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  Organised in Oulu on Wednesday 25 January, from 9:00 to 11:00 at Valkea Shopping Centre (Valkea 4th floor, Isokatu 25). Morning coffee service starting at 8.30 am. In the programme o Presentation of the JTF and the Just Transition Plan for Northern Ostrobothnia o JTF financial instruments of the Regional Council of Northern Ostrobothnia o JTF financial instruments of the Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment for Northern Ostrobothnia o Application periods and applications Registration for the event is now closed and the event is full. A TEAMS briefing with the same content on JTF funding will also be held on Friday 27 January 2023 from 12:00 to 14:00. The link to participate in the info session can be found closer to the date on the website of the Regional Council of North Ostrobothnia and the Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment of North Ostrobothnia, as well as on the Structural Funds.fi website. Participation in the TEAMS info session does not require pre-registration. The event will be recorded and can be viewed after the event for two weeks. Info sessions are organised by the Regional Council of Northern Ostrobothnia and the Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment of Northern Ostrobothnia in cooperation with the European Direct EU Information Point…

A joint meeting of the Presidency of the Barents Euro-Arctic Council of Finland and the Regional Committee was held in Oulu on 12-13 December 2022. Representatives from Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Iceland and the EU attended the meeting. The priorities of the Finnish Presidency in 2021-2023 are sustainable development, people-to-people contacts and good transport connections. The UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the European Green Deal and the Barents Programme 2019-23 of the Barents Regional Council have laid the groundwork for action. Cities and provinces play a key role in promoting people-to-people cooperation in the Barents region. North Karelia's chairmanship, which will officially begin in 2023, will play a key role in the realisation of these goals. The Finnish Presidency is already working in close cooperation with North Karelia. Young people are key to the future of the Barents region and to keeping it alive and developing. the Oulu Meeting …

The Regional Council of Northern Ostrobothnia has long-term advocated for making the Port of Oulu and the airport part of the TEN-T core network. In early 2022, the Regional Council of Northern Ostrobothnia and the City of Oulu took a joint position to make the port part of the core network, highlighting in particular the strategically important location of the port in terms of the northern transport connections between Finland and the EU. In addition, the Federation has highlighted the importance of the Port of Oulu in CPMR's Baltic Sea Commission's statements. On Monday 5 December 2022, the EU Transport Council adopted a general approach on the TEN-T proposal. The Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) is an EU-wide transport network that identifies the most important routes, ports, airports and rail terminals and aims for their sustainable and high-quality development by 2050. In a proposal for a regulation adopted by the Transport Council on Monday, the Port of Oulu is proposed to be upgraded to the TEN-T core network. Minister of Transport and Communications Timo… representing Finland at the meeting

Discussions in the Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions of Europe (CPMR) have for a long time highlighted the situation regarding the availability of alternative fuels in the peripheral regions of the EU. For example, the proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the deployment of alternative fuels infrastructure sets challenging requirements for both the TEN-T core network and the comprehensive network, subject to the requirement of a recharging station with an interval of no more than 60 km. This will most likely require significant investment in infrastructure. The proposal for a regulation also requires the construction of hydrogen stations in major urban areas. Jouni Jussinniemi, 1st Vice-President of the Regional Council of Northern Ostrobothnia, attended the CPMR Baltic Sea Commission Working Group on Transport in Stockholm in November 2022. Jussinniemi emphasised in the discussions that electric cars are not the only solution for future traffic. “A solution with electricity, hydrogen and renewable sustainably produced … is needed

For the first time, the North Ostrobothnia Welfare Area, or Pohde, is conducting a grant application for organisations. During the organisation session, project planner Helena Liimatainen told about the grant practices and encouraged organisations to submit applications. He instructed the applicants to familiarise themselves with the welfare area's strategy and organizing plan, as the assisted activities must support and supplement the services that the welfare area is responsible for organizing. Before applying, associations should also review their own rules. Grants can be applied for by various associations, but the rules must include a record of the task of promoting health and social well-being or safety. Municipalities also continue to award organisational grants. No double grants may be awarded. Therefore, it is important to specify the allocation of grants in the application and to present the activity as a whole. “As the year changes, we are all on the verge of something new”. This is what Elina Vehkala, Director of Education and Culture, would say in an organizational moment…

The Regional Council of Northern Ostrobothnia has started to prepare positive decisions for 12 new ERDF projects. A total of approximately EUR 2.763.000 is planned to be allocated to the projects. Among the projects under preparation are research and innovation environment development projects and projects related to cultural tourism and the circular economy. Formal funding decisions for projects in the EURA2014 system are planned to be taken during January 2023, after consideration by the Provincial Cooperation Group secretariat and for some projects by the Provincial Cooperation Group. The projects will run until 31 December 2023 at the latest. However, the development of the region with the help of structural funds does not stop. The activities will continue with funding from the 2021-2027 programming period. The Regional Council of Northern Ostrobothnia has a reasonable amount of ERDF funding available for project activities. Two application rounds have already been organised for the 2021-2027 programming period. The third round of applications for Sustainable Urban Development is open…

The international and networked North Ostrobothnia (Kanves) project has published a series of introductory videos on four innovation platforms that are important from the perspective of the region. Each video introduces the operation of the innovation platform and interviews a company that has used the platform's services to support its business. Innovation platforms from the Southern region of Oulu are presented in two tracks. Future Production Technologies The FMT Group has several partners from both the academic and business worlds. Its current partners come from domestic companies, from local organisations to foreign universities. The FMT Group's activities are concentrated in Nivala, where it works closely with the City of Nivala, the Industrial Village and the Nivala-Haapajärvi regional authority, NIHAK. FMT Group's research and development activities include 3D printing of metals and various after-treatments to optimize product properties, such as rapid heat treatments and surface chemical or …

Mental health and mental well-being of young people was a diverse and impressive theme at the Northern Ostrobothnia Youth Forum on 21 November. Jarno Laasala from the Duudsons, who was the main speaker of the day, told about his and his friends' trip from Härmä to Hollywood. Laasala told about her experiences and forgetting herself and the problems it caused her mental health. Laasala had also collected concrete tips to help her learn to deal with her life and learn to be present and accept different things. The day was hosted by Iida Hyvärinen, Chairman of the Regional Youth Council of Northern Ostrobothnia, and Inga Koskenniemi, Member. Nea-Noora also shared experiences from a young person to young people about the mental health of a touching speech. She shared her harsh and touching story with young people about a serious stroke, paralysis, and the impact of these events on her mental well-being.…

The Regional Council of Northern Ostrobothnia, in cooperation with the City of Oulu, is launching an ERDF project application for sustainable urban development that implements the ecosystem agreement signed between the State and the City of Oulu. The content of the Oulu ecosystem agreement consists of the strategic focus areas and spearhead programmes of the Oulu Innovation Alliance for 2021-2027. The projects under the ecosystem agreement support the formation of business clusters and ecosystems in selected target sectors, identify the needs and services of the companies belonging to them, promote longer-term concrete goals and broad entities in line with the target sectors and spearhead programmes of the Oulu Innovation Alliance strategy, and provide added value from digital to the everyday services and built environment of residents. The application round is open from 7 November to 9 December 2022. Only projects under Specific Objectives 1.1 and 1.3 will be applied for in this call. ERDF applications must be submitted to the authority via the EURA2021 system. The projects to be funded must be Renewable and competent Suomi…

The construction of the Oulujoki hydropower was a major post-war work whose cultural-historical and architectural value sought equals. Building an Industrial Identity, created by the Hydropower Cultural Heritage (VekuVaku) project coordinated by the Regional Council of Northern Ostrobothnia, was published in mid-October. Samuli Paitsola, editor of the work, summed up the cultural-historical and architectural value of the construction of the Oulujoki power plants in three perspectives at the publication of the work. ‘In post-war Finland, a social transition started. Finland moved from an agrarian Finland to a modern industrial society. In a project such as harnessing the Oulujoki river, the image aspect must also be taken into account. It was a showcase to the world. We wanted to show that we can and are capable of making world-class industrial architecture and industry", Paitsola describes the background to the work. Second, Paitsola points out that the construction of the Oulujoki power plants to function as a unified system is fully…