At a meeting 26 Sept in Hamburg City Hall, BDF Chairman Hans Skov Christensen and BDF Vice Chairman Stephan Müchler discussed cooperation topics and joint activities with State Secretary Wolfgang Schmidt, responsible for Federal, EU and International Affairs in the City of Hamburg.
Among topics of joint interests was the economic performance of the Baltic Sea Region, infrastructure and labour market issues as well as cooperation with China. Also the future of the Danish General Consulate in Hamburg was touched upon. City of Hamburg and BDF agreed to continue the close dialogue at all levels. The City of Hamburg is one of the biggest and most important metropolises in the Baltic Sea Region and a valuable member of BDF since 2002.
BDF joins Baltic Sea Labour Forum
Developing cross border labour markets and talent mobility in the Baltic Sea Region is among the BDF priorities and we have conducted studies within this area. These topics were also addressed when BDF was represented by Head of Public Affairs Torben Aaberg as a keynote speaker at the Baltic Sea Conference on Education in Hamburg in May 2012, organised by City of Hamburg and the German CBSS Presidency http://bsce.hamburg.de/
BDF has now joined the Baltic Sea Labour Forum (BSLF) on an observatory basis. BSLF involves decision and policy makers to combine knowledge and ideas in order to come up with strategies, policies and practical solutions. BSLF aims at improving the harmonisation of labour market issues in the Baltic Sea Region based on joint transnational strategies and a dialogue involving trade unions, employer and business organisations, politicians, experts, public officials, NGOs and academia. BSLF is a continuation of the Baltic Sea Labour Network that was initiated by among others German MP Franz Tönnes.
BSLF is a flagship project within the EU Strategy and is jointly coordinated by City of Hamburg and CBSS, the Council of Baltic Sea States. City of Hamburg shares coordination responsibilities in the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region within issues related to higher education and labour market.
Visit the Baltic Sea Labour Forum. You can also read more about it on the CBSS website.