The Northern Dimension Institute is currently leading two projects: the NDI Think Tank and the Support to the NDI.
NDI Think Tank
The Northern Dimension Institute (NDI), led by the Aalto University, coordinates the EC DG NEAR co-financed Development of think tank functions of the Northern Dimension Institute: the NDI Think Tank Action during 21.12.2018 – 30.6.2022.
The NDI Think Tank Action is designed to enhance genuine regional cooperation in the Northern Dimension area through science diplomacy, capacity building and people-to-people contacts.
The NDI Think Tank Action focuses on the following:
- Developing and institutionalizing of the NDI into a regional think tank.
- Supporting decision-makers, ND partnerships, ND Steering Group members, ND Parliamentary Forum, ND Business Council, Barents actors, and other key stakeholders in their research-based information needs, thus enhancing evidence-based decision-making.
- Ensuring level playing field and platform for connecting the ND decision-makers and key stakeholders with the academic community into an open dialogue, people-to-people contacts, co-creation and dissemination in the thematic fields of the four ND partnerships.
- Strengthening the voice of the civil society actors, including the academic community, non-governmental organizations and the business community, as the key evidence-based knowledge providers and actors in dialogue on the common challenges and available solutions in the ND area,
- Raising awareness of the ND, ND partnerships, research-based information and policy briefs about the common challenges and available solutions on the jointly selected topics, future trends as well as outcomes of the ND collaboration.
Action partnership includes universities and research organizations with references in high-quality expertise and research projects related to the environment, climate change impact in the Arctic, emerging transport and logistics routes between Europe and Asia, energy efficiency, health and wellbeing and culture in the ND area. The research teams will produce policy briefs, analysis and reports on the pressing challenges and their potential solutions in close dialogue and co-creation with decision-makers.
The NDI will provide a neutral platform for research collaboration and co-creation workshops. The annual ND Future Forum enables open discussion and dissemination of the research-based solutions for future challenges with the ND area decision-makers.
Action partnership:
The project is jointly designed and implemented by Aalto University as the Lead Partner, in partnership with University of Oulu (UOULU, Finland), International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA, Austria), Northern (Arctic) Federal University (NArFU, Russia), and St. Petersburg State University of Economics (UNECON, Russia).
Support to the Northern Dimension Institute
The Northern Dimension Institute (NDI) led by the Aalto University coordinates the EC DG NEAR co-financed Support to the Northern Dimension Institute Action during 1.9.2020 – 31.12.2022.
The project helps to avoid overlapping activities and to pool resources to address common challenges. The specific objective of the project is to exploit the existing expertise and further strengthen the capacity of the NDI to implement specified activities with expected outputs and outcomes.
- The identification of synergies between themes of ND Partnerships and other regional strategies and initiatives will improve the regional actors’ awareness of potential synergies and complementarities with research-based evidence.
- The workshops, seminars and exchange of expertise will create common platforms for interaction, discussion on identified synergies and mutual planning of activities. These platforms foster cross-Partnership cooperation as well as intensify cooperation between regional actors in the North.
- The project generates and provides to the ND Partnerships’ knowledge-based recommendations for formulating their strategies and directing their research. The project will identify policy-relevant research and produce it into Policy Briefs and other intellectual contributions.
- The communication and media activities of the project will increase the awareness, visibility, and outreach of the ND policy in the wider geographical context. Information on project results, policies and initiatives will be disseminated to experts, policy-makers and the public via the NDI website, the newsletter ND Newsflash, and social media channels.
