Session 7 – Advancing transboundary governance: Baltic and North Sea challenges and prospects
Session 7 – Advancing Transboundary Governance: Baltic and North Sea Challenges and Prospects
Taking place: 12 November 2025 10:45-12:00 EET
The session aims to identify pathways for more adaptive, inclusive, and coherent governance, offering insights into how cross-basin learning and dialogue can help future-proof maritime governance structures across European sea regions. Focusing on the Baltic Sea Region (BSR), the session will present findings from the ongoing NESB project’s governance analysis, which explores current governance structures and practices related to marine space and Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP). It will also introduce developments in the North Sea, including the initial phase of governance scenario development under the NESB project, as well as the evolving and increasingly prominent role of the Greater North Sea Basin Initiative (GNSBI).
Through a comparative lens, the discussion will highlight both differences and commonalities in governance approaches across the two sea basins, particularly in addressing challenges such as climate change, ecosystem degradation, spatial conflicts, and the acceleration of offshore energy development. Authors of the governance analysis and scenario work will be joined by key stakeholders – including representatives of GNSBI, the HELCOM-VASAB MSP Working Group, and national policymakers or planners – to reflect on current structures and co-develop ideas for more effective and forward-looking governance models.
Session aim: Co-define what “good governance” looks like across sea basins by comparing Baltic and North Sea approaches, reviewing early NESB project findings, and co-creating practical principles and next steps for future-proof, transboundary Maritime Spatial Planning.
SPEAKERS:
- Moderated by Magdalena Matczak, Maritime Institute, Gdynia Maritime University
- Challenges, aspects and trends that might affect future developments in the marine space. Christian Zuidema, Groningen University
- First results of sea-basin scale governance analyses for the North Sea and Baltic Sea regions. Juul Kusters, University of Groningen; Jacek Zaucha
Target audience:
MSP planners and authorities; ministries and agencies; regional sea conventions (e.g., HELCOM); cross-basin initiatives (e.g., GNSBI); port and energy stakeholders; researchers; and intermediary networks active in transboundary MSP and sustainable blue economy.
Lead organisers:
Maritime Institute of Gdynia Maritime University, VASAB
Keywords:
Transboundary governance, Macro-regional cooperation, Baltic Sea, North Sea, Greater North Sea Basin Initiative (GNSBI), Policy coherence, Multi-level governance
Session is organised by the NESB project partners. NESB project is co-funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the project consortium only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or CINEA. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
