CBSS joins Future Cities platform to strengthen urban resilience through culture and participation

The Council of the Baltic Sea States (CBSS) has joined the new Future Cities project platform, an Interreg Baltic Sea Region initiative that supports cities in developing more participatory, creative and people-centred approaches to urban development.

Running from June 2026 to December 2028, the platform responds to growing pressures on small and medium-sized cities across the Baltic Sea Region, including climate change, social fragmentation and declining trust in public institutions. It aims to make tested methods for civic participation and co-creation more accessible to municipalities and local stakeholders.

The Future Cities platform builds on results from several EU-funded projects, including the CBSS-led BSR Cultural Pearls, Liveability, CCI4Change, NEB-STAR and EDITUA. These initiatives have explored how culture, creativity and design can be used as practical tools to strengthen resilience, improve neighbourhoods and engage communities in shaping their local environment.

Through this joint effort, the project will connect cities with varying levels of experience, support cooperation with civil society organisations, and provide practical guidance for implementing participatory approaches in everyday governance.

The project will deliver four main outputs:

• a Future Cities Playbook, offering step-by-step guidance for developing and implementing shared urban visions;
• a portfolio of tested tools for cultural and participatory work;
• annual fora, peer-learning opportunities and an online learning community for cities and NGOs;
• a policy brief outlining the role of culture and creativity in strengthening resilience and liveability.

The consortium is led by Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung Schleswig-Holstein and brings together regional and local actors, including the CBSS, Northern Dimension Partnership on Culture, the Baltic Sea Cultural Centre, the City of Espoo, Nordic Edge, the Estonian Academy of Arts and ARS BALTICA.

By contributing its regional cooperation platform and networks, the CBSS will support the exchange of knowledge and the uptake of practical tools across the Baltic Sea Region, linking cultural and civic approaches to broader work on resilience and sustainable development.

The Future Cities project is funded by the Interreg Baltic Sea Region Programme.