Success stories

Please describe how the project benefited your organisation

Learned best practices of our Nordic neighbors on internationalization of higher education, work of universities and how open is state policy on recruitment of international students. It was beneficial to learn how our Nordic colleagues have come to the instruments and approach they use in their extensive experience. We hope we can present to the Latvian Ministry of Education and Science the focus on attraction of talents. It was practical to see how the division of labor is organized within Study in Finland and Study in Sweden teams. The universities we visited gave us real insights on promotion work they do.

Please describe how the project benefited the Nordic-Baltic cooperation

Our colleagues in Sweden and Finland remained open to our further practical questions and inquiries. We do continue networking together in Study in Europe project's activities and learn from each other. Some considered doing study visits themselves, possibly to Latvia. We have now direct contacts to share our cooperation proposals and scholarship opportunities as well as specific Nordic language programs launched in Latvia.

References in the media

We informed about the visits in our social media (Study in Latvia instagram Stories and State Education Development Agency facebook account-
https://www.facebook.com/VIAA.LV/posts/pfbid02Uj13EagGwVs5VwPSf6y5qha61bdkRKTBTbMGEVEx8zuaNgg9XprHXnJ6J6Mf2xSdl ;
https://www.facebook.com/VIAA.LV/posts/pfbid0NBpnAuVqEKb8A4kibCoiQgDsWShCeHXYwXw575S1widhtv8gLEZwG5FLZW2HbFwbl
Embassy of Latvia in Sweden web page - https://www2.mfa.gov.lv/stockholm/aktualitates/69559-tiksanas-ar-study-in-latvia-parstavjiem

Do you consider your mobility project valuable in terms of sharing experience?

Yes, for my home organisation

Please give an example of experiences/values gained through the mobility project

Learned about coherently and well-planned policy planning on internationalization, clients based approach organizations are working with through a unified application platform, for example. Diversity in Study in Sweden's team provided a new perspective that the best experts in the area are the ones who have gone through the same studies abroad experience.

Please describe briefly whether the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for %s met your expectations

It did, fully and we are very grateful that Study in Finland and Study in Sweden were ready to host us and organize the visits.

Contact: Marika Pīra, project manager of the project "Capacity building in international student mobility - Study in Latvia, Nordic experience "

Please describe how the project benefited your organisation

These study visits have an inestimable value because they offer an opportunity to broaden your horizons in a way that cannot be found in Estonia. Thanks to these visits, the advisors of the Chancellor of Justice have been able to visit places where they probably would not have been able to go on their own (such as psychiatric hospitals with acute patients in Denmark and Finland). These visits have been a good example of how other countries have found solutions to problems that Estonia is also struggling with. Undoubtedly, they also give the Chancellor of Justice the opportunity to better substantiate her recommendations to Estonian authorities. Besides, open conversations with Nordic colleagues who perform similar tasks in their own countries have been the best ways to learn and consult.

Please describe how the project benefited the Nordic-Baltic cooperation

The Chancellor of Justice has had good relations with her Nordic colleagues for a long time, and now we are focused on maintaining those relationships. Study visits have provided an excellent opportunity for work-related conversations and the exchange of experiences. As our Nordic colleagues have confirmed multiple times, these are not only one-sided learning opportunities but have also provided many benefits for themselves.

References in the media

Information about completed projects can be found on the website of the Chancellor of Justice: https://www.oiguskantsler.ee/en/projects (in English) and https://www.oiguskantsler.ee/et/projektid (in Estonian).

Do you consider your mobility project valuable in terms of sharing experience?

Yes, for my home organisation

Please give an example of experiences/values gained through the mobility project

In fact, all three choices beginning with "yes" are true. The Mobility Programme provides an excellent opportunity to openly discuss the topics that are the focus of the study visits, providing an opportunity to develop both personal skills and the skills of the institution and the host organization. No other organization controls psychiatric hospitals in Estonia, Finland, or Denmark in a way an institution for the prevention of ill-treatment does, which is why such a study visit is a good opportunity to learn something new for all parties involved.

Please describe briefly whether the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for %s met your expectations

Completely. Without the help of the Mobility Programme and our Nordic colleagues, we probably would not have been able to visit closed hospitals with severe psychiatric patients in Denmark and Finland.

Contact: Kertti Pilvik, project manager of the project "Study visits of the advisers to the Chancellor of Justice on the supervision of psychiatric hospitals to Finland and Denmark"

Please describe how the project benefited your organisation

The project helped the staff of the Committee of Economic Affairs of the Parliament of Estonia(Riigikogu) to familiarize themselves with the economic committees of two different parliaments. The committee received an overview of the preparation of draft legislation on economic issues in the parliament and the organization of work during the Covid-19 crisis. In the Finnish and Danish parliaments, we gained experience and practices from our professional committees, which we can apply in our daily work, should relevant situations arise. The overall aim of the project was to improve the functioning of the Commission and its role in legislation. It was also important to establish new contacts with parliaments and ministries in order to continue cooperation in the future. Commission officials liked the project very much. A former official of the Economic Committee, who currently works in the Foreign Affairs Committee, was also able to participate in the visit to Denmark. He started the implementation of the project. Our meetings in Finland and Denmark were very interesting and useful in our work. We gained a lot of new knowledge on different topics and met with several different committees whose work is similar to the work of our economic committee. They simply have more specialized committees in the parliament, and economic topics are distributed among them. We also really liked that we had the opportunity to meet with the ministries and to discuss the topics concerning our committee in depth. In Denmark, we had several meetings on energy.

Please describe how the project benefited the Nordic-Baltic cooperation

First, the North Baltic cooperation was the biggest benefit of the networks we created. It was very useful to meet different institutions and share experiences and work practices. Many institutions cooperate with other Estonian private sector companies, for example Eesti Energia. We were able to expand our acquaintances and received many contacts from the meetings to promote cooperation even after the end of the project. The meetings were useful for all parties, as an overview of various activities was given. We gained knowledge that can later be used and practiced in our daily work. The meetings were useful for Estonian, Finnish and Danish officials, because everyone got a new insight into how things are done differently in different parliaments.

References in the media

The project did not attract media attention, but we promoted the project in the parliaments of both countries. The officials of the committees of the parliaments of both countries must have been very interested in the project. The Department of Foreign Relations of the Danish Parliament had also visited Estonia this year and cooperated with the Department of Foreign Relations of the Riigikog. We have also talked about our experiences with the project to various committees of the Riigikogu Office. Several other Riigikogu committees have also gone on study tours within the framework of this project and have also given very positive and versatile feedback.

Do you consider your mobility project valuable in terms of sharing experience?

Yes, for my home organisation

Please give an example of experiences/values gained through the mobility project

Our committee learned a lot from the legislation and work organization of the Finnish and Danish parliaments in the Covid-19 crisis. The study trip was informative and we got new ideas on how to improve our work. above all, we gained new contacts with whom we can share our knowledge and ask for information in the future. From Denmark, we were given a very good overview of renewable energy, which we are currently dealing with very often in the Economic Committee.

Please describe briefly whether the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for %s met your expectations

Our committee was very satisfied with the outcome of the project. We received many different and new solutions about the daily work of the Nordic parliaments, which we can learn from and apply to our practice. The Nordic and Baltic public administration mobility program gave us a great opportunity to meet people in our field and get new contacts for the future.

Contact: Epp-Sandra Satsmann, project manager of the project "Study visit to the Parliaments of Finland and Denmark "

Please describe how the project benefited your organisation

The Supreme Court has a responsibility to society to uphold a high standard of work and to ensure that employees continue to grow and develop their skills. During this project the judge assistants and legal research counsels got the chance to become acquainted with the responsibilities of their colleagues from Finland, Denmark and Norway, the structure of the workplace, and the best practices for work efficiency. The participants highly valued the visits where they had the opportunity to also visit courts of other instances and learn about their work organization. The visit programs included a time in which our participants provided information about the work of the Supreme Court of Latvia, which was highly appreciated because it led to fruitful discussions.

Please describe how the project benefited the Nordic-Baltic cooperation

The project opens up opportunities for closer and more in-depth cooperation for long-term development, which can be the basis for the implementation of larger projects in the future between the Supreme Courts of Latvia and the Nordic countries. As well as new, contacts have been obtained, which could be useful in organizing future events, for example, conferences. The project helped to forge relationships between the courts of the participating Nordic countries and the Supreme Court of Latvia while also fostering confidence in the advantages and effectiveness of cooperation.
For example, at the end of November, colleagues from the Helsinki Court of Appeal, the court that our delegation visited at the end of August, came to the Supreme Court of Latvia to meet with Judges and the Head of the Division of Case-law and Research.

References in the media

Project page on the website of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Latvia
LV - https://www.at.gov.lv/lv/par-augstako-tiesu/starptautiska-sadarbiba/projekti/latvijas-un-ziemelvalstu-augstako-tiesu-darbinieku-pieredzes-apmaina
ENG - https://www.at.gov.lv/en/par-augstako-tiesu/starptautiska-sadarbiba/projekti/latvijas-un-ziemelvalstu-augstako-tiesu-darbinieku-pieredzes-apmaina

An article about a visit to Finland published on the website of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Latvia
LV - https://www.at.gov.lv/lv/jaunumi/par-notikumiem/augstakas-tiesas-darbinieki-gust-pieredzi-somijas-tiesas-11274?year=2022&month=08
ENG - https://www.at.gov.lv/en/jaunumi/par-notikumiem/employees-of-the-supreme-court-gain-experience-in-finnish-courts-11276?year=2022&month=08

An article about a visit to Denmark published on the website of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Latvia
LV - https://www.at.gov.lv/lv/jaunumi/par-notikumiem/darbinieki-gust-pieredzi-danijas-tiesas-11323?year=2022&month=09
ENG - https://www.at.gov.lv/en/jaunumi/par-notikumiem/employees-gain-experience-in-danish-courts-11413?year=2022&month=09

An article about a visit to Norway published on the website of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Latvia
LV - https://www.at.gov.lv/lv/jaunumi/par-notikumiem/darbinieki-gust-pieredzi-norvegijas-augstakaja-tiesa-11410?year=2022&month=11
ENG - https://www.at.gov.lv/en/jaunumi/par-notikumiem/supreme-court-employees-gain-experience-at-the-supreme-court-of-norway-11411?year=2022&month=11

Additionally, the information about the visits was published in the periodical "The Bulletin of the Supreme Court" ("Augstākās Tiesas Biļetens"). https://www.at.gov.lv/files/uploads/files/2_Par_Augstako_tiesu/Informativie_materiali/AT_Biletens25_WEB.pdf

Do you consider your mobility project valuable in terms of sharing experience?

Yes, for personal skills

Please give an example of experiences/values gained through the mobility project

Focused exchange visits are a valued way to gain experience, knowledge and ensure the exchange of best practice by meeting colleagues from other countries.

Please describe briefly whether the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for %s met your expectations

The opportunities offered by the program are wide and versatile. The program's framework is understandable, transparent, and well-planned.
I would also like to express my compliments about the application process in the electronic environment.The application and reporting procedures are well-structured and open. The electronic system works perfectly.

Contact: Zane Mičule, project manager of the project "Exchange of knowledge, experience and best practices between Latvian and Nordic Supreme Court staff on effective work organisation"

Please describe how the project benefited your organisation

After a long period of the pandemic (Covid-19), it was great to meet with colleagues from the Danish and Norwegian Ministry's of Education. We had the opportunity to examine national policies and recent measures to achieve the objectives of the European Green Agreement. Also learn about legislation and how encourage and inspire school leaders to invest in green solutions.
Secondly, we managed to visit the building of an educational institution that is still under construction, which has been designed and built in accordance with the requirements of "green" solutions.
Thirdly, we had the opportunity to visit schools, universities and companies and exchange experiences in the context of implementing sustainable development requirements.
All this was very motivating and also gave good ideas for sharing with Estonian colleagues. In addition to green topics, we also discussed other important topics with our colleagues and found that we have a lot in common, for example in teacher training.

Please describe how the project benefited the Nordic-Baltic cooperation

Study visits will certainly have a major impact on Baltic-Nordic co-operation more broadly. For the last two years, only video meetings have taken place due to the covid-19 pandemic. Real face-to-face encounters are much more effective than communicating in front of screens. From the conversations, new ideas are also developing in terms of cooperation, and we also had several ideas about projects in the future. It is very important that the study visit does not remain a one-off project. Green issues are undoubtedly important in co-operation between the Baltic States and the Nordic countries. The emergence of a network of contacts is also important, and study visits will certainly contribute to this.

References in the media

The study visit by officials of the Estonian Ministry of Education and Research to Denmark June, 8-10 and to Norway June, 12-14. 2022 was covered in the official social media channels of Estonian Ministry of Education and Research.

An English-language post was published on Twitter on June, 13 (https://twitter.com/haridusmin/status/1536374688254812160) on the study visit in Norway. Among others, Education Estonia, the national Estonias education brand of international cooperation, and Estonian Embassy in Norway reshared the Tweet on their respercive accounts. Ambassador of Estonia to Norway, H.E.Mr Lauri Bambus created a post on his personal account (https://twitter.com/LauriBambus/status/1536361667893899265).

An Estonian-language post was published on Facebook on June 16, with the aim to give a thorough insight to both of the study visits to Norway and Denmark (https://www.facebook.com/haridusministeerium/posts/pfbid036rq6aC33adznRs6VPEAm9Dg9AAKbsBKXVgphHGDsdFizDbMWGWcPUbTPjU95n9JFl). We explained the main purpose of the visits, the importance of international education cooperation between Estonia and our nordic neighbours, as well as the insitutions visited and people met. We are glad to see that there has been also publications on social media accounts of our friends we met in Norway.

Do you consider your mobility project valuable in terms of sharing experience?

Yes, for my home organisation

Please give an example of experiences/values gained through the mobility project

The best experiences from visiting State of Green in Copenhagen and visiting Climate House in Oslo. The green weeks at Ski Gymnasium were impressive

Please describe briefly whether the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for %s met your expectations

Yes, the project was very important for expanding the cooperation network of experts and exchanging experiences.

Contact: Liisa Ojaveer, project manager of the project "Study Visit"

Please describe how the project benefited your organisation

The Government of Latvia has recognized and prioritized the improvement of quality of life of families with children along with facilitation of public mental health in its agenda. Both of these issues are horizontal and are mutually intertwined, as the mental health of any family member, especially child, directly affects the stability and life quality of other family members, and it is obvious that any improvements in this area are urgently sought, and basically, they require new approach and inter-sectoral cooperation.
Understanding the solid interlink between the healthcare, welfare, education, and social areas, the CSCC in close cooperation with other sectoral authorities, professionals and NGOs has already proposed new model for improved inter-institutional cooperation, which should replace the existing fragmented approach to different areas of child’s life by covering them all and taking care of early problem identification and coordination of interventions should it be necessary.
Today, when new Government in being formed and its Agenda is still discussed in details, the CSCC is asking for acknowledgement of early prevention in child’s life; we have many who share our opinion. Firstly, the project provided perfect spirit-lifting and team-building opportunity for the project group; secondly, involved experts benefited from this experience exchange due to chance to see wider picture beyond own area of expertise; thirdly, the CSCC verified the model by competent foreign organizations, and saw that other countries have already moved towards multi-dimensional approach due to efficiency and economy considerations of financial and human resources, and they are just a step ahead.

Please describe how the project benefited the Nordic-Baltic cooperation

Many countries in the world and Europe meet one and the same challenges – depopulation, diseases, migration, lack of specialists and insufficient salaries on top of growing frequency of mental health disorders among our society and children. On this background, this mobility project has provided an opportunity to highlight the best recent practices and create space for exchange of evidence-based solutions for facilitation of public mental health and performance improvement; in area of mental health care, there is no need to start all over again; many countries have prioritized the health of children, and mental health in particular, on their agenda, and our country only needs to follow.
Project has promoted collaboration among experts from different branches and with wide range of competences in planning and coordination of health care, welfare, education and social support systems, as well as practitioners from Latvia and partner countries – Iceland and Denmark. Additionally, it must be mentioned that during extremely professional group meetings, all experts enjoyed the opportunity to make personal contacts with relevant counterparts in authorities of Nordic countries thus adding up to the circle of professional contacts, which beyond any doubt will contribute to continuation of further cooperation between Latvia and Iceland, and Denmark.
Additionally, it must be noted that during these visits lots of related and interlinked topics were touched, and there is high probability of continued cooperation in form of bilateral national cooperation and international meetings.

References in the media

In the light of comprehensive information on the mental health care in particular, the project results have been discussed and disseminated in a number of auditoriums. Information about the Norden project and visits was highlighted on CSCC's website:
1st visit to Iceland
https://pkc.gov.lv/lv/aktualit%C4%81tes/2022-gada-19-23-septembri-eksperti-apmekles-islandi-pieredzes-apmainas-vizite
https://pkc.gov.lv/lv/aktualit%C4%81tes/eksperti-iepazinas-ar-islandes-pieredzi-bernu-agrinas-attistibas-sekmesana
2nd visit to Denmark
https://pkc.gov.lv/lv/aktualit%C4%81tes/oktobra-beigas-pkc-eksperti-dosies-darba-vizite-uz-daniju
https://pkc.gov.lv/lv/aktualit%C4%81tes/oktobra-nogale-notika-darba-vizite-danija

Additionally, it should be noted that CSCC website mainly contains information on development planning, actualities of Government work and other important national-scale ad hoc activities etc., leaving little space for reflections on any international cooperation and projects. However, inspired by the Nordic experience and based on the insight gained during these visits, the CSCC is organizing national conference on 2 December 2022 “Our Children, Our Future. Building and Early Prevention and Support system” with kind support from Icelandic Minister of Education and Children’s Affairs who will address Latvian decision makers and politicians and explain the importance of timely intervention. The conference owns a small-scale PR activities for opinion shaping https://www.delfi.lv/news/versijas/lolita-tereze-nicmane-neesosa-agrina-bernibas-politika-spieki-nakotnes-ritenos.d?id=54954518. And there is also initiative opened for citizens to sign to have the early childhood policy in Latvia https://manabalss.lv/atbalsta-sistemas-un-pakalpojumu-izveide-berniem-agrina-vecuma/show

Do you consider your mobility project valuable in terms of sharing experience?

Yes, for my home organisation

Please give an example of experiences/values gained through the mobility project

Project provided valuable experience for my personal skills, for home organization and for the host organisations as well. For me it was challenging opportunity to update my project manager skills and to hold everything under my control starting from formulating the goal, preparing the project application, being present at all visits and helping coworkers to navigate through practicalities at foreign cities up to keeping track of project expenses and preparing final report.
For my home organization I believe these visits were inspiring, they verified the validity of our vision, and served as proof that cooperation is the key.
I also believe that the questions asked during every meeting by the professionals showed out genuine interest and readiness to kick-off the multi-dimensional model as soon as the funding is found.

Please describe briefly whether the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for %s met your expectations

The Norden Mobility project was an excellent opportunity for me and my colleagues to shape our agenda and come for visit to specifically those institutions or organizations that might share their experience significantly important for Latvia at this specific time.
In addition to practical and professional issues, the project provided unique opportunity to make personal contacts with Danish and Icelandic colleagues and dive into the abundant beauty and historical richness of both of these countries which the group valued highly.

Contact: Dace Valte-Rancane, project manager of the project "Building prevention and early intervention system for children and adolescent at risk of poor outcome"

Please describe how the project benefited your organisation

The main conclusion reached was that the structure where crime scene experts and laboratory experts work within one institute, especially under police management, is effective not only in Latvia, but is also an effective workflow in Iceland, Finland and Sweden. Notably, in Finland and Sweden reorganization occurred opposite to what is planned in Latvia: while these two countries transferred their forensic institutions from the Ministry of Justice to police management within the supervision of the Ministry of Interior, in Latvia it is planned to separate the laboratory workflow of the Forensic Service Department from police management and place it under Ministry of Justice supervision, effectively removing the close connection between crime scene experts and forensic experts.
The insight from Sweden was that NFC is a great example on how to train staff and ensure their competence, as well as the tactics of working with quality system and external audits. The FSD will definitely continue cooperation with Swedish training specialists.
The insight from Iceland was that crime scene experts work from one unit, covering the entire country.
The insight from Finland was that expert statements is prepared from the name of the institution (NBI FL), not from each expert individually.

Please describe how the project benefited the Nordic-Baltic cooperation

Exchange of experiences during the study visits in Iceland, Sweden and Finland has been organized in cooperation between the State Police of Latvia and the Nordic forensic experts. The main project benefit for Nordic-Baltic cooperation is the possibility to compare Latvian and Nordic quality management system implementation, crime scene investigation procedures in each country and to investigate the management process. Information exchange opportunities of the national DNA and fingerprint databases was the key, especially with the Iceland. The study visits provided an opportunity to examine different methods and processes of QMS especially when transferring to the electronic environment.

References in the media

State Police Forensic Service Department homepage:

http://www.ekspertize.vp.gov.lv/index.php?sadala=zinas/21&ln=en

Do you consider your mobility project valuable in terms of sharing experience?

Yes, for my home organisation

Please give an example of experiences/values gained through the mobility project

Methods, procedures, quality procedures, laboratory environment, equipment, cooperation, best practice, networking.
The visit to Sweden showed a great example on how to train employees, how detailed the process is and which are the most important points in training specialists. Seeing how the quality system works in another country provided insights about the directions that our organisation needs to take, what to improve and what should be done differently.
As our organisation has struggled with the implementation and maintenance of quality systems, the visits revealed the struggles of other countries and also provided some solutions on how to resolve similar struggles.

Please describe briefly whether the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for %s met your expectations

During the project implementation all expectations were satisfied and even exceeded. The contacts made, both institutional and individual, will be very valuable moving forward with the implementation of quality management systems, and the insights gained have already provided additional ideas on how to resolve certain issues already encountered, especially with regard to the digitalization of many processes. The support and knowledge base acquired through this exchange is very important for the future collaboration between all countries involved, and the mutual understanding between forensic institutions, as well as the exchange of information and data, will be very valuable during the process of improving security across the Nordic-Baltic region.

Contact: Olga Sersnova, project manager of the project "Experience exchange with Nordic countries for the uptake of best practices in the internal organization and quality management of forensic institutions"

Please describe how the project benefited your organisation

The project has provided a platform to exchange practices related to road accident investigation with colleagues from Denmark and Finland. Prioritized area of all European Countries which recently receives more and more focus has proved to be a key in order to ensure road safety in EU countries. Finnish and Danish experts have shared their ideas and procedures when investigating accidents.

Nordic experience, especially in relation to data gathering and then analysis of this data via different programs and tools has provided a great ideas for LTSA's specialists. As our team of investigators is still young and still developing investigation practices, experience from more experienced institutions and countries with great road safety results will definitely help to improve our current practices and provide a bit of guidance towards further development.

Furthermore, the project has helped to engaged in direct contact with national experts who share similar responsibilities as our specialists. This will be useful in every day work and shall benefit organization's work by making it more efficient when there is help needed or another opinion needed from Nordic experts and partners. Participants of the project has already exchanged provided presentations, ideas and suggestions coming from discussions, therefore a good foundation for further cooperation is already built.

LTSA's experts who participated in the project will share gathered knowledge and presented information to other LTSA investigators and those related to road safety procedures, therefore this should help to improve competence and expertise of our own specialists at Administration.

Please describe how the project benefited the Nordic-Baltic cooperation

The project strengthened relations between Lithuanian and Danish/Finnish accident investigation authorities, therefore establishing platform for further communications, cooperation and joint effort to increase quality of road accident investigations in the region.

Experts from all countries have had a chance to increase their knowledge and improve their competence in this regard by comparing different practices among countries, as well as adopting new methods, procedures and technology.

This project also enables key principles of Nordic-Baltic cooperation by promoting effective public administration, cooperation ideas in politically important topic of road safety. With successful implementation of the project which as benefited all participants, there will also be more focus on further Nordic-Baltic cooperations.

Focus has been also drawn not only by participants, but by publications and media information within various platforms - social media, website and etc.

References in the media

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/liikennevakuutuskeskus_visitors-from-lithuania-lietuvos-transporto-activity-6980510696572628992-Idc7?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop

https://ltsa.lrv.lt/en/news/ltsa-successfully-completed-a-project-with-danish-and-finnish-road-accident-investigation-authorities

Do you consider your mobility project valuable in terms of sharing experience?

Yes, for my home organisation

Please give an example of experiences/values gained through the mobility project

Lithuanian experts who participated in this project expressed their positive feedback about usefulness and practical implications of carried activities. In the field of road accident investigation, all small details are relatable and could easily translate and efficiently improve current procedures in Lithuania.

Project provided exactly that. As many of procedures during the investigation itself were similar with those in Finland or Denmark, analysis of data and general management of investigation findings, big data were seen as big topics for improvements. Danish and Finnish colleague use their data to maximum potential - creating safety maps, making live analysis of road safety situation and etc. This proves as a valuable tool not only to increase safety levels in country, but also provides guidance and experience on how to improve current framework of data usage in Lithuania.

In addition to this, successful cooperation with other public bodies such as police, road administration and etc. enables Nordic partners to tackle road safety issues efficiently and briefly, what is also reflected by their strong stance in road safety rankings across the EU countries.

For Lithuania, which for past decades has rapidly improved its situation in this regard, such experiences and opportunity to see such innovation up close may lead to further positive results and reduction of road accidents, as well, as improved investigation of ones which still happen.

Please describe briefly whether the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for %s met your expectations

After Covid period which provided bit of uncertainty and challenges for international cooperation, this project went smoothly thanks to Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme management body and partners from Denmark and Finland - Danish Road Traffic Accident investigation board and OTI. Study visits were greatly organized - from agenda and topics covered which provided all needed insights in the context of road accident investigation to practical arrangements during the visit - on-site activities, practical workshop at crash sites.

This ensured that participants had an opportunity to expand their knowledge, share and gain good practices and improve their competence. These were goals before the project, therefore all expectations which were there when submitting application are met, and exceeded.

Contact: Eimantas Alminas, project manager of the project "Road accident investigation: best practices, procedures and measures to strengthen road safety"

Please describe how the project benefited your organisation

We enriched the understanding of the origins regarding the importance of equal opportunities and gender equality topics, also, took good practices in policy-making processes in the field of equal opportunities and gender equality policies in national and local levels. Moreover, we exchanged of good practices on implementation in the field of equal opportunities and gender equality policies at a local level. These experiences encouraged to adopt good practices in cooperation with the NGO sector (in national and local levels), also, search for the possible solutions and suggestions on innovative actions for equal opportunities and gender equality policies implementation. In addition, we believe, that we've got better understanding and clearer justification of the added value of gender budgeting.

Please describe how the project benefited the Nordic-Baltic cooperation

First of all, the visibility of Nordic-Baltic cooperation was increased. Also, we believe that these study visits were a good start of cooperation and networking, as we agreed on guidance regarding the topic if needed. Moreover, we exchanged contacts for future events and expertise.

References in the media

https://www.ukmerge.lt/naujienos/apie-projekta-mokomieji-vizitai-efektyvesniems-lygiu-galimybiu-ir-lyciu-lygybes-politikos-formavimo-procesams/
https://www.ukmerge.lt/naujienos/mokomuosiuose-vizituose-suomijoje-aptartos-lyciu-lygybes-ir-lygiu-galimybiu-temos/
https://www.facebook.com/vilkaviskiosavivaldybe/posts/pfbid02tjgxXaTz7AMBk92KRo3SSRQN2y6qxeVb8KuGAX6MZLZ1aXk8UyJdTd61exGztN7Tl
https://www.raseiniai.lt/naujienos/lyciu-lygybe-suomijos-respublikoje/

Do you consider your mobility project valuable in terms of sharing experience?

Yes, for personal skills

Please give an example of experiences/values gained through the mobility project

Main highlights, opinions, challenges that need to be paid attention to when planning activities:
- It is necessary to strengthen the cooperation with the education sector, strengthening the theme of gender equality in general education programs in the field of gender equality and equal opportunities;
- Greater involvement of civil servants in raising competences on the topic of gender equality, for example as a mandatory annual task;
- Toxic, radical non-governmental organizations and systematical work with them;
- A gender-balanced budget and its possibilities, especially at the local level.

Please describe briefly whether the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for %s met your expectations

The Nordic-Baltic Mobility Program for Public Administration gives an opportunity to enrich your knowledge by implementing any function. The program provides space to gain experience from experts in their fields in the Nordic countries. Every civil servant, regardless of the field in which he works, can enrich his experience, raise motivation, and help him perform his functions more efficiently.

Contact: Valda Karnickaitė, project manager of the project "Study visits for better policy making processes in the field of equal opportunities and equal rights"

Please describe how the project benefited your organisation

During this project cooperation between local municipalities and developmental organizations has increased and improved. The connection in local and international level is more stronger in this field. Project was successful finding new approaches for Võru county in local cultural heritage sustainability topic. All partner organizations got well informed overview about the practices in local level. For Võru county the result was so successful that the concept and quality of the planned common agreement between municipalities and Seto and Võru Institutes was changed and in updated process now. Also some changes were made due to this project to strategical development plan of Võru County.

Please describe how the project benefited the Nordic-Baltic cooperation

During the study visit, various new ideas for regional cooperation emerged. There were ideas about science and research as well as cooperation between schools. Understanding the nature of the work of the involved regions provided a very good basis for moving forward. A very important place on this study trip was the understanding of the space of values, and that in terms of the cooperation of different cultural spaces. Also, a very strong connection was the recognition that people from South-Estonia understand a kveeni language spoken in Northern Norway. This discovery had a powerful connection for the participants.

References in the media

We published the article:
https://lounapostimees.postimees.ee/7636719/kultuuriparandi-kasvulava-otsingutel
Also our participant gave the interview to radio:
https://vikerraadio.err.ee/1608725941
There were also posts in applicant Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/v6rumaa.arenduskeskus

And also Inari munivipality Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/p/CjU9FNtscoC/?igshid=MDJmNzVkMjY%3D&fbclid=IwAR3aEn6wVtAg2T7rIaaK2wmtMMyXm0iaddWV1oaeBv7BKIpUesLDHkXewmU

Do you consider your mobility project valuable in terms of sharing experience?

Yes, for my home organisation

Please give an example of experiences/values gained through the mobility project

This is an excellent example of how different organizations participate in the preparation of the project, how the different roles are distributed during the activities and very effectively. It is also valuable how constant reflection was central during the study visit, as well as the sharing of experiences with various related parties as follow-up activities. Such implementation made it possible to multiply the benefits of the project.

Please describe briefly whether the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for %s met your expectations

The value of the program lies in its specific regional focus. The positivity of the program in the eyes of the applicant is the clear comprehensibility of its objectives, the supported application process, and quick advice on issues that arise.
The program provides an opportunity to involve representatives of different municipalities and bring them together with municipalities of other countries. This is very valuable, as a common understanding also ensures the implementation of common policies.

Contact: Kerli Kõiv, project manager of the project "Public governance and cultural heritage"

Please describe how the project benefited your organisation

We can use the knowledge gained during the study visits to develop new policies and measures
at regional, local and school level, as the project had participants from all levels. More importantly, participants can use the knowledge gained to discuss and develop the most appropriate and effective educational and well-being model for children with special needs in Rapla County.
The municipalities of Rapla County are currently shaping decisions regarding the future of regional and local inclusive education, education and welfare services. A model of intersectoral and cross-level cooperation needs to be developed to enable networks to become operational. Accordingly, the project was very timely and very useful for discussions and decision-making, giving
broader perspectives and useful tips.

Please describe how the project benefited the Nordic-Baltic cooperation

The project made it possible to launch Nordic-Baltic cooperation in the field of education and to offer
input into possible mutually beneficial cooperation projects in the future. The project allowed the exchange of experience and knowledge between the Nordic countries and Estonia
between institutions, as well as between Estonian institutions themselves, at different levels and in different sectors. This exchange was beneficial to all parties, as it increased knowledge, gave
a more complex view of problems and solutions, launched multilateral cooperation.
Both Nurmijärvi and Tranås municipalities are our long-standing friendship areas. Following our study visit, representatives from both regions were very interested in further communication and cooperation, and our contacts will certainly continue.

References in the media

An article about study trips appeared in Rapla county newspaper "Raplamaa Sõnumid" on October 19. https://sonumid.ee/2022/10/19/maakonna-esindus-oppis-pohjanaabritelt-kaasava-hariduse-kohta/

The project was also written about on the website of the Association of Local Authorities Of Rapla County
https://qsicgnbm.sendsmaily.net/browser/4j1RnJVZf1V1vS6h0Ejm5PWgYkn8y6XNDqc0USMLozLnpR0Fxj1LP_GMvTq3EGnk7Nbj4YeZJCYSclPPrh0ykb8WrwfajGYTWLVwSBq-Q_RXf9_y0uTcSACpHDU-pP76/

Do you consider your mobility project valuable in terms of sharing experience?

Yes, for my home organisation

Please give an example of experiences/values gained through the mobility project

We learned that in Sweden, children with greater special needs were included in the list of ordinary schools. On a daily basis, they delivered to a regular school in a specially adapted house, but from time to time for some classes they also joined regular classes. Thus, a child with special needs knew that he was a member of a regular class, and the students of the regular class learned to account and notice people who were different from themselves. The point was socialization, and it was the best example of inclusive education.

Please describe briefly whether the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for %s met your expectations

With the support of the program, we were able to see and experience the good practices of the Nordic countries in organizing the education of children with special needs and they have something to learn. Yes, the program met our expectations.

Contact: Tavo Kikas, project manager of the project "Educating children with special needs – the best Nordic practices"

Please describe how the project benefited your organisation

Participation in this project allowed Lithuanian Employment Services to gain more profoundinformation about both strategic management and daily business of visited Public EmploymentServices in Denmark, Sweden and Finland. Each visited countries public employment services weredifferent in size, structure and institutional context but had some specific approaches and goodpractices that could inspire current and future changes in the way Lithuanian Employment Servicesconduct business. The best practices of staff involvement and motivation as well as the changemanagement project will be included into the Action plans of Lithuanian PES for the year2022-2024. What is more, all the practices were introduced to the local managers for theinspiration of changes in local offices. Different approaches/solutions to the same problem, employed by participating organizations,
may lead to review organization’s processes and decisions to make improvements which will
increase the capacity of PES to provide quality services, reduce costs, increase efficiency and
effectiveness of processes. Management of COVID-19 pandemic workload will be also one of the
topics of interest as the transformation of services, communication with customers and society
have changed rapidly during the past year.

Please describe how the project benefited the Nordic-Baltic cooperation

Although during the study visits no concrete commitments were made to create formal cooperationnetworks or initiatives, both participating and hosting public employment services agreed thatfurther cooperation would be beneficial for all involved and that we would pursuit this idea in theupcoming years. Considering that most participants and hosts during the study visit were from theupper management (with decision making mandate), the possibility of sustainable cooperation inthe nearby future is high.

References in the media

Information about study visits was disseminated internally at this moment, but after theimplementation of the action plans and during the European Public Employment Services meetingsthe integration of best practices from Iceland, Finland and Sweden might be introduced using thesocial media and European Public Employment Services Network website.

Do you consider your mobility project valuable in terms of sharing experience?

Yes, for my home organisation

Please give an example of experiences/values gained through the mobility project

It is currently planned to review current Lithuanian Employment Services business model andconsider implementing (and/or testing via pilot projects) several good practices/approachesidentified during the study visits

Please describe briefly whether the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for %s met your expectations

Yes. Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for Public Administration fully met institution's expectationsand provided an opportunity to strengthen Lithuanian Employment Services relations with Nordiccountries' Public Employment Service Agencies which may lead to sustainable networking andcooperation in the future to help improve public employment services for EU citizens.Lithuanian Employment Services would recommend this programme to all Public Administrationinstitutions that want to reach out and learn (or share experience) from institutions in other Nordic-Baltic countries which operates in a similar business area.

Contact: Indre Lauciene, project manager of the project "Nordic-Baltic Public Employment Services Networking for Innovations Implementation"

Please describe how the project benefited your organisation

The project's goal was to acquire the best knowledge and shared experience amongst the
professionals of the Royal Danish Library, the H.C. Andersen’s House, the Denmark’s National
Gallery, The National Library of Sweden, Kulturhuset Stadsteatern and Moderna Museet - Museum
of the contemporary art to improve the quality of: events and premises management, work with
cultural heritage in contemporary exhibition contexts; innovative strategies for the promotion of
collections and services at the NLL.
After meetings with colleagues from Denmark and Sweden, NLL's projects goals were fully completed, gaining not only important knowledge, but also contacts for future collaborations. This exchange has widened the view on the role the library might have in the cultural sector and also has showed that experience of NLL can be valuable to foreign partners.

Please describe how the project benefited the Nordic-Baltic cooperation

The project has given opportunity to share professional experiences amongst cultural management, arts marketing and exhibition design professionals from all involved countries. It has also given opportunity to share contacts, establishing basis for future connections and collaborations.

Do you consider your mobility project valuable in terms of sharing experience?

Yes, for personal skills

Please give an example of experiences/values gained through the mobility project

Experiences gained are valuable for both - personal skills and home organisation, hopefully - also for host organizations. From personal point of view this project has helped to further improve managerial skills. From organizations point of view, gained experiences have given new contacts, inspiration for further projects and verified that professional skills and experiences af NLL team are vorthy to share also on international projects.

Please describe briefly whether the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for %s met your expectations

NLL has previously participated in Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme with different teams thus as organization we have been confident of high value of this programme. This particular project has fully reached it's goals and been valuable for all included members.

Contact: Ieva Andzane, project manager of the project "Experience exchange between cultural institutions"

Please describe how the project benefited your organisation

The project benefited us in a way that we were able to share experience and best practices with the parliaments in the preparation of draft. It was interesting to learn how the parliamentary committees of Finland and Norway involve people and stakeholders in the legislative process. Also, meetings with the ministries, SITRA and VTT Bioruukki broadened our minds and we can pass on the gained knowledge to others in our work field. We learned how efficiently Sitra has involved people in the sustainable everyday life projects and what practical suggestions they propose in order to reduce our carbon footprint.

Please describe how the project benefited the Nordic-Baltic cooperation

New networks were created and new cooperation initiatives were started - for example, the staff of parliamentary committees from both parliaments were invited to acquaint with our job management in Estonia. Also, it was pointed out that since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, this was one of the first physical meetings at the level of officials.

Do you consider your mobility project valuable in terms of sharing experience?

Yes, for my home organisation

Please give an example of experiences/values gained through the mobility project

We would have liked to select all options.
Through the project we learned that the Norwegian Parliament has developed a handbook for committees. The handbook explains the committee's rules of procedure and it was explained that this is very helpful for the officials and committee members (to solve various issues).

Please describe briefly whether the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for %s met your expectations

The programme met our expectations. We got a comprehensive overview of how draft legislation works in Finland and Norway.

Contact: Kiia Väli, project manager of the project "Draft legislation in the field of environment and rural affairs to exchange of experience in Finland and Norway"

Please describe how the project benefited your organisation

Both study trips were very useful for all the participants. The knowledge we gained through our various meetings will help our organisation to better prepare and deal with different climate related work tasks. It was especially interesting to compare EU climate policy approaches in Denmark, Sweden and Estonia. These exchanges gave us a better understanding about different tools that contribute to better implementation of EU legislation on a Member State level. Parliamentary level meetings were especially useful in order to get to know our colleagues and exchange best practices. Both Sweden and Denmark have similar solutions to do follow-up on their climate policy measures – Danish Council on Climate Change and Swedish Climate Policy Council. It was inspiring to exchange with both organisations and to get a better idea on how we could develop similar approaches in Estonia. Our meetings with local government officials were of practical nature. We realised how essential it is to implement EU´s climate policy at local level in order to achieve climate neutrality goals. The meetings in the European Environment Agency were fruitful and helped us better understand the co-operation possibilities between the Agency and its members. Overall, these visits contributed to making the functioning of our parliament´s public service more effective and strengthened the Nordic-Baltic cooperation.

Please describe how the project benefited the Nordic-Baltic cooperation

The project was very beneficial in various ways. It helped to create different level contacts between the participating parties. All these fruitful exchanges will facilitate our future cooperation. The exchange of best practices allows us to analyse and re-evaluate some of our current working methods. We realised that Estonia and its Nordic counterparts share many common values that strengthen our future cooperation. This will help all of us to move towards common policy goals, which is especially important as many of these goals are reached more effectively through either cross border cooperation or intensive knowledge sharing.

Do you consider your mobility project valuable in terms of sharing experience?

Yes, for personal skills

Please give an example of experiences/values gained through the mobility project

All of the participants from our side were highly impressed by the fact that both Denmark and Sweden have already adopted their Cliamte Laws which are vital part of public debate. Furthermore, both Folketing and Riksdag are closely involved in the annual follow-up and re-valuation of the climate goals. We understood how important it is to have a climate law in order to realise short and long term goals in reaching climate neutrality. This serves as a very good example for how we could advance parliamentary debate in Riigikogu and in public sphere in climate related issues.

Please describe briefly whether the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for %s met your expectations

Yes, the programme met our expectations. Firstly, it allowed us to meet our Danish and Swedish colleagues, to share best practices and talk about challenges we all face in our daily work. Secondly, it enabled us to learn how those two countries deal with environmental challenges both in state and local level. All of the objectives that we set when applying to the programme were fulfilled during our two study visits.

Contact: Teele Vares, project manager of the project "Study visits of the Estonian Parliament officials to Denmark and Sweden on climate policy related best practises"

Please describe how the project benefited your organisation

The project broadened our knowledge about other countries aquaculture sector, how is is environmentally regulated, what are the main issues in the sector, how is the setup of data systems holding environmental data and data about applications, permits and reports. Also we got the comparison with our aquaculture sector and regulation so now we know of from what volume aquaculture producer has to apply for a permit, what are the requirements for fish farmers, how is the monitoring done, how is the supervision carried out, what fees has to be paid, how are differents EU regulations, directives, reccommendations considered, what is the strategic view of developing aquaculture etc.
It was very useful and besides all that we could make personal contacts with different persons so if we would like to discuss or elaborate some aquaculture related issues in the future then this is easier.
Also in the longer perspective if we are planning to modify our aquaculture legislation then it would be good to integrate some findings from the other countries practice that we visited. Because our aquaculture sector is so small but predicted to grow, but the countries we visited the aquaculture production is at least 10 times higher.

Please describe how the project benefited the Nordic-Baltic cooperation

We made good connections with people dealing with the same issues in Finland, Sweden and Iceland, from now on we can have more straightforward communication through e-mails, teams or via other communication tools with other countries representatives. Also there was a thought from finnish representative that we sould mabye held a regular meetings so we could have up to date information and know where aquaculture sector in each country is heading to. In addition University of Gothenburg is actively dealing with devaluation of small mussles, this is the issue for us too, blue mussels grow in Estonia and could be farmed but the size of the mussles is not of restaurant quality. This is the place where I can see cooperation opportunity in the future.

References in the media

Ministry of the Environment of Estonia made posts in its facebook page briefly introducing study visits to each country:
1. Sweden:
https://www.facebook.com/keskkonnaministeerium/posts/pfbid021tEyFFM7e4Bqsy7JjgFpQvxEQ4SqiaBZ7TCJtikq7UuqRbiJYysmi7q6V4fFcXGQl
2. Finland:
https://www.facebook.com/keskkonnaministeerium/posts/pfbid02z6VQgFoxR8e1TkxAeuHC4T1jtZU1u2a1UFg1QpFW51VkWreW4ovzLpyo3EvwtCc5l
3. Iceland: https://www.facebook.com/keskkonnaministeerium/posts/pfbid02mMQS5phi6BuK41ATygTpaH2P9x2PGGVb2LBTAj5XzuumPcYfvzX2KPNYJyt1ZvNl

Do you consider your mobility project valuable in terms of sharing experience?

Yes, for my home organisation

Please give an example of experiences/values gained through the mobility project

We learned about other countries quaculture sector and how it is environmentally regulated. As aquaculture sector in Estonia is currently really small but there is growing interest to increase production volume, especially in polluted Baltic sea then it is crucial to learn from other countries who have ten times higher aquaculture volume. It is necessary that aquaculture is developed in a way that it does not deteriogate the status of Baltic sea even further therefore it is good to know what are the reqirements for aquaculture producers in other countries. As we are planning to open our aquaculture regulation next year then the timing for the study visits was good so we can integrate new ideas from other countries practice. To give more detailed example then at the moment supervision over aquaculture producers in Estonia is not specific at the moment, the Environmental Board does it when someone complains or if other authority for example Ministry of the Environment sets it as a priority. But in Finland there is specific frequency based on production volume and in Iceland there is scoring system that takes into account the production volume, farm location, species and the higher the score is the higher the risk and supervision frequency. That is something we should consider in Estonia to make supervision system more understandable and transparent.

Please describe briefly whether the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for %s met your expectations

Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for Public Administration met my expectations because we with authorities from other countries put together good agendas for each of the meeting based on the countries context and sent each other points to discuss for the meeting so our focus could be on the environmental aspects of aquaculture.

Contact: Katrina Lang, project manager of the project "Estonian officials mobility for broadening aquaculture competence"

Please describe how the project benefited your organisation

It is important to mention that participant libraries share understanding of libraries role in digital world, its transformation and development practices presented by colleagues ones we use practices in the National Library of Latvia. That means that the National Libraries in researched countries are working at the same pace with the internationally recognized practices, as we have developed in-house digital platforms for storing digital material, have experience in sizable digitization projects and we are working in the Digital Humanities field. In some fields like academic repositories and national consortiums for licensing of academic resources was valuable to discuss established practices as we are looking for the most appropriate and sustainable collaboration model between academic institutions and the Ministry of Culture of Latvia and the Ministry of Education and Science of Latvia.

Discussions with colleagues from the Nordic countries gave an insight into prioritizing different new
tasks, provided examples on how much time and effort is being used in carrying out a similar
activities thus helping to better plan workload of the NLL's staff, encouraged us to form new ideas and evaluate development directions based on approved practices of Nordic colleagues. Project will influence further strategic planning and reorganization of NLL.

Acquired knowledge and ideas were discussed and presented to colleagues, team leaders and experts of NLL.

Please describe how the project benefited the Nordic-Baltic cooperation

Exchange helped make new international contacts and invite foreign colleagues to visit the National Library of Latvia and Riga. For example, colleagues of the National Library of Finland appreciated the architecture of the Latvian digital cultural heritage platform and expressed their desire to get to know its components in depth visiting the NLL in Riga.

References in the media

The NLL webpage currently is under development therefore published project information can be viewed: https://web.archive.org/web/20220619231001/https://www.lnb.lv/lv/projekti/profesionala-zinasanu-un-pieredzes-apmaina-ilgtspejigai-digitala-kulturas-mantojuma

We are planning to publish a description of gained experience and valuable conclusions by the end of October in the Latvian Library portal www.biblioteka.lv.

Do you consider your mobility project valuable in terms of sharing experience?

Yes, for my home organisation

Please give an example of experiences/values gained through the mobility project

Similarly to Nordic colleagues we are working at the same pace with the internationally recognized practices. We had the opportunity to talk with experts in digitization, repositories, Digital Humanities, E-resouces and licencing. Discussions with field professionals encouraged us to form new ideas and, in some fields, give directions based on practice.

Please describe briefly whether the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for %s met your expectations

Yes, definitely. It is very advisable to look how international colleagues are working and what
examples of theirs you can integrate into your own institution and society. In addition, this was an
opportunity to visit other libraries and cultural institutions in Copenhagen, Stockholm and Helsinki on our own, to talk about repositories and Open Science in Helsinki University library. When we went to Helsinki central library Oodi it was nice to see that new technologies are important part of librarie and society is fully using it.

Contact: Karina Bandere, project manager of the project "Professional Exchange of Knowledge and Experience For Sustainable Digital Culture Heritage Development and Transformation"

Please describe how the project benefited your organisation

Eight persons from six Lithuanian municipalities visited both countries. All persons belong to the board of Lithuanian Association of the Heads of Municipalities Sport Divisions. They were shared good practices regarding the management models of sport infrastructure for better accessibility of sport services and management systems of high level sport at the local level will be generated at national level.
Institutional benefits. Sport divisions of six Lithuanian municipalities were getting acquainted with the
study visit outcomes. New contacts, ideas and activities will be realized in the future. Further cooperation with hosting municipalities in Denmark and in Finland will be promoted in the future. Municipalities are ready to welcome colleagues from Finland and Denmark in Lithuania.
Personal benefits. Trainees were able to develop and increase social and cognitive skills and
managerial competences.
During the project, project participants recognized the fact that both Lithuania and the visited countries face with the same challenge - the lack of sports facilities, especially in a big cities due to a physical space. Finland is rapidly renovating sports halls and stadiums, followed by the installation of numerous sports halls and arenas.
In Finland and Denmark, education in the universities is free for athletes, so they have much greater and more favorable conditions to maintain athletes until their transition from youth to adult competitions.

Please describe how the project benefited the Nordic-Baltic cooperation

Increased visibility of Nordic-Baltic knowledge transfer for mutual benefit on all administrative levels. Increased experience exchange on best practices in respect of public administration and facilitation of harmonization of standards. The project was useful for the cooperation of the Nordic and Baltic countries, because the Baltic countries constantly seek to adopt good practices from the Scandinavians, but the visited countries also have certain shortcomings, which they were asked about. They had to recognize and rethink this, and our project participants also invited the visiting representatives of the countries to visit Lithuania, get to know more our systems, strengths and weaknesses, maybe adopt something and apply good practices also. A warm communication was established, the group shared their experiences and observations regarding the management models of sport infrastructure and
management systems of high-level sport at the local level.

References in the media

After the first part of the project - a visit to Denmark, the project was promoted in the magazine "Panorama" published by the Lithuanian National Olympic Committee:
https://www.ltok.lt/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/OP_2002_07.pdf

In the end of each day of the visit, posts were published on the Facebook account of the Association of Heads of Sports Departments of Lithuanian Municipalities.
https://www.facebook.com/762428440584722/posts/pfbid0ZJX4iJdu8YWuytFfJ31TNwcpJG3EEFsyXsEFEUiBCpnpofh4p47tcPyomPS9np8Tl/?sfnsn=mo
https://www.facebook.com/762428440584722/posts/pfbid02dFK8DfuadgGfdgCNdQFBPXa3hyHKJvVPApBgoxeH5PkqdLqsGXp92ZTWztHeQnjfl/?sfnsn=mo
https://www.facebook.com/762428440584722/posts/pfbid0x5xk5pZzEsyp2hXpVBfCBC7apMDrSxzpc7ijfxYWnQWv3qY64MKQuAaZgcdNhKuBl/?sfnsn=mo
https://www.facebook.com/762428440584722/posts/pfbid02VH2VNYUV1AWpr2cHg7CPAbQee8oHZhYohXqoFDNwLL2bB4GipNJ3EbD5EkQ59n7fl/?sfnsn=mo
https://www.facebook.com/762428440584722/posts/pfbid05y1M9yPs4Z3q1jc8caXwNCPYRTt5UYxzTNHCwPGCi4wUPRptmEpY7Chot228joXXl/?sfnsn=mo
https://www.facebook.com/762428440584722/posts/pfbid0dffi467V6FKrAzeavtgBVZuU9JDFp4Y3rtEEaJBVxU6W1E37LcuWLEhCSebMUb2yl/?sfnsn=mo
https://www.facebook.com/762428440584722/posts/pfbid023Jh7DchFgXfRhMVAMAEogW2g5iC887xfTxSY4814PB7SqBES8hJS4FidkhqKiF2Al/?sfnsn=mo

Each municipality announced this project on their websites:
https://sirvintusportas.lt/2022/08/25/kvalifikacijos-kelimo-projektas/?fbclid=IwAR1lbshqkWdrMtVHQCf17QGC2H4UHYXgKMGyoSipBdoh2gDvromxuB_SdeM
https://www.siauliai.lt/news/view/siauliai-laimejo-siaures-ministru-tarybos-biuro-finansavima-projekto-igyvendinimui
https://www.plunge.lt/naujienos/sporto-vadovu-delegacija-lankesi-suomijoje/?fbclid=IwAR1gxmcYgFPzujODIbQuH8QDhge2FLHHCKvZ9ZxPQiob3WJS_dI1JDl7kYE
https://www.klaipeda.lt/lt/gyventojams/sportas/2116/
https://www.facebook.com/KaisiadoriuSSCSportas/

Do you consider your mobility project valuable in terms of sharing experience?

Yes, for my home organisation

Please give an example of experiences/values gained through the mobility project

The program is a great opportunity to get to know and learn good practices from the Nordic countries, to share their experiences, expectations and threats, to achieve better sporting achievements through cooperation and to activate society. The group of this project believe that this project is really valuable, it helped them to rediscover their values, to see where they are ahead of Denmark and Finland, where Lithuania are lagging behind, where they should reconsider the current situation, take certain measures. The group also have no doubt that continuity is necessary for this project, because the countries they visited should also come to Lithuania and see everything with their own eyes. Lithuanian delegation have seen that there are similar problems both here and in Denmark and Finland. Only all countries deal with them differently. For example, in Denmark, physical activity and youth clubs, children's day care centers have been established in an old train station, gyms have been installed only by building sports equipment, and the surfaces are not even changed - they play football and basketball on the asphalt. In Finland, a private basketball sports club was established in an old paper factory and conducts various activities and camps there. In Lithuania, there is very little such practice, it is known that sports institutions often take advantage of unused school buildings and set up premises suitable for sports and day care centers there and carry out various activities.

Please describe briefly whether the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for %s met your expectations

The program exceeded the expectations of the project participants, because they had formed a certain opinion about Scandinavian culture, but during the project some stereotypes were disproved. Certainly in visited countries the strong role of communities is evident and the activity of various sport clubs and helpful volunteers was amazing. People live much more actively, even in old age of respectable age. Lithuania has a long and difficult road ahead of it.

Contact: Gintaras Jasiunas, project manager of the project "Regional development through strengthening a public sport and physical activity sector at local level"

Please describe how the project benefited your organisation

Vänersborg Municipality gained valuable experience and information from our Baltic partners in terms of exploring in which ways they have been working to develop digitalization in the public sector. The benefits are multiple – the delegation got an insight into the Baltic partners’ organizational structure and how they overcome obstacles they often face. Further on, after this study visit, the delegation feels inspired and more motivated to cooperate within our own organization, as they have realized the added value of cooperation between various departments at the Municipality leads to if coherent and well-planned projects are carried out. The IT department is for instance very positively inspired in working and cooperating with transnational partners in the nearby future,
This project is worth mentioning as the first transnational project within the digitalization sector that Vänersborg Municipality has carried out, and functions as a start-off for future similar projects with concrete goals and outcomes.

Please describe how the project benefited the Nordic-Baltic cooperation

The project enabled us to establish a new partnership with Tartu City from Estonia. At the seminar, there were talks about ways to cooperate with them in the future, both within the public sector between our delegations and in the private sector by connecting relevant parts from both countries. Some contacts between private companies from Estonia and our Municipality have already been initiated. At our Municipality, there are already talks regarding how a project-based partnership with them could be established in the field of digitalization. Overall, the impression is that they possess extensive knowledge of the area and could benefit our digitalization work. The visit to our already established partner City of Daugavpils was also generative since it enabled us to discuss future joint projects besides the current ones. One example that was brought from their side that we prioritize, is the development of the tourism sector.

References in the media

https://www.daugavpils.lv/en/city/news/city-council-news/projekta-ietvaros-daugavpils-pasvaldibu-apmekleja-delegacija-no-zviedrijas

https://www.daugavpils.lv/en/city/news/city-news/daugavpils-pilsetas-pasvaldiba-piedalas-starptautiskajos-projektos

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/stefankonjevic_digital-digitaltransformation-project-activity-6970654978805764096-YLvc?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop

https://www.vanersborg.se/kommun--politik/nyhetsarkiv-kommunstyrelseforv./nyheter-kommunstyrelseforvaltningen/2021-05-18-internationellt-projekt-kring-digitalisering.html

Do you consider your mobility project valuable in terms of sharing experience?

Yes, for the host organisations

Please give an example of experiences/values gained through the mobility project

Considering Vänersborg Municipality is at an early stage in digitalizing its public services, the aim of the study visit was to gain practical experience and knowledge from others that at some steps have come further in this. Thereby, the core aim of the study was to explore the work our partners in the Baltics have done to drive issues such as digitalization and the infrastructure in place that enables them to implement certain practical methods. Although the preconditions differ considering the local Baltic authorities are centralized and steered from the government level, compared to Swedish ones are more independent and decentralized, there was much to learn from an organizational point of view. Their sharing of experiences of cooperating between their departments, Universities, and private actors, as well as having the mindset “dare to fail” is something our delegation will remember from this study and bear in mind for their future work. All these components are important for a local authority to develop and grow in their everyday work.

Please describe briefly whether the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for %s met your expectations

The overall reflections the delegation had after the study was very positive and inspiring. Couldn’t have been better! It truly fulfilled the aim of the project to show us the reason why some countries are a couple of steps in front of us in digitalizing their services, where for instance our Estonian partner Tartu showed how they have worked that eventually led to them being in the forefront in the digitalizing of the public sector. At a seminar one of our delegation members participated in a seminar that the Swedish Association of Local Authorities arranged and showed an index where Estonia scored the highest in the EU. That is what got our attention and eventually led to an application to the NB8 programme to conduct a study visit to see ourselves.

Contact: Anders Fridén, project manager of the project "Intelligent Nordic-Baltic Ecosystems "

Please describe how the project benefited your organisation

The project outcome helps our organizations to understand and see the possibilities of harmonizing variety registration system and VCU trials in the Northern Region, how to choose standard varieties, what are the best data processing programs for analyzing data. Also, what criteria to use to make National List decisions, including decision-making process and basis, how training system of Field Inspectors is structured.
As a result of the project, we can better consider the implementation of the work processes of our own organizational station, how it is possible to improve cooperation with other institutions, how conflicts of interest can be avoided, what are the possible solutions.
Among other things, we got a good overview of the databases of the varieties, their structures – we learned that the databases were well structured in a way that they are user friendly from both official and customer side. We received the necessary tips on how to quickly find the information about a variety registered in another country.

Please describe how the project benefited the Nordic-Baltic cooperation

The project made it possible to visit our colleagues in Finland and Denmark over many years, the networking and exchanging the information on specific issues was useful for both sides. The visits were necessary both for strengthening existing contacts and for establishing new ones. This will give a good foundation for a cooperation with the neighboring countries and on EU level as well.
Among other things, the project has helped us expand our network and create new contacts for cooperation in variety registration, variety listing and variety protection, field trials and other administrative issues.

References in the media

Do you consider your mobility project valuable in terms of sharing experience?

Yes, for my home organisation

Please give an example of experiences/values gained through the mobility project

The biggest asset we gained from the Nordic-Baltic Mobility project is new contacts from the visited organizations in Finland and Denmark.
Also direct value came up from variety registration, variety listing, field trials and training of field inspectors systems, where we see some opportunities to harmonize our systems as well.

Please describe briefly whether the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for %s met your expectations

The programme meets fully our expectations. It gave us the opportunity to work closer with colleagues and institutions from Finland and Denmark.

Contact: Laima Puur, project manager of the project "Cooperations between designated authorities of Estonia, Finland and Denmark"