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A week highlighting the spirit of our multifaceted EU!

Mikael Janson

Northern Sweden consists of the four northernmost regions of Sweden in the European Arctic: Norrbotten, Västerbotten, Jäm t land Härjedalen and Västernorrland. These regions account for more than half of Sweden's land area, but less than 10% of its population.

Being remote and peripheral necessit at es putting ourselves on the map, especially as we see many maps ending where our counties begin. One way to be visible is to join forces w it h ot hers in t he European Union arena. The European Week of Regions and Cit ies (# EURegion sWeek) is such an occasion.

Cooperation and external support to release regional potentials are of great importance for all regions of the northern sparsely populated areas (NSPA) in northern Finland, Norway and Sweden. The role of the EU in this should not be underestimated. It has triggered cooperation between our regions, shifting the focus from only the national level and the capitals in each country to seeing how cross-border collaboration and strategic common actions can deliver new regional opportunities.

Over the years, the regions in the network of the NSPA has engaged the Nordic Council of Ministers research institute Nordregio and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) to undertake studies on our regions. The objective has been to learn about ourselves, to find common ground for development strategies for our regions and, in this way, to better understand how adapted support can help to release our shared potential.

As well as concrete support schemes, such as the EU regional funds that make it possible to take part in development and cooperation projects that otherwise would not happen, engaging in the European context raises the prospect of looking outside our own regional and national contexts. It allows for exchanges, collaboration and engagement on platforms that engage regions all over Europe. In particular, the EU concept of smart specialisation for sustainable regional development over all of Europe has helped to step up the development actions.

The OECD's territorial review on the NSPA pinpoints that these regions are on the European front line in many areas, such as innovation, green technology, and sustainable use of natural resources.

However, NSPA are still vulnerable regions, because of their lack of critical mass and capital. It is a challenge that, to a large extent, revenue from the big industries goes to owners elsewhere, while the local entrepreneurs are micro-companies with small resources. It is important to bring these aspects, together with many other issues, to the policy development discussion in the EU.

As a result, today, Northern Sweden and the NSPA are at the core of the EU green transition, having growing cities that take the lead in smart cities platforms. Furthermore, even the very small, European Week of Regions and Cities, at which events are arranged to learn from other European regions, and to establish new contacts and possible cooperation. Particularly important is face-to-face small talk in connection with and between the sessions, delivering new contacts and ideas to bring home.

"engaging in the European context raises the prospect of looking outside our own regional and national contexts"

Dialogue about this takes place in many ways on different levels. One very important platform is One very important platform is the European Week of Regions and Cities, at which events are arranged to learn from other European regions, and to establish new contacts and possible cooperation. Particularly important is face-to-face small talk in connection with and between the
sessions, delivering new contacts and ideas to bring
home.

,,EURegions week is when the EU demonstrates t hat t he EU is for all, a cooperation that is also a mechanism of multilevel governance throughout Europe,,

It has been especially fruitful to set up workshops and seminars between us in the NSPA and others with similar challenges, for instance, the excellent cooperation with Scot land House in Brussels during recent years. Sessions bring together regions and EU bodies to take part in events on how to develop remote regions, support small and medium-sized enterprise (SM E) business growth and contribute to the EU Green Deal.

Some of the best experiences have been when the European Commission and the European Committee of the Regions arranged seminars and workshops that put us together with other regions and policy experts, to learn about each other.

The EURegions week should be put into this context. It is not a week for the local and regional levels to just show off to each other. It is the week when the EU demonstrates that the EU is for all, a cooperation that is also a mechanism of multilevel governance throughout Europe. It is at the regional level that the EU institutions can reach local communities and their citizens; ultimately, all EU legislation is implemented at the local level in the regions. It would also be beneficial to have more engagement from national representatives, as that could pave the way for an overall more fruitful debate on the EU's role in sustainable development and innovation in all parts of Europe.

We from Northern Sweden and the NSPA appreciate participating in the # EURegionsWeek, even if the cost and travel time are a real issue for small municipalities and administrations such as ours. Although the possibilities of digital events are something to continue to build on, it is after the pandemic essential not to lose sight of the fact that person-to-person meetings are the very essence of the # EURegionsWeek.

We therefore appreciate the ambitions to lower the administrative burden and the invitation to use the EU institutions' venues when putting on sessions. We also welcome the more visible and proactive EU institutions, such as various directorates-general, and the excellent research capacities that exist, not least ESPON, to bring their views to the debates. That is why I continue to look forward to the yearly # EURegionsWeek. It is very much a manifestation of what should be a mantra for the spirit of all the EU: "Let ?s do it together!"

This article appears in EURegionsWeek 2021

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