In this issue of Nordregio News we take a closer look at discussions on the role of universities and their impact on regional development.

In this first issue of Nordregio News we aim to provide a better understanding of the ongoing discussion on the future European Territorial Cohesion policy and specifically the role of the Territorial Agenda of the European Union 2020 (TA 2020).

Urbanisation is strong in the Nordic countries, with people and capital being concentrated into growing, expanding city regions. These urbanisation processes of concentration and expansion, and explosion and implosion are challenging traditional forms of planning and creating tensions within current planning systems and procedures, along with new forms of urban governance and policies in a number of ways. In the current age of austerity, there is an increased interest and need in finding new solutions and alternatives to provide housing, offices and other services to the new citizens. In addition and in parallel to this, in postpolitical Europe, there is also an increased emphasis on citizen engagement and public participation because of the perceived gap between politics and people’s everyday lives. 

Municipal reforms are gaining political momentum in the Nordic countries, which all face great social changes. Some countries have already pushed their reforms through; others are still struggling with decisions on the matter. Finland has failed after several years of trying to implement a renewed reform process. Norway is in the midst of such a process, and Greenland is reconsidering the reform it undertook in 2009. In this issue of Nordregio News, we review current initiatives on municipal reforms in the Nordic countries. What exactly is happening now, and why?

The old age dependency rate is a ticking time bomb that threatens to blow the Nordic welfare model into pieces. Old age dependency rates are rising across the Nordic countries as in most parts of Europe. Due to a selective outmigration of young people towards the cities, the dependency rates are particularly high in rural municipalities, where access to healthcare services is one of the major issues. This issue of Nordregio News focuses on recent migration flows and the Nordic societies’ readiness to welcome the newcomers.

This issue of Nordregio News maps the demographic situation and challenges in the Nordic countries, especially regarding ageing population. It also examines different methods and policy responses to tackle the situation.

In this issue of Nordregio News, we focus on cross-border co-operation and its impact on regional development in Nordicand European border regions. We have studied how crossborder co-operation is structured and managed, and whether its full potential for sustainable growth has been realized. Theadded value of cross-border  co-operation can be defined and measured in various ways, including improvement of crossborder infrastructure and increasing flows of tourists.

This issue of Nordregio News focuses on the Nordic Arctic. The area shares a number of common features, such as low population density, low accessibility, low economic diversity and abundant natural resources. It is also an area of increasing international attention, due to the effects of climate change and expectations about future exploitation of raw materials and the opening of new sea routes.

This issue of Nordregio News discusses the concept of quality of life from an urban-rural perspective.

This issue of Nordregio News takes a closer look at aspects of the new programming period for the EU Structural Funds as well as the current progress in the Nordic countries towards new programmes for 2014 and onwards.

In this issue of Nordregio News, we take a tour of territorial monitoring – looking at conceptual, practical and applied aspects of producing and using such knowledge.

In this issue we examine the possibilities of Green Economy and Green Growth, both from a practical and a policy perspective.

In this issue of Nordregio News we take a closer look at what Smart Specialisation entails, and consider it from a Nordic perspective.

This is a theme issue of Nordregio News, offering you an overview of industrial symbiosis in the Nordic countries. By browsing through this issue you will get a picture of what it is, why has it become a hot topic, what motivates the industries to get involved and what interesting results we have found through our case studies.

Twenty years have passed since Nordregio was established by the Nordic Council of Ministers. It has been quite a ride for a small but ambitious research institution. In this jubilee issue you will get a glance of our current topics, including urbanization, a shrinking and aging population in remote areas and increasing refugee immigration. We will also provide you with some retrospective view on regional development and some optimistic projections of the future for the Nordic Region. 

The Baltic Sea Region is one of Nordregio’s four main geographical focal areas. Our background has previously been on terrestrial spatial planning primarily, but Nordregio is now also increasingly involved in research and projects on maritime spatial planning. In this Nordregio News issue, you will learn more about the outcome of the Baltic SCOPE project, dealing with transboundary Maritime Spatial Planning. Also, you will find case examples on how maritime spatial planning is implemented in different parts of Europe, as well as the information about two upcoming projects - BONUS BASMATI focusing on Baltic Sea maritime spatial planning for sustainable ecosystem services and PanBaltic SCOPE. Finally, we include a youth perspective, asking how we can make the Baltic Sea a better environment for future generations?

This is a special issue of Nordregio News, offering you an overview of current research areas and projects that we are involved in here at Nordregio. With the new layout and content structure, we wish to make the magazine more readable and easier to navigate.

In 2015, we have put substantial resources into research commissioned and funded by the four Nordic working groups  under the Nordic Council of Ministers’ Committee of Senior Officials for Regional Policy: Demography and welfare; Sustainable regional development in the Arctic; Green growth - innovation and entrepreneurship; and Sustainable urban regions. We are pleased to say that many regional case studies, Foresight analysis and policy overviews were conducted during the year, in addition to the development and launch of the interactive web-mapping tool, NordMap. The Nordic Demography Programme was finalised and three large-scale EU-funded projects started: REGINA, Baltic SCOPE and Baltic Urban Lab.  More information on some of these projects will be found in this issue.

Today, with increasing digitalization, the importance of physical distance is diminishing. The size of functional regions, i.e. the geographical areas in which many people both live and have their daily work and social life, is expanding beyond administrative borders. The last issue of Nordregio News this year focuses on the connections between the urban and the rural areas which is also the major topic of Nordregio Forum that was held in Oslo at the end of November, 2017. What opportunities are offered by better linkages between the urban and the rural areas? Or, is it utopian to believe that rural areas can develop and prosper in parallel with ongoing urbanization? Finally, what could the rest of the world learn from the Nordic approach to sustainable small and medium-sized cities? 

In this issue of Nordregio News we take a look at the past, present and future of the European Observation Network for Territorial Development and Cohesion - ESPON.

This issue of Nordregio News examines the possibilities and advantages of cross-border innovation policies.

At Nordregio Forum 2015 ”Nordic City Regions in a Global Environment” all the international speakers emphasized unique qualities of Nordic cities’ in terms of human scale and sustainable solutions from a social and environmental perspective. The world’s leading expert on the so-called mega-projects, Professor Bent Flyvbjerg of Oxford University, stated that instead of investing in costly prestige projects we should continue to put people first in Nordic urban planning.

This final issue of Nordregio News in 2016 looks closer at some projects and concepts where people are part of the planning process. Involving citizens early in the planning processes opens up for new ideas and approaches and including art when discussing architecture and urban planning might be the way forward when planning and building sustainable cities.

In this issue of Nordregio News we focus on the discussions of how gender equality and economic development are related.

This issue of Nordregio News focuses on innovation and governance. What are the key issues in innovation policies and how should they be considered in governance? We view this from different perspectives, with a common focus on the interests of people, their institutions and the knowledge they bring to the table.

Finding durable solutions to poverty and social exclusion arguably requires multi-sectoral and multi-level governance approaches to foster territorial cohesion and address socioeconomic disparities in the continent’s metropolitan regions. In this issue of Nordregio News, we explore the issues of poverty and social exclusion in an urban European context, consider how these issues are dealt with in a suburban municipality in the Stockholm Region and learn about a distinct approach to raise awareness among policy-makers. 

In this issue of Nordregio News we challenge existing urban geographies.

This issue of Nordregio News sheds light on the debate on sustainability in urban planning. What has happened during the past two decades and what is going on today?

In this issue of Nordregio News, we explore new technologies and new tools for sustainable urban planning.

In 2014, the Icelandic Presidency of the Nordic Council of Ministers has put bioeconomy at the top of the Nordic political agenda, stating that the Nordic countries have excellent potential for creating a sustainable bioeconomy, with positive effects on regional development. There are three arguments behind this statement. First, the Nordic countries are rich in biotic natural resources. Second, they have well-functioning institutions and well-developed cross-border co-operation. Finally, they have the requisite competence and research capacity. In this issue of Nordregio News, we look at the current situation regarding the bioeconomy in the Nordic countries.