As a means, cooperation should add a number of values. Added value that would not have been achieved without pooling resources and/or setting joint goals. The values achieved should also go far beyond just receiving funding or getting attention for an initiative. Rather the value added should contribute to actual development on the local and regional level – that is, growth, jobs, sustainable solutions to common problems, etc.
Transnational cooperation is active on different levels and transcends national borders as well as sectors. As such cooperation should be seen as one vital link of achieving development on the local and regional level on the one hand and implementing policy on the European level on the other. There is definitely a dynamic between the regions and EU and it is facilitated and elaborated upon through transnational cooperation.
The CPMR Baltic Sea Commission seminar in the 8th EUSBSR Annual Forum (on Tuesday 13 June, at 15:15) will look at this dynamic through highlighting the linkage between regional development and transnational cooperation, placed into the framework of the EUSBSR, Cohesion Policy, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Smart Specialisation Strategies.
The main focus question for the seminar is: How can regions (regional stakeholders) benefit from transnational cooperation and use the EUSBSR, SDGs, Cohesion Policy and Smart Specialisation Strategies to drive their own development?