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2YEARS7 Baltic Sea BSPCParliamentary Conference The Baltic Sea – Our Lifeline Cooperation, Sustainability and Smart Energy Three Pillars for Future Development 27th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference 27 27th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference Mariehamn, 26-28 August 2018 2 The Baltic Sea – Our Lifeline The Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference (BSPC) Cooperation, Sustainability and Smart Energy was established in 1991 as a forum for political Three Pillars for Future Development dialogue between parliamentarians from the 27th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference Baltic Sea Region. BSPC aims at raising aware- ness and opinion on issues of current political interest and relevance for the Baltic Sea Region. It promotes and drives various initiatives and Text: Malgorzata Ludwiczek, Marc Hertel, efforts to support a sustainable environmental, Bodo Bahr social and economic development of the Baltic Sea Region. It strives at enhancing the visibility Editing: Bodo Bahr of the Baltic Sea Region and its issues in a wider Layout: Produktionsbüro TINUS European context. BSPC gathers parliamentarians from 11 Photos: Ralf Roletschek, Olaf Kosinsky national parliaments, 11 regional parliaments and 5 parliamentary organizations around the Baltic Sea. The BSPC thus constitutes a unique parliamentary bridge between all the EU- and non-EU countries of the Baltic Sea Region. BSPC external interfaces include parlia- mentary, governmental, sub-regional and other organizations in the Baltic Sea Region and the Northern Dimension area, among them CBSS, HELCOM, the Northern Dimension Partnership in Health and Social Well-Being (NDPHS), the Baltic Sea Labour Forum (BSLF), the Baltic Sea States Sub-re- gional Cooperation (BSSSC) and the Baltic Development Forum. BSPC shall initiate and guide political activities in the region; support and strengthen democratic institutions in the par- ticipating states; improve dialogue between governments, parliaments and civil society; strengthen the common identity of the Baltic Sea Region by means of close co-operation between national and regional parliaments on the basis of equality; and initiate and guide political activities in the Baltic Sea Region, Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference endowing them with additional democratic Bodo Bahr legitimacy and parliamentary authority. Secretary General The political recommendations of the +49 171 5512557 annual Parliamentary Conferences are [email protected] expressed in a Conference Resolution www.bspc.net adopted by consensus by the Conference. The adopted Resolution shall be submitted to the governments of the Baltic Sea Region, the BSPC Secretariat CBSS and the EU, and disseminated to other Schlossgartenallee 15 relevant national, regional and local stake- 19061 Schwerin holders in the Baltic Sea Region and its Germany neighbourhood. 3 INTRODUCTION Ladies and Gentlemen, It is my distinct honour to have served as BSPC President for this past year and to be the host of our 27th annual conference. The Plenary Hall of the Åland Lagtinget and the Åland Islands – the islands of peace – set the scene for the 27th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference. This conference is after 1999 and 2010 the third Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference which took place in this Plenary Hall and had been the first one under the Presidency of Åland. Thanks to everyone attending that make this possible. The Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference in Åland on 26-28 August 2018 offered constructive dialogue, open debate, forward-looking solutions, friendship and a strong will to increase cooperation and prosperity in the region. The members of BSPC are from different geographical and cultural parts but are united in their care for the Baltic Sea. Our common language is the search for a prosperous future in our common challenge. Especially for the people of the Åland Islands, the title of the 27th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference brings it to the heart of what we are all about: The Baltic Sea our Lifeline. We are not only surrounded by the Baltic Sea, wherever we look, but we also live from it and with it. We go to sleep every night seeing the sun lowering in the sea and we wake up every morning listening to the sound from the waves. If the Baltic Sea is not in good shape, we suffer too. If the Baltic Sea is in good shape, we are great as well. It is an important matter of our hearts to make every effort – together with our friends and partners – to improve the status of the Baltic Sea and the entire Baltic Sea region. What is healthy for the Baltic Sea is good for all of us. With our topics “Sustainability and Smart Energy”, based on the fundament of our cooperation I believe we have chosen forward-looking themes, which will increase 4 the strength of our societies and our region in the future. These are pillars for our future development and success. I am grateful that the President of the Republic of Finland, H.E. Mr Sauli Niinistö, gave the opening Speech at our 27th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference in Mariehamn and highlighted the need for action and not only talk and plans. We have also included the young generation in our deliberations – as we regularly have done in our former conferences – and gave them the opportunity to discuss their recommendations on the United Nations 2030 development goals which they elaborated one week before in Mariehamn at a youth summit called ReGeneration 2030. We must never forget that the youngsters of today are the decision-makers of tomorrow. For the first time, we had a general debate, which was hard, but open and honest and did not break off our friendly cooperation. As we all know we learn the most from our honest friends and by sharing your views you inspire others to grow. We have once again succeeded in unanimously adopting a resolution with far- reaching and forward-looking demands – all of them for the best of the Baltic Sea. Our appeal is to the governments to implement these calls for action. I am convinced that the implementation of these measures will contribute to the further positive development of our region, our states and our homes. If we have succeeded in strengthening the parliamentary cooperation in the Baltic Sea region on the basis of our democratic values and if together, we can make our vision of a healthy Baltic Sea a reality, then it has been worth all our efforts. I want to thank all the speakers and participants who attended the Conference and contributed to its extraordinary success and also those who have already committed ideas, suggestions and inspirations in the run-up to this conference. I also thank the speaker of the Åland Lagtinget Ms Gun-Mari Lindholm and my colleagues from the BSPC delegation in our parliament as well as the administration of Lagtinget for their support and smooth preparation in hosting of the conference. Special thanks go to Mr Sten Eriksson and Ms Maj Falck for their supreme efforts during the entire Presidency. Finally, let me express my gratitude to Mr Bodo Bahr, BSPC Secretary General, for his deep and genuine expertise and inspirational engagement as well as for his close and excellent cooperation. An Association like ours can only be successful if we constantly strive towards being present, actual and factual. Moreover, doing this among friends is necessary. We are democrats and policymakers and we can make a difference. Finally, I would like to congratulate Norway and entrust the BSPC Presidency to Mr Jorodd Asphjell in 2018-2019, I wish him all success in steering the BSPC all the way up to the 28th BSPC in Oslo. Jörgen Pettersson President of the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference in 2017–2018 5 Contents Opening of the Conference ............................ 7 Session one Cooperation in the Baltic Sea Region ................... 13 Session two The Vision of a Healthy Baltic Sea - A Call for more Action .............................. 43 Session three Sustainable Energy, Smart Energy Distribution Platform ................................ 63 The Closing of the Conference ........................... 81 Annex Conference Resolution ................................ 85 List of Participants ................................... 92 Programme . 101 Impressions ....................................... 108 6 Opening of the Conference Opening of the Conference 7 Opening of the Conference Jörgen Pettersson, President of the BSPC 2017-2018 Jörgen Pettersson, the President of the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference, welcomed all the participants of the conference, ex- tending a particularly warm welcome to the President of the Repub- lic of Finland H.E. Mr Sauli Niinistö. He reminded the conference that the BSPC had been established in 1991 as a forum for polit- ical dialogue between the parliamentarians of the Baltic Sea Re- gion. The initiative had come from the Finnish Parliament and its speaker Mr Kalevi Sorsa. The parliamentarians would now meet for the 27th time to find better and common solutions for the region. He expressed his gratitude to the President of the Republic for his willingness to open the 27th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference in Mariehamn and underlined that the President of the Republic of Finland was among the friends of peace, progress and prosperity. Gun-Mari Lindholm, the President of Åland’s Lagting, welcomed all those present and noted that the Åland Islands were often men- tioned as the islands of peace. She stated that Åland gained its au- tonomy in 1921 by a decision of The League of Nations and that this decision had been the guarantee of security in the region. She hoped that the conference would bring good results as the topics were urgent and important. She also wished the participants to learn about Åland and their autonomy, their business as well as 8 Opening of the Conference Gun-Mari Lindholm, President of Åland’s Lagting everyday life. She highlighted the fact that the Baltic Sea separated people but also united them, and that it was the same sea which would be left to the next generations. She expressed her hope that the conference would come to smart solutions and find ways for- ward for the environment and humanity because only through the common work of large countries and small islands could the Baltic Sea be protected.

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