The Arctic is a region of strategic importance for the EU. In October 2021, a new EU policy for Arctic was launched to foster a stronger EU engagement for a peaceful, sustainable and prosperous Arctic. Smart Specialisation is has an important role in the new policy, notably to support sustainable innovation for the green transition and help the regions benefit from the investments from the EU Recovery Plan. The northern Finnish and Swedish regions are also eligible for the Just Transition Fund focused on alleviating the social and economic costs resulting from the transition to a climate-neutral economy.
The European Arctic regions in North Finland (Lapland), North Sweden (Norrbotten and Västerbotten), and Northern Norway (Troms og Finnmark and Nordland) have all developed Smart Specialisation strategies. The strategies have been increasingly targeting sustainability challenges. The combined challenges of climate crisis and geopolitical instability have become of particular importance for Arctic. The Arctic regions are aligning their S3 with the European Green Deal placing green and digital transitions at the heart of their strategies. They also consider the SDGs an important strategic reference for their strategic development goals while recognising the global role of the region.
As an example, the combination of knowledge and skills and accessibility of minerals and metals make Arctic a good location for the production of new generation batteries which are indispensable to power the green transition away from fossil fuels. A phrase “Nordic Battery Belt” was coined as an umbrella term for battery-related activities in the region, including construction of gigafactories for sustainable battery production.
The European Arctic regions in North Finland (Lapland), North Sweden (Norrbotten and Västerbotten), and Northern Norway (Troms og Finnmark and Nordland) have all developed Smart Specialisation strategies. The strategies have been increasingly targeting sustainability challenges. The combined challenges of climate crisis and geopolitical instability have become of particular importance for Arctic. The Arctic regions are aligning their S3 with the European Green Deal placing green and digital transitions at the heart of their strategies. They also consider the SDGs an important strategic reference for their strategic development goals while recognising the global role of the region.
As an example, the combination of knowledge and skills and accessibility of minerals and metals make Arctic a good location for the production of new generation batteries which are indispensable to power the green transition away from fossil fuels. A phrase “Nordic Battery Belt” was coined as an umbrella term for battery-related activities in the region, including construction of gigafactories for sustainable battery production.