The Baltic Sea region is an area with many diverse development perspectives. Nearly 50 million people live in the coastal region. Tourism is one of the possibilities to position the Baltic Sea area internationally and more successfully. Every year, more than 200 million passengers use the ferries on the Baltic Sea and around 40 cruise ships travel along the inland sea. 125.5 million overnight stays can be counted annually in the Baltic Sea region (source: Eurostat). A general situation that can be advanced from tourism institutions’ point of view. Cruise and ferry liners are the pace maker for the region. Air traffic and the expanding network of roads and motorways between the countries also form a basis for a more intensive touristic exchange.

There is a good interaction within the Baltic Sea region, which can, however, be intensified by different means in order to achieve further economical development. Therefore, tourism organisations of the Baltic Sea neighbouring countries and regions undertake the commitment to cooperate more intensely in the field of interregional and international tourism in order to give more attention to this development and support this process more efficiently.

The participating organizations in 2nd Baltic Sea Tourism Forum responsible for tourism marketing take note of the proposal of the European Commission for the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region in June 2009. They welcome the various activities proposed therein, particularly those directed at maintaining and reinforcing the attractiveness of this region in the field of tourism. The collaboration between the above participants of this forum and with the strategy co-ordinator for the tourism field is understood as a contribution to the goals of the Baltic Sea Strategy.

The participating organizations in 2nd Baltic Sea Tourism Forum responsible for tourism marketing agree on intensifying their collaboration. During a workshop from 9 to 12 August 2009 the following fields of intensified collaboration were discussed and outlined. They shall serve as the basis for their further work.

 Suggested fields of intensified collaboration:

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Date: September 30 - October 3, 2009
Venue: Artis Centrum Hotel
Organisers: * Euro Working Group of OR and Development, * Vilnius Gediminas Technical University, Lithuania, * Institute of Mathematics and Informatics, Lithuania

The scope of International Vilnius conferences on sustainable development is to encourage and facilitate interdisciplinary communication, emphasising those areas that provide the most benefits for state-of-the-art of sustainability development including sustainability methodology for sustainable economics and sustainable human life connected with knowledge-based and economic technologies.

The main focus of this conference is to provide a launch pad to collaborate between the young, dynamic and experienced researchers and practitioners from disciplinary and inter-disciplinary areas to come together and help the sustainable development with their models, solutions and share their in-valuable experiences.

The Preliminary programme of the Conference can be viewed here

Date: 30 September - 3 October, 2009
Venue: Reval Hotel Lietuva, Vilnius, Lithuania
Organisers: KTU Regional Science Park, Kaunas Regional Innovation Centre, Kaunas University of Technology, Ministry of Economy The Republic of Lithuania, Enterprise Europe Network, Representation of European Commission in Lithuania, Baltic Association of Science/Technology Parks and Innovation Centres, Agency for International Science and Technology Development Programmes in Lithuania.

The 2009 Baltic Dynamics Conference – The Dynamics of Innovation Spaces: Bringing Innovation to Society – will be held in Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania on 30 September to 3 October, 2009. The conference organisers are delighted to invite experts and policy makers from around the world involved in innovation and SMEs development as well as in technology transfer – innovative companies, representatives from SME support institutions, public authorities responsible for SMEs and innovation – to participate in the conference, present your experience and discuss the issues and new initiatives in the field.

The Baltic Dynamics Conference is annually organised Baltic countries initiative aiming at a promotion of international co-operation in the fields of innovation, SMEs support and technology transfer. The Conference is organised since 1995 in turn by Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania and attracts participants from a broad range of countries from all continents around the globe. It promotes exchange of experience and adds to the successful development of innovation and economy.

The Conference will aim at promotion of innovativeness among policy makers, business, science, education and society. Submissions from academics, policy makers, consultants, managers in innovation management, technology transfer as well as in SMEs support field are strongly encouraged and should focus on the following topics:
Triple Helix – Implications for Policy and Practice
Regional Innovation Environments and Innovative Regions
International Co-operation in Knowledge Transfer
The Role of Traditions in Innovation Processes
Innovative Approaches in Business Management
@Innovation
Creativity and Innovation Management
new Entrepreneurship Development Policies and Initiatives

Draft programme of the conference can be accessed here

The 2nd Baltic Sea Tourism Forum
CO-OPERATION OF THE BALTIC SEA REGION COUNTRIES:
CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES
September 24-25, 2009 - Vilnius, Lithuania

The 2nd Baltic Sea Tourism Forum ”Co-operation of the Baltic Sea Region countries: challenges and opportunities” will be held on the 24-25th  of September, 2009 in Vilnius – European Capital of Culture 2009, at the hotel “Narutis”.
The Forum is a part of the Lithuanian Presidency of the Council of the Baltic Sea States in 2009-2010.
Recognizing that tourism in the Baltic Sea region is very important and has many diverse development perspectives, the Forum will bring together representatives from Tourism ministries, National Tourism administrations, experts and practitioners to debate possible cooperation strategies  for developing tourism, for establishing and implementing general projects, for sharing best practice examples, for presenting the actual challenges and opportunities in the field of tourism within Baltic Sea region.

Underscoring that tourism is one of the most resilient economic activities and can therefore play a key role in economic recovery we have put rising focus on the importance of effective tourism cooperation in the Baltic Sea region. In the time of uncertainty, United Nations World Tourism Organization prognoses international tourism decline by 2 %. Arrivals to European destinations might experience a 3 % negative growth. These global tendencies apply to Baltic Sea region as well.

Against this background, nearby markets are expected to reinforce cooperation, to respond better to stimulus packages which have to adapt to changing demand patterns. Therefore the Forum will focus on the monitoring participating countries market behavior, latest trends, fostering best practices, presenting possible common projects, marketing activities, stimulating of tourist flow between neighboring countries.

With this Forum, the Lithuanian State Department of Tourism under the Ministry of Economy hopes to contribute to a debate that will help the Baltic Region countries improving their cooperation, marketing and ultimately be more competitive in the European and global marketplace.

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