BDF and relevant academic institutions around the Baltic Sea are trying hard to implement a virtual 
Think-Tank for the region.
The aim of the Baltic Sea Region Think-Tank is to work with political, societal, cultural and historic questions of wider interest and thereby helping to raising awareness and mutual understanding in the Region. In order to keep the EU strategy and regional integration a long term process, it is necessary to create a forum for open discussions on the state of regional affairs and for consulting.
The next meeting of the project takes place 25-26 November in Stockholm Södertörn University. The meeting is sponsored by Konrad Adenauer Stiftung.
Possible subject matters of the Think-Tank
Targeting national governments, regional institutions, the EU as such, and other public audiences, the Think-Tank will create awareness of an extraordinary character of the political and cultural transformation processes and the lessons, which could be of help for other European (macro-) regions.
Expertise and basic investigations are needed, for example, regarding the political state of the region, Russia’s politics towards the BSR, energy security, human rights, further integration of the region into the European structures, relationship small/large BSR states, hard/soft security issues, identity questions, lessons learned from the ongoing (financial) crisis, Poland’s presidency in 2011, Fehmernbelt bridge as the biggest infrastructural project in the region during the years to come.
One specific objective is to present at Political State of the Region Report at the Baltic Development Forum Summit in autumn 2011 in Poland. Funding of the project has started.
Institutions involved are Humboldt University, Berlin; the German Institute for International and Security Affairs, Berlin; the Danish Institute for International Studies, Copenhagen; the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, Riga; the Polish Institute of International Affairs, Warszawa; demosEUROPA, Warszawa; Södertörn University, Stockholm; Euroacademy, Tallinn; and the Universities of St. Petersburg, Vilnius, Riga, Tartu and Turku.
An international group of researchers on Baltic Sea Region affairs supports this initiative and is ready to contribute to get the idea off the ground. The moderator is professor Bernd Henningsen, Berlin, among the experts are professor Esko Antola, Turku, professor Zaneta Ozolina, Riga, Dr. Carsten Schymik, Berlin, ass. professor Mindaugas Jurkynas, Vilnius, professor Mark Bassin, Stockholm, Dr. Fabrizio Tassinari and Dr. Pertti Joenniemi, Copenhagen.
Text: Bernd Henningsen, Member of BDF’s Advisory Board
Contact person: Viktoria Nilsson, Baltic Development Forum, e-mail: vn@bdforum.org