This Fast Track publication is a collection of policy brief articles written by Nordic researchers participating in collaborative projects funded by NordForsk or Nordic Energy Research. NordForsk is aiming for this publication to contribute relevant and up-to-date research-based knowledge that facilitates the analysis of the challenges and opportunities of Nordic co-operation in the coming years. The articles are original and written in April and May 2023 in response to a NordForsk call for policy brief articles to invited researchers and research groups.

The 33 articles in this publication are broadly divided into three chapters. The challenges, opportunities, and consequences of digitalisation in our societies are discussed in the first, followed by the natural environment, climate, green energy, the bioeconomy, and healthy food systems of the Nordic Region in the second. The third and final chapter comprises articles debating the Nordic Region and relations with neighbouring countries, including research on migration, integration and how to preserve and promote safe and healthy Nordic welfare societies.

The papers provide status overviews, descriptions of opportunities and obstacles, and ambitious recommendations for Nordic co-operation and how the vision can be delivered by 2030.

Denna rapport, beställd av Region Värmland, analyserar gränshinder inom den statliga regionalpolitiken mellan Sverige och Norge, med målet att belysa integrationen av gränsperspektivet och diskutera utmaningar samt möjligheter för gränsöverskridande samarbete.

Gränsen mellan Sverige och Norge beskrivs som “mjuk” med omfattande flöden, där historien av samarbete erbjuder betydande potential. Starka sociala band och ‘den mjuka gränsen’ främjar arbetskraftens rörlighet och affärssamarbeten, vilket bidrar till ökad konkurrenskraft och större marknader. Rapporten identifierar även gränshinder som påverkar individer, pendlare, och företag i gränsområdet. Den betonar vikten av dialog och samverkan för att ta tillvara möjligheter och hitta lösningar på gemensamma utmaningar. Rapporten framhåller att den regionala politiken i båda länderna ger regionerna ansvar för utveckling, men pekar på skillnader i hur gränsöverskridande aspekter hanteras. Den understryker vikten av gränsöverskridande samarbete för att skapa en integrerad arbetsmarknad och främja ekonomisk utveckling, trots att dessa aspekter har fått minskad uppmärksamhet i de nuvarande nationella strategierna. Rapporten uppmanar till en ökad inriktning på gränsöverskridande samarbete och bättre utnyttjande av regionernas potential för att överbrygga gränshinder och främja en hållbar utveckling i gränsregionerna.

In this article, we analyse the evolution and transformation of Danish spatial planning from its tentative origins in liberalist politics, through its rise as a central feature of the welfare state project, to its more recent entrepreneurial forms in a context of neoliberalisation. The article demonstrates how transformations of Danish spatial planning discourses and practices must be understood in context of previous discourses and practices sedimented as layers of meaning and materiality through time and over space. These layers do not completely overlay one another, but present a palimpsest saturated with contradictions as well as possibilities. We propose the notion of the ‘planning palimpsest’ as a helpful metaphor for drawing attention to the historical-geographical characteristics of planning discourses and practices.

In addressing the critical challenge of systemic sustainability, this report explores the need for more than a one-size-fits-all approach in the Nordic Region. It investigates the role of change agency processes and the impact of policies and framework conditions on green transition changes in business sectors. Our two case studies reveal some of the bottlenecks and drivers of innovation and explore them from a systemic perspective and in different geographic scales, both from a place-based and place-less perspective.

The methodology adopted in the report is comprehensive, including a deep dive into the evolution of innovation theory and policy, following by an in-depth analysis of green innovation in two sectoral developments, including multi-storey wood construction and the so-called ‘protein shift’. It examines the roles of different stakeholders, including governments, businesses, and communities, in fostering an environment conducive to systemic change. The report relies on the academic and policy evolution of innovation theory and practice, identifying, what is argued to be, an emerging generation of innovation policies focused not only on economic but also on societal and environmental goals, which has generated a heated debate. To add nuance to this debate, our report utilised sector-based case studies relying on expert interviews to shed light on the roles of different agents in producing, not only technological but systems innovation. Against the background of systems innovations theory, this study provides some insights into the relevance of place, and proximity – not just geographic, but cognitive, institutional, organisational and social proximity.  regional innovation landscape.

Key findings reveal that systemic green innovations in the Nordic region happen as a result of the sum of multiple actors intentionally and unintentionally driving change in place-based and place-less settings. Several obstacles hinder setting a clear direction to innovation and path creation as these barriers are deeply entrenched in governance complexities, social institutions, and place-based industrial and structural path dependencies. Disrupting technological and systems ‘lock-ins’, is therefore, not the role of single agents but the result of multiple ones acting on a place-based or technology-based setting, and requires enhanced policy frameworks, and entrepreneurial public institutions moving beyond setting the ‘rules-of-the-game’ to actively orchestrating action, mobilising stakeholders and facilitating co-operation. 

The report emphasizes the significance of knowledge exchange and the creation of trust-based networks to accelerate the adoption of green innovations. It concludes by demonstrating that different green innovations develop under very different conditions and processes.

Trots pandemin blev 2021 ett år fyllt med aktiviteter. Tack vare vår digitala omställning nådde vi en ännu större publik och kunde fortsätta stödja nätverk, arrangera webbinarier och sprida aktuell kunskap. Nordens välfärdscenter gav under året ut 14 publikationer och arrangerade 37 olika arrangemang – samt uppfyllde 52 av våra 58 resultatmål.

A report on how research funding institutions in the Nordic countries define and measure the impact of research. It highlights the complexity of assessing impacts that go beyond academic contributions to include societal, economic, and policy impact, emphasising the need for efficent infrastructure and meaningful operationalisation of impact.

Hvad er samfundssikkerhed? Samfundssikkerhed omfatter blandt andet et samfunds evne til at opretholde vitale fornødenheder og sikre befolkningers liv, sundhed, basale behov og grundlæggende værdier under ekstraordinære belastninger, kendt som kriser.

What is societal security? Societal security comprises the ability of a society to sustain vital societal functions and secure its population’s life, health, needs and basic values under extraordinary stresses, known as crises.

Increasing globalization, climate change and shifting demographics are creating a new context for discussion of development and its spatial distribution. This is a new challenge for planners and politicians, who are expected to develop and approve plans encompassing the existing built environment, new settlements and urban infrastructure, at the same time as the context rapidly shifts. This forces a re-assessment of how growth and development are envisioned in planning interventions. Some policymakers support a major shift towards green growth, based on radical improvements in energy systems, as the new paradigm leading to sustainability. Green growth has been embraced in order to mobilize green investments and to mitigate the current economic and environmental crises. It is often criticized, however, for neglecting the effects on the everyday lives of the individuals who reside in the city-regions where green growth is envisioned. Nordic cities are not only growing, but becoming more culturally and socioeconomically diverse. In that context, the quest for green growth raises profound professional, technical, theoretical and ethical questions for planners and politicians, including implications arising from increased socio-cultural diversity and associated perspectives.

The objective of the pilot study presented here is (1) to consider whether, and if so, how, knowledge about everyday life practices of different groups of women and men are present and integrated into Nordic cityregion planning; and (2) to test the usefulness, for researchers and planners, of assessing city-region planning through the eyes of everyday life theory. The research included several interviews, a workshop, and text analysis of documents concerning city-region policy and the processes of sustainable urban and regional planning. Local perspectives were scrutinized through the lens of gender, then extended to consider intersectionality. Intersectionality is a theoretical tool that attempts to foster understanding of a multiplicity of social contexts, including the different discourses of power and their implications for individuals and how they relate to their social, economic and ecological situations. Preliminary findings indicate that although the theory of everyday life is not a highly visible and literal component of Nordic city-region planning, the four city-regions all, to varying degrees, express its philosophical inclinations. Awareness of everyday life conditions and perspectives, and consequent fundamental objectives, present particular challenges to planners, who are responding with a number of innovative practical approaches.

Verksamhetsutveckling med digitala stöd fyller en viktig funktion för att samhället ska kunna fortsätta att erbjuda välfärd för invånarna. I de nordiska länderna pågår arbete och utveckling på olika plan när det gäller digitalisering och införande av välfärdsteknologi.

Denna kartläggning omfattar välfärdsteknologi i socialtjänsten, i huvudsak inom äldreomsorgen och kring insatser till personer med funktionsnedsättning.

Kartläggning ger en bild av den digitala utvecklingen, med särskild inriktning på välfärdsteknologi i Norden ur ett nationellt och statligt perspektiv. Kartläggningen är genomförd utifrån fyra huvudsakliga frågeställningar.

1. Vilka visioner, mål och strategier har de nordiska länderna när det gäller välfärdsteknologi inom socialtjänsten 2022 och framåt?

2. Vilka konkreta satsningar görs på nationell, regional och kommunal nivå via statliga medel?

3. Finns det aktuella, nyligen avslutade eller pågående utredningar inom området på nationell nivå i de nordiska länderna som berör digitalisering, e-hälsa eller välfärdsteknologi i vård- och omsorgssektorn?

4. Vilken är den nationella statusen för säker hantering av identiteter och behörigheter inom socialtjänsten?

I datainsamlingen till denna rapport har utredaren intervjuat företrädare för ministerier, departement, statliga myndigheter som hanterar social omsorg och service samt hälso- och sjukvård och digitalisering inom dessa sektorer. Även kommunförbund har intervjuats.

I rapporten presenteras materialet landsvis.

This study specifically examines the main challenges that impede green growth in Nordic countries, and identifies potential ways of overcoming these challenges and driving the green growth agenda forward. The methodology of the research comprised a survey, sent out to all 74 NUTS 3 (Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics 3) regions in the Nordic countries, and interviews with key national experts, focusing on challenges and government interventions related to the implementation of green growth initiatives. The results highlighted differences between Nordic regions in their work on green growth. In addition, we conducted a policy review of existing Nordic national-level bioeconomy and cleantech strategies, identifying their main focuses, explicit (or implicit) mentions of challenges to developing green growth and government interventions necessary to promote it. Based on the survey, interviews and our national policy review, we identified several such challenges and government interventions in Nordic regions.

The article discusses the perceived life changes of former Haliya bonded labourers in Nepal after their liberation. It concentrates on the subjective perceptions of the labourers, a field that has had little attention in literature to date. Nineteen semi-structured, in-depth interviews of former Haliyas, were conducted in a rural village in Baitadi, Far-Western Nepal in the summer of 2013. These were then analysed, using qualitative content analysis. The paper is constructed on the concept of social status, more precisely subordination, and it suggests that diminishing subordination, such as caste discrimination, dependency and forcing, is more important in former bonded labourers’ lives than the lack of improvement in material benefits. Therefore it can be argued that the literature on bonded labour stresses too much the quantitative data and the meaning of material conditions, and fails to see the importance of the personal experience and improved social status as the most important change in their lives. This suggests that it might be useful to examine the importance of social status when tackling inequality questions as well.

By employing semi-structured interviews this article investigates the peacebuilding environment in Kathmandu, Nepal, with an eye in particular to capture everyday conceptualizations of sustainable peace, and to investigate whether these might contribute to more holistic peacebuilding approaches in the country. The article draws initial inspiration from the post-liberal peace framework put forth by Oliver Richmond, which problematizes the liberal peace model by highlighting its tendency to neglect the local context and needs, as well as its frequent reliance on top-down and technocratic measures. Instead, Richmond calls for peacebuilding approaches which are more holistic and sensitive to the everyday needs of inhabitants of post-conflict societies. It is found that the post-liberal peace approach largely corresponds to the manner in which the interlocutors of this article conceptualize sustainable peace, i.e. by highlighting everyday issues such as material improvements, social justice, and national political stability. However, the article concludes by arguing that there are also issues of practical concern with both the post-liberal peace framework and the manner in which sustainable peace is conceptualized by interlocutors in Kathmandu.

This report relates to the universal right of all children and young people to participate, to express their views and be heard in all matters concerning them. Our aim is to provide insight into how this right is secured for children and young people with disabilities in the Nordic region.

In the report, we highlight some of the most common obstacles to participation that children and young people face in various arenas. Our Nordic expert group has contributed by finding relevant research and good methods to ensure inclusion and participation for more people.  A number of social actors play a key role in ensuring participation for children and young people with disabilities. Our goal in this report is to describe central national and Nordic actors, and the roles they play.

The right to participation and influence is particularly important for children, as children are social individuals who need to participate in order to develop their own identity, find their own voice and learn to express their feelings and needs. The right to participation helps ensure a child’s influence over his or her own life, opportunities, and the ability to make competent decision.

This article addresses the concept of Territorial Cohesion, which has been gaining increasing interest within academia and the EU policy circles. In particular, this article examines its relevance and main dimensions, and also suggests a comprehensive definition based on those dimensions. Additionally, this paper proposes a methodology which can be used to measure Territorial Cohesion in a given territory. Furthermore, the article also highlights the importance of the territorial dimension as a key topic in the EU political agenda and, at the same time, gives a contribution to answer several questions for debate expressed in the Green Paper on Territorial Cohesion.

Distance spanning solutions in healthcare and social care are rapidly increasing in all the Nordic countries. Healthcare and care are offered in people’s homes based on their own needs. Digitalisation and remote service solutions are important prerequisites for maintaining the quality of the Nordic welfare model. But what are the sustainability impacts of these services?

The Nordic region has set the ambitious goal of becoming the world’s most sustainable and integrated region by 2030. Distance spanning solutions in Nordic health care and care are closely aligned with this vision and each strategic priority. 

Digital solutions in health care and care represent a promising avenue for improving service accessibility for citizens and enhancing sustainability. Digitalisation is viewed as one way of mitigating the negative environmental impacts of health care and care production. However, practical tools are needed in order to comprehensively assess the impacts of digitalisation in this field. 

The purpose of this publication is to enhance understanding of the implications of digitalised health care and care on the different dimensions of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 

The report consists of two parts.

Part 1, Medicine robot services in health care and care: Contribution to the green transition introduces a novel methodology to assess the environmental – especially the climate impacts and social impacts of digital healthcare and care services. 

Part 2, Sustainability in digital health care: A new tool for evaluating impacts aims to broaden the perspective on the potential impacts of digitalisation in the Nordic welfare sector, from a narrow focus on climate impacts and carbon footprints to a broader focus that includes social, economic and other environmental dimensions. 

Despite continuous research efforts, the role of the European Union regarding spatial planning remains unclear. This article proposes to employ the concepts of soft spaces and soft planning to better comprehend how European spatial planning finds its way into the national planning systems. The EU contributes to the creation of soft spaces, differing from administrative entities, while at the same time, it acts as a driver of soft planning, focusing– both for strategic and legal reasons – on coordination, cooperation and mutual learning, rather than ‘hard’, regulatory planning. The article claims further that instead of depicting the connections between the EU and its member states, research should pay increased attention to the encounter of European and domestic planning within a country. The scales, actors and instruments that deal with EU inputs within a country might prove to be crucial factors that ultimately determine the impact of EU policies on spatial planning. To illustrate the encounter of European and domestic planning in the light of soft and hard planning, the article introduces a conceptual framework and thereby provides an outline for further empirical research.

FRÅGAN om kvalitet i äldreomsorgen är viktig och mer aktuell än någonsin. Avsikten med denna rapport är att skapa en överblick över situationen i Norden och därmed ge varandra inblick i och inspiration till hur utmaningarna inom äldreomsorgen bäst kan mötas.

I TAKT med befolkningens stigande medelålder blir det under många år framöver en utmaning för de nordiska länderna att tillfredsställa behoven inom äldreomsorgen.Antalet äldre ökar samtidigt som födelsetalet faller och det blir allt svårare att rekrytera personal till äldreomsorgen.

PROGNOSER pekar på att gruppen äldre blir långt mer differentierad än någonsin tidigare och kräver mer individuellt anpassad omsorg och vård. Äldreomsorgen ska således tillfredsställa både de resursstarka och dem som har långvariga och kroniska sjukdomar.

RAPPORTEN sätter fokus dels på den nuvarande situationen i Norden, dels på hur vi framöver kan hantera kvalitetsbegreppet och lära av varandras olika kvalitetssystem

The normative concept of polycentricity has become a promising tool to pursue spatial policy goals such as spatial equity and justice, sustainable and balanced development, and, more recently territorial cohesion, at various scales across Europe. As earlier research has shown, a number of cityregions use the concept for their planning and development work. In pursuit of polycentric development, they call for a robust terminology, solid analysis and methods. As a result, literature analysing polycentricity at the city- or mega-regional scale has grown significantly and it appears that some consensus has been achieved in regards to the main facets and dimensions. Recognizing that the potentials to comprehend city-regional dynamics by focussing on the extent to which polycentric urban patterns evolve has not yet been fully utilised, this paper intends to contribute to a more comprehensive view on polycentricity at the city-regional scale. In doing so, we study the (potentially) emerging urban patterns of two cases, the Dusseldorf and Stockholm city-regions, employing different theoretical starting points and analytical approaches. With this in mind, we aim to unpack the concept of polycentricity at the city-regional scale and to offer academics, as well as planning professionals and policy-makers, further insights into qualifying, analysing and understanding the complexity of the topic at hand. Likewise, we argue that sound strategies to promote and mobilise different facets of polycentric development should be carefully reflected and related to the theoretical, methodological and even normative starting point of any attempt to comprehending polycentricity.

The aim of this feasibility study is twofold; to investigate the prerequisites for a Nordic development project on mobile positioning data for tourism statistics, and to present a proposal for such a project. The project proposal is based on two levels where each level builds a fundament necessary for the other level. Information and learnings flow between the levels creating an iterative process and a learning eco-system.

De nordiska länderna toppar ofta globala rankningar över hållbar utveckling. De har väletablerade demokratiska system som motarbetar fattigdom, främjar ekonomisk tillväxt, säkerställer jämställdhet, skyddar miljön, samt upprätthåller fred och rättvisa. Mycket av framgången i Norden har sina rötter i det lokala förvaltningssystemet där många beslut fattas i kommunala demokratiska organ.I de nordiska länderna är kommunerna den mest lokala formen av officiella offentliga myndigheter med valda politiker. Kommunerna och regionerna stöttar på många sätt välbefinnandet i vårt dagliga liv i Norden. De tillhandahåller offentliga tjänster som infrastruktur, avfallshantering och sociala tjänster. Därför har lokala och regionala myndigheter en nyckelroll för framgångsrik implementering av hållbarhetsambitioner som fastställs på andra förvaltningsnivåer. En omställning till hållbar utveckling sker inte utan de lokala och regionala myndigheterna.

During the period 2013–2016, the Nordic Working Group for Green Growth: Sustainable Urban Regions (NWG4) and Nordregio have developed and shared knowledge about sustainable urban development, planning and green growth. Working in close collaboration with representatives from ministries and national authorities, policymakers and municipal and regional planners within larger Nordic city-regions, we have identified a number of common challenges and opportunities for sustainable urban development. City-regions are important arenas for addressing the many challenges associated with urban sustainability, inclusiveness and attractiveness. This synthesis highlights some of these key challenges, indicates where there is potential to develop more sustainable and co-ordinated planning and policy-making. It also provides insight into implementation, monitoring and evaluation of various plans and policies through different tools, models and concepts. In addition to outlining common challenges and opportunities for Nordic urban areas and governing city-regions, this report highlights some of the specific national concerns for cityregional planning in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden. It also provides an overview of municipal reforms and regional reforms in the Nordic region as well as an introduction to all the Nordic spatial planning systems. First comes a brief overview of the challenges addressed in this report. The different sections describe these in more depth and contextualising them with relation to the main findings from connected projects carried out by Nordregio. This is followed by national overviews of the spatial planning systems and regional reforms in all Nordic countries, as well as national concerns for city-regional planning. The report is concluded with a section about the NWG4 and a list of the related Nordregio publications.

Focusing on the ferry connection between the Swedish city Umeå and the Finnish city Vaasa, this report examines how cross-border cooperation in the Kvarken region has evolved and investigates cross-border integration using the ferry connection as the basis of analysis. The study examines the past and current states of cross-border cooperation and integration in the Kvarken region, and explores the potential for stronger cross-border integration in the future.

The purpose of this report is to add a disability perspective to the discussion on the inclusive city in the Nordic region. This is done by studying Nordic municipal strategies and planning practices related to accessibility, universal design and inclusion and interviewing national and local representatives from the selected countries and cities. In addition, we have included the perspective of users, via representatives of Nordic authorities and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in the Council of Nordic Co-operation on Disability. The cities in focus in the report are Trondheim in Norway, Viborg in Denmark, Tampere in Finland, Reykjavik in Iceland, Qeqqata Kommunia in Greenland and Borås in Sweden.

To understand the urban form of a city, planners must engage with complex questions of density, land use distribution, and accessibility to services and amenities. These issues, in turn, relate to critical strategic planning goals, such as regional equity, attractiveness, and environmental sustainability. In our research, conducted on behalf of the Nordic Working Group for Green Growth - sustainable urban regions, we tested a new methodological approach for integrating and measuring several of these dimensions. In doing so, we provided a spatial analysis of population density, service accessibility, and commuting pattern metrics of four case study areas in the Nordic Region: Funen (DK),Stockholm (SE), Tampere (FI) and Trondheim (NO). This analysis was applied with the following general principle in mind: where many types of services, public transportation and other amenities that people take benefit from in their everyday life are available within a convenient time distance, we can talk of well-functioning nodes in the urban form of a city. By considering this principle in relation to the urban patterns that are mapped, we aimed to determine how our analytical approach can be relevant for strategic planners working at the municipal or regional level. 

Nordic Statistical Yearbook is published for the 52nd time. It is a reference book containing comprehensive and easily accessible statistics of various aspects of social life in the five Nordic countries, i.e. Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden. In addition data are also presented on the Faroe Islands, Greenland and the Åland Islands. The aim of the yearbook is, as far as possible, to present comparable data on the Nordic countries. Additional tables can be accessed free of charge via our homepage www.norden.org/facts. Here it is also possible to read and download the Nordic Statistical Yearbook in pdf format free of charge.

In the Nordic countries, most of the reported cases of trafficking in human beings today concern women and girls trafficked for sexual exploitation, but experiences from Europe indicate that human trafficking has increased also in farming, household work, construction, and house building, as well as in begging, shoplifting and thefts. The conference Identification of victims and criminals – why we do not notice them on 30–31 May 2013 in Tallinn, Estonia formed the conclusion of a Nordic-Baltic-Northwest Russian cooperation project. Around 80 participants attended the two-day conference to discuss ways of identifying victims and criminals and to find answer to the question of why we do not notice victims or criminals, even though we now have available to us facts, figures, research and knowledge about human trafficking as a part of international organized crime.