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Jussi Ylitalo, President of the Provincial Government, participated in the event Turning the ambition of the new EU Arctic Policy into a reality, which was held in Brussels on Wednesday, 1 June 2022. In October 2021, the EU published a Joint Communication on Arctic Policy. The event focused in particular on the implementation of the Communication and examined the need to integrate Arctic issues into EU policy and to maintain the Arctic as a low-tension region. In his speech, Jussi Ylitalo, President of the Provincial Government, highlighted the importance of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) for Finland's freight and passenger transport, Finland's sustainable forest policy, and the importance of Arctic shipping and its challenges in the EU's green transition. Ylitalo emphasizes in his speech that through the forest industry Finland has the opportunity to achieve climate goals while strengthening the economy and …

The Regional Council of Northern Ostrobothnia has invented and documented the cultural heritage of hydropower in a three-year project. A selection of fine power plant sites is the Finnish Architecture Navigator, an online service for Finnish architecture published on the anniversary of the birth of architect Aarne Ervi. The Oulujoki river basin power plant complex was one of the most important construction projects in Finland during the reconstruction period. After the Second World War, sixteen hydropower plants were built in Northern Ostrobothnia and Kainuu, which were at the top of their time in terms of both technology and architecture. These sites have been studied in the three-year EU-funded Hydropower Cultural Heritage (Veku Vaku) project led by the Regional Council of Northern Ostrobothnia. A selection of hydropower projects has now been published in the Finnish Architecture Navigator, an online service for Finnish architecture maintained by Archinfo Finland. Read the press release on the ArcInfo page! See the locations in Finnish Architecture Navigator! Read more about the Veku Vaku project! Further information: Kirsti Reskalenko Regional Architect Tel. +358 40…

At the turn of May-June, 130,000 freshly hatched juveniles of sea trout and 150,000 juveniles of sea trout, 20,000 pre-summer juveniles of sea salmon, 41,000 1-year-old juveniles of sea salmon and 5,000 1-year-old juveniles of sea trout will be planted in the river Iijoki and its tributaries. Restocking supports the creation of salmonid stocks stigmatised in the river. ‘The sea trout are planted in the River Loukusanjoki, the River Pärjänjoki and the River Livojoki, the salmon in the main mouth of the River Iijoki and the River Livojoki. The purpose of restocking is to ensure that the fish get to the bottom and find shelter," says Eero Hartikainen, wilderness planner at Metsähallitus. The young were acquired from the Natural Resources Institute Finland, Kalankasvatus Vääräniemi Oy and Voimalohi Oy, and they are planted by Metsähallitus and Voimalohi Oy. The results of the plantings are monitored by means of electro-experimental fishing in July-August. Electro-experimental fisheries are carried out by Metsähallitus “The availability of freshly hatched Atlantic salmon was below normal this year. We buy 1-year-old salmon chicks to compensate for the low number of wk chicks. Infant …

On 18 May 2022, the European Commission launched a new plan for key EU cross-border energy infrastructure projects as part of the Repower EU plan. In its Repower EU Plan, the Commission's key objective is to promote the self-sufficiency of the EU's energy system and the de-fossilisation of Russia.  The target is to be phased out before 2030.   The funding for the Repower EU plan is approximately EUR 800 million. The project selections and possible funding are based on the framework formed by The Trans-European Networks for Energy (TEN-E) and CEF for Energy.   TEN-E is based on trans-European infrastructure planning and provides a framework for identifying projects of common interest. These projects will contribute to the internal energy market, security of supply and sustainability in pre-defined energy infrastructure themes.  CEF Energy is the only dedicated EU funding instrument for cross-border …

The Regional Council of Northern Ostrobothnia is organizing the new openings of the province's smart development seminar on 24 August 2022​. The Regional Council of North Ostrobothnia invites all actors from the region of North Ostrobothnia to come up with ideas for developing the region's near future from the point of view of smart specialisation. North Ostrobothnia will have the opportunity to develop in a variety of ways, as development needs can be highlighted in a variety of different themes and taking into account the needs of different organisations. So you are very welcome to join us!​ ​ Seminar has three themed workshops from which you can choose the one that suits you best. The thematic workshops are: Climate-wise, responsible and renewable industry​, Digital Services and Products​ and Health and Wellbeing​. The seminar will be held at the Regional Council of Northern Ostrobothnia, Poratie 5A, Oulu. The event starts with lunch at 11 a.m. and the actual program starts at 12 noon. The event ends at 3 p.m. The schedule and schedule of the event will be specified shortly, so adding a day to the calendar is worthwhile…

The Regional Council of Northern Ostrobothnia has launched a study on the resilience of Northern Ostrobothnia and its 30 municipalities. The study is carried out by expert company Norrum Oy, in cooperation with TK-Eval Oy. The study examines the risks and resilience of the 30 municipalities in the Northern Ostrobothnia region from the perspective of key industries and regional economy. The study examines the region's ability to respond to and prepare for risks in the short and long term. Risks affecting the regional economy are addressed in terms of the economy, technology, price volatility, changes in demand, policy and regulation, geopolitics and the environment. The study will be completed in November 2022. The municipalities included in the study are Alavieska, Haapajärvi, Haapavesi, Hailuoto, Kalajoki, Kempele, Kuusamo, Kärsämäki, Liminka, Lumijoki Merijärvi, Muhos, Nivala, Oulainen, Oulu, Pudasjärvi, Pyhäjoki, Pyhäjärvi, Pyhätä,…

The Regional Council of Northern Ostrobothnia is applying for funding from the Finnish Structural Funds programme Sustainable Growth and Jobs 2014-2020. ERDF applications are accepted for priority axis 1 ‘Competitiveness of SMEs’ and priority axis 2 ‘Production and exploitation of the latest knowledge and know-how’ and priority axis 8 ‘React-EU ERDF measures’. Specific objective 1.2 is not open in the application round, while the other specific objectives of the priority axes are open. The application period is from 23 May to 30 June 2022. ERDF applications must be submitted to the authority via the EURA2014 system (www.eura2014.fi). Projects can run until 31 December 2023 at the latest. The maximum amount of funding requested (ERDF and State) is 70% the total cost of the project. Some EUR 2.516.000 million is planned to be used to finance projects under Axis 1 and Axis 2 and EUR 228.000 to finance React-EU projects under Axis 8. Now …

On Tuesday 17 May, the European Commission announced 63 regions, 7 cities and 4 Member States that have been selected to participate in the Partnerships for Regional Innovation (PRI) pilot project. One of the selected regions is Eastern and Northern Finland. The participants in the pilot project will openly share their experiences of good practice and jointly develop and test tools to mobilise a wide range of funding sources and policies. These actions link regional and national programmes to EU initiatives to promote the green and digital transitions. These partnerships will feed into the new European Innovation Agenda, where innovation contributes to the transformation of sustainable development and integrates local strategies with initiatives at EU level. PRI is a continuation of the experience gained from Smart Specialisation Strategies (S3) and is linked to …

The Regional Council of Northern Ostrobothnia, in cooperation with the City of Oulu, has launched an ERDF project application for the implementation of 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 16 May 2022 to 10 June 2022. ERDF applications must be submitted to the authority via the EURA2021 system. The projects to be funded must be the Renewable and Skilled Finland 2021-2027 programme, the Smart Specialisation Strategy for Northern Ostrobothnia (for projects under Specific Objective 1.1.) and the City of Oulu and the State …

The Regional Council of Northern Ostrobothnia is seeking funding from the Renewable and Skilled Finland 2021-2027 EU Regional and Structural Policy Programme. The Regional Council of Northern Ostrobothnia finances European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) measures. The application round is open from 16 May 2022 to 31 August 2022. Before preparing your application, you should read more about the Renewable and Skilled Finland 2021-2027 programme document. An amount of EUR 8.513.000 million is planned to be used to finance the projects received in the call for applications. The maximum amount of funding requested (ERDF and State) is 70.% the total cost of the project, excluding infrastructure investment projects carried out by municipalities or joint municipal authorities under specific objective 3.1, for which the maximum amount of support (ERDF and State) is 50;% the total cost of the project. For more information on the application round, click here.