The project will also focus on transnational solutions for new challenges on accessibility to transnational corridors, between urban and rural areas and the opportunities to make use of functional geographical relationships to give a new impetus to regional and local business.

BALTIC+ in many of its pats builds on the work that was done in the BSR INTERREG II C project "Baltic Bridge". The difference is mainly that we now - for a larger geographical area - put more emphasis on transnational strategies and co-ordination of implementation activities. We deepen and make more concrete our previous results and add new elements. Also, the circle of partners has been widened. The new project is organised in five Work Packages (WP).
nexus is active in WP 1: Common strategies and spatial partnerships.
Common strategies and action programmes for spatial development and balance will be elaborated, under guidance and monitoring of a political committee. By analysing strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (a so-called SWOT-analysis) those questions that demand joint actions can be distinguished. Special attention will be put on development programmes and plans that already exist for different geographical levels within the area, especially concerning agriculture and forestry, tourism, communication and transport infrastructure and urban/rural relations. This will be done in a continuous dialog with the other work packages.
Activities:

• A discursive SWOT-process to lay the ground for a common view on the spatial development
• Continuous monitoring and evaluation of results from other work packages to make strategies and action programmes more concrete
• International conferences and workshops to discuss and anchor strategies and action programmes
• Information to disseminate knowledge about the project and its results to the citizens of the area and to actors on local, regional, national and European level

A special sub-project will be devoted to the establishment of so-called spatial partnerships between functionally dependent metropolitan areas and rural areas - what we call "contrasting areas". In this, we will develop partnerships between public and private actors as well as citizens in the different areas in order to increase participation in planning and implementation of different actions.