During the weekend, an ambitious two-day conference at the House of Nature of the University of Latvia will bring to conclusion the project phase of the Baltic Science Network that had lasted for three years. This conference will gather the most enthusiastic representatives of the science sector from the Baltic Sea Region.
The film "Baltic Sea Region – Science Powerhouse" will be presented on the first day, and various lecturers will speak, explaining the nuances in relation to the current mobility in research, common excellence potential in the Baltic Sea Region and expansion of participation in the European Research Area. The Baltic Sea Science Day of the Council of Baltic Sea States (CBSS) will be held on the second day, addressing the smart specialisation, specific mobility instruments of researchers, as well as contribution of science to the business in the Baltic Sea Region.
The Baltic Sea Region is one of the leading regions in the field of research and innovations globally; however, the contributions of the states of the region in the area of innovations has been drastically different so far. Within the framework of the project, three years have been spent to conduct a sizeable analysis on how to set a rational direction to a closer cooperation in research and higher education in the Baltic Sea Region. Common cooperation in the macro-region is a direction that is not only defined politically, but it also has a supported potential and developments in several fields of research.
"In order to continue development of the Baltic Sea Region as one of the leading regions in the field of innovations globally, we have to increase the total performance of the region. Some of the preconditions for improvement of the total performance of the region is a full involvement of all states of the region on the basis of common areas of research excellence. Obstacles created by the regulatory framework and other factors often hinder the cooperation as well," emphasised Ronalds Štrauhs, the Project Manager for the Ministry of Education and Science.
"Baltic Science Network" is implemented with a financial support of the INTERREG Baltic Sea Region transnational cooperation programme. The purpose of the project is to promote the cooperation of the Baltic Sea Region states in research, as well as excellence in science and innovations. The project was started on 1 March 2016, involving the scientific institutions of Germany, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Poland, as well as Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, as well as transnational organisations.