, Sustainable and Inclusive Growth”.

The first annual European Union Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region Forum was held on 14th and 15th of October 2010 In Tallinn. The event was structured around workshops which had concrete tasks to formulate strategies for different issues. These workshops addressed each of the pillars of the Strategy as well as the horizontal actions. Other topics of interest were also part of the Forum comprising knowledge management, maritime policy, green growth etc.