VASAB

15/05/2026

R E S I L I E N C E 🌊
a keyword heard countless times throughout the 17th Annual Forum of the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region in Tallinn, and for good reason.

Over two dynamic days, policymakers, planners, experts, and stakeholders came together to explore how stronger macro-regional cooperation, knowledge exchange, and cross-sector collaboration can contribute to regional security and shared prosperity across the Baltic Sea Region 🤝

Beyond the discussions on resilience, the Forum served as an important reminder that meaningful regional development depends on listening across sectors, learning from one another, and working together towards shared ambitions for the Baltic Sea Region 🌍 The diversity of stakeholders, perspectives, and experiences represented throughout the Forum reinforced the importance of looking beyond individual sectors and recognising cooperation across borders and disciplines as one of the region’s greatest strengths in achieving common long-term goals.

📸 More about VASAB participation at the Forum, key takeaways from our co-organised breakout sessions, and photo gallery find here: https://vasab.org/building-spatial-resilience-17th-eusbsr-annual-forum/

See you all next time!

12/05/2026

The 17th Annual Forum of the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region is in full swing, taking place in Tallinn, Estonia, today and tomorrow!

🤝Meet VASAB at the Networking Village, where we host an Policy Area Spatial Planning stand together with Helsinki Commission!

📍 Visit us at the Networking Village and join the conversation on spatial planning in the Baltic Sea Region! Over the two days, several Policy Area Spatial Planning relevant projects will join the stand and share their work:
🔹NESB project
🔹Baltic PlaNet
🔹Land-based Planners’ Forum
🔹SEABAS
🔹PROTECT BALTIC

We are also happy to meet you all at our co-organised breakout sessions:
🔴 From Plans to Reality: Governing Urban Mobility for Resilience (Day 1, Tuesday, 12 May, 15:15-16:15)
🔴 Shifting Tides, Resilient Territories: Advancing Spatial Resilience in the Baltic Sea Region (Day 2, Wednesday, 13 May, 10:15-11:15)

11/05/2026

🌊 The HELCOM-VASAB MSP Working Group has revised the Guideline for the implementation of the ecosystem-based approach in Maritime Spatial Planning in the Baltic Sea area.
📘 It is a practical resource for planners, walking through each stage of the MSP process, from goal-setting to monitoring, with concrete guidance on cumulative impact assessment, data sources, climate-smart planning and stakeholder engagement.
🌍 At a time of real complexity, climate change, shifting security conditions and broader geopolitical pressures, the ecosystem-based approach remains a clear and principled foundation for spatial decisions in the Baltic Sea region.
🔗 Read the full article and access the Guideline via the link https://vasab.org/revised-eba-guideline-baltic-sea/


Helsinki Commission

07/05/2026

🤝 Meet VASAB at the Annual Forum of the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region!
The 17th EUSBSR Annual Forum will focus on the topic of resilience and will be held next week on 11-13 May 2026 in Tallinn, Estonia.

The Forum will feature a Networking Village, where VASAB, Helsinki Commission & PA Spatial Planning will have a joint stand. You will also find the Policy Area relevant projects at the stand where project progress, results and findings will be presented and discussed!

Alongside the Networking Village, VASAB is co-organising two breakout sessions:
🔴 From Plans to Reality: Governing Urban Mobility for Resilience (Day 1, Tuesday, 12 May, 15:15-16:15)
🔴 Shifting Tides, Resilient Territories: Advancing Spatial Resilience in the Baltic Sea Region (Day 2, Wednesday, 13 May, 10:15-11:15)

Let's meet at the EUSBSR Annual Forum 2026 in Tallinn!

More: https://vasab.org/eusbsr-annual-forum-2026/

29/04/2026

Baltic PlaNet project platform invites to take the survey and share your opinion on how municipalities and organizations around the Baltic Sea Region currently address climate change and extreme weather events in coastal and maritime spatial planning.

The survey will help to:
✅ Understand current planning practices and challenges
✅ Identify gaps and opportunities for improvement
✅ Adapt the Sea2Land Navigator tool to meet real-world needs
✅ Strengthen climate resilient planning across the Baltic Sea Region

👥 Who should participate?
Responses from all around the Baltic Sea Region are welcome and especially from:
💠 Representatives of local and national government institutions
💠 Non-governmental organizations working on coastal and climate issues
💠 Research and educational institutions
💠 Spatial planning professionals and practitioners
💠 Anyone involved in coastal zone management

⏱ Time required: 15–20 minutes. Link to the survey 👉 https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage.aspx?id=KnAgOBnjN0-pRaJa-sAcEHi70kDtoWJEqvSeduyB-LdUOTI4M04xNlNFTFVaRVJBUUQ4OFQwMEc2RS4u&route=shorturl

More about project find here: https://interreg-baltic.eu/project/baltic-planet/

📣 Please share this survey with your network.

22/04/2026

📢 VASAB Young Planners’ Summer School “Navigate Planning Through Changes” 📢 Still time to apply for applicants from Denmark, Norway, and Ukraine!

We have received notably high level of interest — with 49 applications submitted from across the Baltic Sea Region 👏 Currently reviewing applications, and selected participants will be notified in May 2026.

‼️To ensure broad geographical representation and enrich discussions, applications remain open for participants from Denmark, Norway, and Ukraine until 10 May 2026.

The VASAB Young Planners’ Summer School is an international learning and collaboration opportunity for young professionals working or studying across a broad range of topics related to geography, spatial planning, and regional studies.

📍 Organised by VASAB in cooperation with Gdańsk University of Technology
📅 23–29 August 2026
📌 Gdańsk, Poland

🔗 Learn more and apply now: https://vasab.org/high-interest-in-vasab-young-planners-summer-school/

21/04/2026

Register for the workshop!
Jūrmala, Latvia 🌊 Our Coast, Our Future: A Community Conversation About Flooding and What Comes Next!

🗓️ 6 May 2026 ⏰ 11:30 – 16:30
📍 Mazā Nometņu iela 1, Jūrmala, Latvia
🗣️ Event language: Latvian and English

🌧️The Baltic Sea Region and also Jūrmala is facing more floods, stronger storms, and rising water. These are not rare events anymore. They are becoming part of life here, and we need to plan for them together.

To respond to this growing challenge, this Baltic PlaNet project platform's workshop brings together two groups in the same building on the same day.

💠 One room will be for local residents, community organisations, small business owners, and anyone who has experienced flooding firsthand. We want to hear what it is actually like — which streets, which homes, which moments. Your knowledge of this place is something no map or report can replace.
💠 The other room will bring together planners, municipal officials, and regional and national authorities. They will work on the question of how decisions about our coastline get made — and how to make sure that different levels of government are pulling in the same direction.

At the end of the day, both rooms come together 🤝. The ideas, concerns, and priorities from each group will be shared — and will feed directly into how Baltic PlaNet supports coastal planning in Latvia going forward.

☕ Free participation (coffee, snacks 🍪, and lunch 🍽️ provided)
📝 More information and registration 👉https://interreg-baltic.eu/event/our-coast-our-future-a-community-conversation-about-flooding-and-what-comes-next/
🌍 Let’s plan for the future — together!

02/04/2026

Join the LIFE LATESTadapt project's online workshop on Urban Green Space and Heat Island Monitoring with Satelite Data that will take place on 17 April 2026.

The workshop will bring together researchers, spatial planners, and Earth observation experts to explore the latest advances in urban green space and heat island mapping using freely available satellite data.

More information and registration link in the post below 👇

Join us for a full-day international online workshop bringing together researchers, spatial planners, and Earth observation experts

01/04/2026

🚨 Applications for the VASAB Young Planners’ Summer School close next week on 7 April!
Don’t miss this opportunity to be part of an inspiring international experience in the Baltic Sea Region to exchange ideas, gain practical knowledge, and work on real spatial planning challenges.

📩 How to apply:
▪️ Carefully read the regulations for full participation details (find the link below)
▪️ Describe one major challenge facing the Baltic Sea Region that is important for its future spatial development
▪️ Complete the application form and submit it by 7 April via email [email protected]

🎓 Accepted participants will join the Summer School on 23–29 August 2026 in Gdańsk, Poland. The Summer School is free of charge, and travel reimbursement is available.

🌐 More information, regulation, and application form: https://vasab.org/support-for-planners/young-planners-summer-school/summer-school-2026/

🌍 CALL FOR APPLICATIONS: VASAB Young Planners’ Summer School 2026

Are you a young professional or student passionate about shaping the future of the Baltic Sea Region? Do you want to work on spatial planning solutions that strengthen regional resilience, address climate change, improve mobility, and promote sustainable land and sea use?

VASAB together with Gdańsk University of Technology announces an open call for applications to the VASAB Young Planners’ Summer School 2026 “Navigate Planning Through Changes”.

📍 Location: Gdańsk, Poland
🗓 Dates: 23–29 August 2026
🗓 Application deadline: 7 April 2026

International summer school will bring together young professionals and students from across the Baltic Sea Region, as well as Norway and Ukraine, with an interest in regional development, spatial and strategic planning. Participants will collaborate in cross-sectoral teams and develop innovative solutions to spatial planning challenges in the Baltic Sea Region. The best ideas developed during the Summer School will be presented at the high-level VASAB meeting.

💡 Participation in the Summer School is free of charge. Travel costs (max 200 EUR per participant), accommodation and catering costs for participants will be covered.

📩 How to apply:
✅ Read the summer school regulation for full participation details.
✅ Describe one key spatial planning challenge facing the Baltic Sea Region and submit the application form by 7 April 2026 via: [email protected]

🌐 More about VASAB Young Planners' Summer School 2026, regulation and application form: https://vasab.org/support-for-planners/young-planners-summer-school/summer-school-2026/

30/03/2026

💡The Land-based Planners’ Forum is not only the outcome of a single project or event, but the result of a broader process of listening, studying, testing ideas, and building common ground across the Baltic Sea Region. It reflects a shared ambition to create a practical and evolving cooperation space for planners, with the potential to grow into a long-term community of practice.

🧭 The Land-based Planners’ Forum will continue in the next phase, but we invite you to look back on our journey during phase one 📰 in this article: https://vasab.org/towards-a-land-based-planners-forum-in-bsr/

The project was funded by the Svenska institutet and led by Nordregio in partnership with Stockholm University, ARL - Academy for Territorial Development in the Leibniz Association, the Estonian Association for Spatial Planners, VASAB.