It’s been ten years since the global financial crisis expanded from the United States to the European Union. Among other negative effects, the Baltic Sea region was unpleasantly surprised by an emigration crisis in the east and intensive immigration to the west of the region. Transnational Interreg cooperation was vital not only to help people struggling with the different labour markets, but also to foster European integration for a more competitive Europe on a macro-regional level.

Despite the progressing age of communities in the Baltic Sea region, needs of the elderly are not being sufficiently addressed by producers of furniture and home equipment. In the project BaltSe@nior, co-financed by Interreg Baltic Sea Region, by developing prototypes of intelligent furniture and upgrading design trends, companies are offered thriving opportunities to develop more suitable products for the elderly. Transnational cooperation that increases the comfort of life of seniors and at the same time fosters a more competitive Europe drew the attention of EU Commissioner Corina Crețu, who recently paid a visit to the project.

Red algae growing in the Baltic Sea are the special feature of facial creams in the Estonian cosmetics line Berrichi. But what’s more, it is the first product developed with the support of the Interreg-funded expert network ALLIANCE. The ALLIANCE is a European cooperation project and a flagship of the EU Strategy of the Baltic Sea Region. It brings together blue biotechnology actors from around the Baltic Sea to create new products and services.

The Baltic Sea is a special region in many ways. It is one of the busiest maritime areas in the world, it is also one of the largest brackish water areas in the world and has a very sensitive and unusual combination of freshwater and ocean species, and it is surrounded by nine countries which all work hard on holistic regional collaboration.

In April, new Flagships were approved in the National Coordinators' meeting. We asked two of the newly approved Flagships what the status means to them.

The 2nd CBSS Baltic Sea Science Day was an integral part of the 5th Baltic University Programme Rectors´ Conference. The overall gathering demonstrated that sustainability and prosperity of the Baltic Sea Region is being developed on the basis of an inclusive dialogue on research-intensive sectors. Baltic University Programme is committed to align such efforts with UN Sustainable Development Goals. In this regard the CBSS Baltic 2030 Action Plan comes to the fore as the key reference point in the Baltic Sea Region setting. Baltic Science Network findings testify that functional proximity requires extensive discussions among research experts on their niche profiles and potential complementarities. Be it a pocket of excellence in blue growth, circular economy, zero waste or sustainable energy, Baltic TRAM open call highlights the necessity to exploit the full transnational potential of such a hub, which requires macroregional access and well-connected knowledge dissemination points.