1. Name
The name of the network is Baltic Metropoles.
2. Founding
The Mayors, who signed the Copenhagen Resolution, founded the network in Copenhagen 22 October 2002.
3. Members
The network consists of capital cities, cross-border metropolitan regions, and other metropolitan cities of major importance in the Baltic Sea Region. The members are Berlin, Copenhagen, Helsinki, Malmö, Oslo, Riga, Stockholm, St. Petersburg, Tallinn, Vilnius and Warsaw.
The members are encouraged to involve non-member cities, city networks and state authorities of their countries in the network activities of the BaltMet.
4. Purpose
Through their co-operation the members intend to strengthen the competitiveness and by bringing forth the urban perspective they strive to promote the Baltic Sea Region as an integrated, prosperous and sustainable region.
5. Structure
The network is a permanent co-operation network of metropolitan cities in the Baltic Sea Region.
The organisation of the network is based on regular Mayors’ Meetings and on regular Officials’ Meetings.
The Mayors’ Meeting is the decision making body of the network, defining the Action Plans and electing the Chair City and the Vice Chair City for the network. The chairmanship period lasts for two years with the possibility of prolongation.
The Chair City takes on the responsibility of functioning as the secretariat of the network during the chairmanship period. The Chair City regularly convenes the Officials’ Meeting, which consists of representatives from the member cities, to prepare the Mayors’ Meeting and to implement the decisions of the Mayors’ Meeting.
The Vice Chair City supports the Chair City in the preparation work for the meetings.
Hosting of the meetings rotate.
6. Financing
There is no membership fee in the network and the members fund activities on an ad hoc basis. The operational costs of the network are covered by the participating cities. For projects, EU-funding will be effectively utilised.
The secretariat function is financed by the chairmanship.
7. Working method and co-operation with other actors
The network operates through initiating and co-ordinating concrete co-operation projects between the member cities, and by advocating the interests of metropolises in the context of the Baltic Sea Region and the European Union.
Through the project co-operation the network develops innovative approaches to involve actors especially in the fields of science, business and administration.
Enhancing of BSR interests will be done in close co-operation with other city networks and with regional and European actors.
The main areas of focus are described in the Action Plan every second year.
