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Migration
from rural districts has in participating areas been going on
for a long time. This shows as unemployment and changes for
the worse in services and Average age is increasing and young
people are moving away. Effects will also turn up as growing
problems to keep the open landscapes, to give service to
nature and culture tourists and to keep agriculture for nature
preservation. On the other hand we can see new trends.
Successful development activities from a bottom-up perspective
in Sweden and Finland have shown that it is possible to
attract young people to those areas, if a job is not too far
away and a house to live in are available. Investigations from
Estonia show the same interest from young people.
One
challenge will be that laws and regulations in countries are
not always fitted to business ideas. Transnational contacts
will here be used for better coherence. Another challenge for
partners, especially in Germany and Estonia will be that towns
and rural areas belong to different municipalities and that
this will need a well coordinated cooperation between several
partners. On the other hand the bigger municipalities in
Sweden have to give evidence to a well functioning cooperation
within the municipalities. Efficient planning organisation has
to be promoted in all participating countries. Problems
related to water supply and other technical solutions and well
as service and infrastructure solutions have to be solved for
the whole urban-rural area.
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The
over all main objective for the Baltic Balance will be to
create a strategy for better balanced settlement structure and
integration between rural and urban areas - a strategy to be
implemented in the Baltic areas. Partners will test models and
introduce best practice examples. National rules for business
grants and planning systems will be evaluated. Planning and
implementation will walk hand in hand.
A.
Efforts will be made to use local resources for innovative
products and services in areas lagging behind (especially in
rural districts) and to test new ways of cooperation
trans-nationally in business relations. The aims are to
promote new jobs and new enterprises, to spread knowledge and
business relations to get effects in partners’ areas and
suggest changes in national rules as to business promotion.
B.
Innovative service and infrastructure solutions will be
studied and tested in practice. The aim will be to guarantee
access to at least a package of basic service in rural
districts, using the urban-rural relation. Evaluation of
partners models on national level.
C.
The efforts to reach a stronger economy in rural areas (A+B)
will need a spatial planning process to give a platform for
expansion but also preservation and a better coherence in the
urban-rural relation. Partners have different planning systems
and one central objective will be to use transnational
experience as input for changes. Baltic partners will be
better trained to work in EU financed projects
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The
4 WP’s will together present strategies, models, and
suggestions for changes in regulations and law and practical
examples. Effects will be based on transnational cooperation
in work groups and practical tests. In WP 1 at least 20 ideas
for new income sources tested in each rural area and at least
50 % in an implementation process at end of project. Support
to local groups given by partners, related to labour market
organisations, municipalities and universities. Suggested
changes in national rules relied to business grants.
In
WP 2 municipalities and local groups are main actors. Results
will be plans based on tests for accessibility and quality in
services as schools, child, elderly and health care,
communications and daily commodities. In WP 3 spatial planning
will be connected to economic planning. A bottom up
perspective will promote local groups to work side by side
with municipalities to find solutions for land use. Counties
and central authorities will be involved as to needs of
changes in work methods and law, as results a number of
spatial plans and suggested changes in national planning
systems, including spatial organisation. WP 4 will be an
umbrella to guarantee the balanced settlement focus and
trans-nationality in work methods. Result will be a strategy
for rural-urban development, based on transnational
experiences, and inputs to central levels for changes in
planning rules.
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