Building Resilient Identities: Highlights from the CBSS Summer University in Greifswald

From 15 to 20 September 2025, international students from across the Baltic Sea Region came together in Greifswald, Germany, for the CBSS Summer University under the theme "Resilient Identities in the Baltic Sea Region. Balticness in Transition", where they took part in seminars, workshops, and excursions to examine how resilience is understood and expressed in cultural, social, and ecological contexts.

The Summer University explored the Baltic Sea Region as a political, cultural, and ecological space, addressing challenges such as the energy transition and ecosystem protection while highlighting "Balticness" as a shared identity that fosters resilience, cooperation, and a counterbalance to nationalist and populist currents.

The programme combined lectures, workshops, and excursions, covering themes from transnational activism and urban civil protection to eco-cultural resilience, with field visits to the Karrendorfer Wiesen peatland and the Maritime Museum in Stralsund linking natural and cultural perspectives on the Baltic Sea Region.

The summer university also featured a roundtable discussion "Future Meets Experience" at the Pomeranian State Museum, where students engaged directly with policy makers and practitioners. Panelists included Dagnija Baltiņa, Director of the Latvian National Library, Gustav Lindström, Director General of the Council of the Baltic Sea States (CBSS), and Prof. Dr. Katharina Riedel, Rector of the University of Greifswald. Together, they shared perspectives on institutional resilience and the challenges of regional cooperation.

The Summer University concluded on Saturday with creative student presentations, in which participants illustrated their personal Pathways to Balticness. Using narratives inspired by natural processes-such as the regenerative rhythm of jellyfish or the cultural importance of herring-they reflected on identity, resilience, and social change in the region.

The event was organised by the Interdisciplinary Centre for Baltic Sea Region Research (IFZO) in cooperation with the Young People Network for Balticness and supported by the CBSS.