Sustainable development of the Baltic Sea Region

Abstract

This issue of the journal is thematic. It is part of the followup to the research forum of the Baltic University Programme, which took place in August 2020 1 .A longstanding partner in the programme, the Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University has assumed the role of a media outlet of the forum to publish the finest of its proceedings. Like the forum itself, the issue is devoted to sustainable development, as pursued in the Baltic Region.The Baltic University Programme [1; 2] defines the Baltic Sea Region as countries in the catchment areas of rivers discharging into the namesake sea, including the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Ukraine, and Belarus. This definition follows the ecological approach based on the postulate that the quality of the Bal tic Sea influenced the cleanness of rivers draining into the sea. Vital factors here are the environmental attitudes of people living in the area and the environmental laws in effect in their countries. A series of studies conducted under the aegis of the Baltic University Programme has extended the definition of the region to include not only its traditional constituents that have access to the Baltic Sea but also the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Ukraine, and Belarus.Sustainable development is more than a mere combination of the ecologi cal, economic and social dimensions. Sustainable approaches become effective only when underpinned by ethical principles. As early as 1987, the Brundtland Commission introduced the idea of sustainable development, presented in the Brundtland report. Three decades later, sustainable development is an established concept. Agenda 21 for the Baltic Sea Region was approved in 1998 by the Coun cil of the Baltic Sea States (CBSS) of which the Russian Federation is a member 2 . The document lays down the principles of sustainable development for different sectors of the Baltic Sea economies. Recognized by all the countries of the re gion, this programme provides an institutional framework for sustainable devel opment in the Baltic Sea Region.