– It is very positive to witness the great interest in cooperation between Nordic and Russian partners in important topics such as social sustainability, environment and climate, says Paula Lehtomäki, Secretary General of the Nordic Council of Ministers. The Nordic council of ministers’ support for NGO co-operation throughout the Baltic Sea Region contributes to mutually increasing awareness of ongoing public debates and common challenges in our countries and provides inspiration for the continued development in the region. The many promising Nordic-Russian projects emphasize the importance of maintaining contacts and supporting civil society cooperation across borders – even in times when political relations are challenging, adds Paula Lehtomäki. I am pleased that the people-to-people cooperation is still thriving. The purpose of the funding is to strengthen civil society and cross-border co-operation, and thus contribute to the development of the region. The projects that are set to receive funding focus on social services and healthcare, children and young people, education, culture, gender equality, the environment, civil society, democracy, and human rights.
„It is very positive to witness the great interest in cooperation between Nordic and Russian partners in important topics such as social sustainability, environment and climate”. Paula Lehtomäki, Secretary General of the Nordic Council of Ministers.
In total 22 projects to receive Nordic funding
22 projects in Russia and the Baltic Sea region to receive Nordic funding. Project partners in the Nordic Region and the co-operating countries include NGOs, universities, and local authorities. Partners outside the Nordic Region come from the Baltic Sea region, which includes Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, northwest Russia, and Belarus. The Nordic Council of Ministers received a total of 82 applications from various partnership projects in the Nordic countries and Northwest Russia.
The following projects will receive funding:
1. Wind Energy: joint innovation solutions for the future energy needs of northern regions
This project intends to address the challenges and contribute to assessment of wind energy potential, explore wind-driven power-plant operation under cold climates and develop technologies to minimize impact of snow and ice on wind turbine/wind park operations.
2. Navigating in information: Identify, evaluate, use. Children and youth in the Baltic Sea Region in a digital world
This project aims at developing knowledge among children and youth on media and information literacy (MIL) and providing specific tools for assessing reliability of information (fact-checking).
3. Indigenous and non-indigenous residents of the Nordic-Russian region: Best practices for equity in healthy ageing
This project will get a group of researchers working in proximity to practice multiple disciplines related to gerontology and ageing. The project will create a network and face-to-face meetings at workshops.
4. Sustainable Working Life – Visions for wellbeing and future solutions
The goal of the project is to exchange Nordic and Russian knowledge and experience on working life, sustainability, inclusion, wellbeing and equality between women and men and to create new cooperation networks.
5. Climate change and youth response in Kaliningrad and other Baltic Sea regions
The project is aimed at raising eco responsibility of the youth in the Baltic Sea region related to climate change by understanding and disseminating best Nordic practices, networking and competence building of stakeholders.
6. ARCTIC HERITAGE: Developing architectural solutions and conservation techniques for unique cultural objects
The overall goal is to strengthen academia, public authorities, wooden craft professionals & conservation architects (collaboration, enhance knowledge and develop expertise in areas of shared interest between Russia, Norway and Finland).
7. Discovering Youth Perspective through Activism and Leadership: Insights from Northwest Russia and the Nordic states
This project calls together academics in Finland, Sweden, Norway as well as in Saint Petersburg, Kaliningrad, and Pskov Regions of Russia. The partners address the challenge of enhancing youth empowerment through activism and leadership.
8. Multi-cultural prison in Nordic countries and Russia
This project promotes inclusion and equality, strengthened cultural exchange and welfare by organizing foster Nordic-Russian cooperation between authorities, universities and NGOs for improvement social inclusion of foreign inmate.
9. Supportive Community: Informal Care for Elderly in Russia, Finland and Denmark
The goal of this project is to improve the quality of life of the older generation through exchange of informal care practices in local communities by NGOs in Russia, Finland and Denmark.
10. Indigenous Women Leaders Forum of Nordic Territories
The overall objective of the project is to empower indigenous women from North-West Russia to participate in decision-making and contribute pro-actively to the social, cultural and political life in their communities.
11. Citizens’ centers for grass-roots initiatives are changing the society
This project builds capacity and enhances sustainability of the open citizens centers by focusing on the challenges in a cross-border training program for organisations of Finland, Sweden and Russia.
12. Empowerment of the indigenous peoples’ media through the cross-border cooperation
This projects aim is to develop a cross-border information network to give indigenous organisations in remote communities of Northwest Russia access to knowledge and high-level education in the field of modern journalism.
13. NGOs vs. Household food waste: scaling up Baltic-Nordic cooperation
The objective for this project is to equip NGO with knowledge and skills on prevention of food waste in households by creating long term cooperation, transfer of knowledge and know-how and jointly developing and implementing tools for prevention of food waste.
14. Empowering youth and teacher network of the Eco-Schools programme for the Sustainable Baltic Sea region
The goal of the project is to promote the exchange of experience and cooperation among Baltic Sea Region NGO`s working with Education for Sustainable Development by highlighting environmental topics; develop methods for empowerment of youth.
15. Clean Games Baltic Cup 2021
The project’s goal is to share competence of the Clean Games methodic to organizers of environmental and volunteer events in the countries of the Baltic Sea basin.
16. Strengthening the NGO network – a tool for social security
The overall objective of this project is to deepen the understanding of the role of civil society and to strengthen the NGO network of the Baltic Sea Region to contribute to the social and health sector for promotion the social security in general by applying the basic principles of the European Pillar of Social Rights and other social rights instruments.
17. Media and Dialogue for Democracy by promoting professionalism, self-regulation as well as Media and Information Literacy
This project should underpin dialogue between media and journalists; citizens; politicians and the public sector by further development and use of recommendations created during projects supported by Nordic Council of Ministers.
18. Open data for civic participation (ODCP)
The goal of the project is to ensure the exchange of experiences and best practices between the NGOs in Sweden, Latvia and Belarus in the availability and the use of the open data for civic participation and making civic activism more informed and effective.
19. Cultural crossroads: a new turn: International Olympiad on intercultural interaction
The project will allow to understand the common values of adolescents in the Baltic Sea region, to expand their understanding of European cultural values, awareness of the relationship between culture and nature, will help to develop international cooperation among teenagers of European countries.
20. The Traveling Democracy Lab / A Media Literacy Campaign in the Baltics and Belarus
The project will center around the translation and adaptation of Latvian, Estonian, Lithuanian and Belarussian versions of the Swedish exhibition” The Traveling Democracy Lab / “Facts vs. Fakes”” which will travel to schools/education institutions, libraries and public venues in the 4 countries.
21. Promoting social justice through co-operation between NGOs and legal clinics
The overall goal of the project is to strengthen strategic co-operation between NGOs, legal clinics and other stakeholders towards a greater enjoyment of rights within socially vulnerable groups.
22. Inclusive creativity accessible to all
This project is aimed at democratization in learning, inclusiveness and accessibility. Internet meeting will be held for partners, Summer school for internships and exchange good practices of specialists from NGOs involved in the creative development of people with special needs, based on the Music center „Resonaari” in Helsinki, which is a methodological center for teaching music to people with disabilities.
