“Norwegian participation was a missing “Pearl” in the Cultural Pearls “necklace”. We see it as a completion and strong enrichment of our activities,” says Kaarina Williams from the Ministry of European Affairs of Schleswig-Holstein, current Chair of the Cultural Pearls Executive Board. 

“Norway has long been a strong player in Baltic Sea Region cooperation (BSSSC, STRING-Network, now EUSBSR)—but until now, one part has not been so visible: its municipalities. With Norway becoming an active partner in Cultural Pearls, that gap can be filled. While Norway already contributes at the national and regional levels, this initiative brings cities and local communities directly into the action. The result? A full-circle approach where every level—national, regional, and local—works together to shape the future of the Baltic Sea Region.” 

The Cultural Pearls initiative serves as a platform for regional exchange, uniting municipalities committed to a shared mission: strengthening community resilience through culture, creativity, and co-creation. Norwegian municipalities now have the opportunity to join this network, learning from, and contributing to, the experiences of small- and medium-sized towns across the region. 

Over the past three years, the Cultural Pearls initiative has empowered municipalities to develop innovative tools and long-term strategies, leveraging local cultural assets to address difficult challenges. By deepening collaboration with Norwegian municipalities, the network will further enrich its collective knowledge, benefiting from Norway’s unique perspectives on cultural resilience and community belonging. 

Pre-selected municipalities will enter the Development Phase, where they receive access to a regional network of cities devoted to stronger, more resilient communities. support and inspiration to craft a Culture and Resilience Action Plan (CuReAP). The most innovative and compelling Action Plans, submitted in October 2026, are awarded the 2027 Cultural Pearls title, bringing international visibility and recognition to their communities. Cultural Pearls cities, past and present, additionally gain access through the Cultural Pearls Network to a regional network of cities devoted to stronger, more resilient communities. 

Learn more about the open call and apply here.

The 2025 Summary Report captures insights and reflections from each of the six titleholders of 2025: Smiltene (Latvia), Helsingborg (Sweden), Peipsiääre (Estonia), Płock (Poland), Kaskinen-Kaskö (Finland) and Alytus District (Lithuania). The report showcases their unique approaches to overcoming challenges commonly faced by small and medium-sized cities: including depopulation, youth outmigration, and weakening community ties. From Kaskinen-Kaskö’s open wooden house tours, which revitalised local heritage, to Płock’s “culture-to-go” model, which brought cultural experiences directly to residents, the 2025 Cultural Pearls employed boundless creativity to strengthen their communities.

2025 marked the most competitive year in the initiative’s history, with an international jury selecting the six most innovative and impactful CuReAPs from 14 strong applicants. Each city has exemplified how culture can serve as a catalyst for resilience, offering actionable solutions that inspire municipalities across the region.

The report also highlights the enriching events programme of 2025, which included dozens of webinars, two network conferences in Helsingborg and Płock, and the Culture for Resilience Forum. Collaborations with the Resilient Communities Learning Platform (RESCOM) further enhanced the programme, fostering exchanges of best practices between the Baltic Sea Region, Ukraine, and Moldova. These events provided invaluable opportunities for peer learning, networking, and the dissemination of innovative solutions to shared municipal challenges.

As the Cultural Pearls Network transitions into 2026 as an independent initiative, the report offers a preview of what the four new titleholders – Glücksburg (Germany), Kristinestad-Kristiinankaupunki (Finland), Krosno (Poland), and Schleswig (Germany) – can expect from their title year. With a programme full of peer learning and exchanges, these cities are set to build on the successes of their predecessors and further strengthen their communities through culture.

We invite municipalities, policymakers, and cultural practitioners to explore the 2025 Summary Report and discover how culture can drive meaningful change. For municipalities inspired to join this growing network, the 2027 call for applications will open in March. Useful information and inspiration for prospective applicants is available on the Cultural Pearls resource page. Updated contact information is now available for the National Contact Points (formerly Mentors) and the new Cultural Pearls Network Secretariat.

Photo: Ewa Strozniak

Photo: Uģis Brālēns

Photo: Rickard Johnsson

Photo: Karl Fredy Kruup

Photo: Jurģis Rudmiezis

From 25 November 2025, the outdoor exhibition “Postcards from the Borderland” was on display in Rūjiena’s central square, near the monument dedicated to the liberators of Rūjiena and the fallen soldiers, “The Trumpeter of Tālava”. The exhibition presents photographic portraits and excerpts from conversations with people living in Ipiķi (LV), Vilpulka (LV) and Meisaküla (EESTI). 

“Over the course of three field trips in late summer and autumn of 2025, we conducted 17 conversations, which are reflected in the excerpts and portraits included in the exhibition. However, the number of people we met was considerably larger,” says project manager Madara Seile. “We are grateful to everyone who dedicated their time and opened their doors to our team.” 

Interview editor Anna Paula Gruzdiņa adds: “We went from house to house, but ended up much further – in a time when a full bus from Ipiķi travelled to the dances in Meisaküla; when a seventeen-year-old girl from Ipiķi became a metal milling operator in the Meisaküla factory; and when you could reach Riga by train through the Ipiķi forest.” 

The exhibition reveals everyday life in the borderland – a place where “winter roads can be so icy that a car may slide into the ditch even while standing still,” where a cross-country ski trail and a hockey rink appear on the pond in winter, and where some learn to coexist with an Estonian ghost or even a bear. The stories are diverse, personal and vivid, offering a glimpse into life on both sides of the border. These encounters with borderland residents and the exhibition born from them not only reveal their daily stories but also strengthen self-confidence and the sense of belonging to the place. It is an opportunity to witness the resilience, humanity and mutual support within the community – something especially important in today’s world. 

After the exhibition closed, excerpts from conversations with residents in the Ipiķi, Vilpulka, and Meisakila areas were published in a series of articles during the first three months of 2026 in Liesma, a regional newspaper serving the Valmiera area in Latvia.

The exhibition is financially supported by the Valmiera Municipality, the State Culture Capital Foundation’s programme “Development Programme of Latvian Historical Lands”, and the Vidzeme Planning Region. It has been created in collaboration with the Valmiera School of Design and Art. 

Photo by Lāsma Lopatko. 

Over the last two years, the research centre KEA European Affairs has closely observed and worked with the BSR Cultural Pearls project. KEA was selected to design and develop a comprehensive evaluation framework for the BSR Cultural Pearls project, enabling stakeholders to systematically assess and measure the project’s impacts and value creation. At the core of this assignment is the fundamental question:

How can the added value of the Cultural Pearls award be effectively measured and captured within the involved communities and municipalities?  

Haakon Hildisch has a background that combines hands-on experience from the music and film industry, festival organisation, and grassroots cultural work in local cultural contexts. Building on experience across sectors, he holds an MSc in Management of Creative Business Processes from Copenhagen Business School, where he developed a strong interest in how creativity and culture contribute to innovation and value creation. Since joining KEA about six months ago, he has mainly assisted with research and has been involved in the later stages of the BSR Cultural Pearls project.

Join us for this interesting session!

The CuReAPs vary in theme as local challenges differ: Schleswig wants to fill vacant urban spaces with life and address social fragmentation; Kristinestad / Kristiinankaupunki aims to embed the Cittaslow concept more in everyday life, Krosno will address the demographic changes and social integration endorsing participation in public life, Glücksburg has seasonal tourism influencing city life widely and a cultural scene with the potential to grow more connected. As diverse as the challenges are the opportunities culture offers as a connective force for engaging people and building resilient communities: Thematic city walks, integrative neighbourhood picnics, street festivals, labs and creative workshops, bar camps, digital tools and more. 

On their journey, as in their preparation phase, the Cultural Pearls have the support of the Cultural Pearls Network: Each of them have a National Contact Point to approach, the partner organisations and experts involved that built and fostered the methodology, tools and peer network over the last three years, a secretariat for support in organisational questions and communication efforts and of course the group of Pearls that came before them which have established a self-organised exchange platform for themselves within the network. 

Moreover, the kick-off event was only the first in a line of multiple online events throughout the year, including peer-learning across Pearl cities from previous years, expert interventions and further networking opportunities. This ‘Network Session Series’ provides insights on the following topics:  

• Good practices showcasing how culture makes communities stronger  

• Cross-departmental cooperation and administration  

• The CuReAPs put into practice  

• Participatory methods fostering community engagement  

• Collaboration between the Cultural and Creative Sectors (CCS) and municipalities 

And one more event is being added to the programme: Save the Date for February 11, when the research-based evaluation findings from KEA European Affairs showcase the added value of three years of the BSR Cultural Pearls initiative. Explore their report beforehand here. Registration details will be shared soon. Join us! 

The Cultural Pearls Network wishes the 2026 Cultural Pearls an enlightening journey through their title year and looks forward to seeing their actions but into practice building resilience through culture. 

Photos by Ewa Strozniak, Council of the Baltic Sea States

The core of the toolkit is a five-phase process that guides municipalities from preparation to implementation:

1. Assess local conditions and map the cultural ecosystem.
2. Identify suitable cultural partners.
3. Co-design a pilot with community involvement.
4. Implement and monitor the activities.
5. Evaluate results and plan next steps.

The message is straightforward: culture is a practical tool for community engagement, not an add-on. Cultural practices help bring people together, create shared experiences, and strengthen a sense of belonging—key elements of social resilience.

A casebook section documents pilot projects across the Baltic Sea Region, including youth-led heritage initiatives in Estonia, a large-scale community mural in Germany, and intergenerational workshops in Latvia. These examples show how even small, well-designed cultural actions can activate residents and build trust between communities and municipal authorities.

Clear language, step-by-step worksheets, and real-world cases make the publication accessible to municipal leaders, cultural officers, and creative practitioners. It offers a ready-to-use starting point for any municipality looking to engage communities more effectively and improve social resilience through culture.

Through the project, cultural activities have played a significant role in fostering a stronger sense of belonging within communities. These activities have engaged a diverse range of residents, helping them connect through events, workshops, and collaborative projects. At the same time, the initiative has also encouraged innovation within local governance. Municipalities have begun adopting new collaborative methods, integrating culture into long-term strategies, and working more closely with cultural organizations and residents to create lasting change.

This evaluation report delves into the project’s progress, the challenges faced, and recommendations for future development. It highlights how culture can be a powerful tool for creating more resilient, thriving communities in the Baltic Sea Region.

This report presents the final evaluation of the BSR Cultural Pearls programme (2023–2025) as a whole. Developed by the Brussels-based consultancy KEA European Affairs, the insightful evaluation applies a theory-of-change framework and mixed methods to capture both short-term results and emerging longer-term effects. 

The findings highlight where cultural initiatives most effectively strengthen social resilience, as well as key challenges and recommendations for future programme cycles.

After an intense day of brainstorming, the first evening of the hackathon  was brightened by traditional musicians – the ensemble Klõmm and the Kodavere accordion players. The hosts of Kadrina Manor provided delicious food and cozy accommodation. The preparation of the hackhaton  was supported by KUVAKE’s youth and culture workers and the schools’ hobby coordinators.

The jury included Piibe Koemets, Mayor of Peipsiääre Municipality, Laura Lillepalu-Scott, Director of Alatskivi Castle Foundation, and Ave Matsin, Lecturer in National Textile at the Viljandi Culture Academy.

The main prize of EUR 1000,- for implementing the winning idea was provided by the Peipsiääre Municipality Culture and Leisure Centre. The grand prize went to the boys from Vara School for their idea PEIPSI COMPASS – a hiking app that allows users to discover their home region through fun, game-based, and guided hikes. The team members were Indrek Lillemäe, Gerhard Värv, and Rihard Laksaar.

The Alatskivi Castle Foundation awarded a special prize to the Pala School boys’ team for their idea FROM YOUTH TO YOUTH. Ats Laugamets, Robin Värk, and Andreas Tarto, who wish to organize events that genuinely interest young people, received free use of Alatskivi Castle’s carriage stables for hosting their youth event.

The Tartu Centre for Creative Industries offered a special award – two training spots – which went to another Pala School team with their idea YOUTH HERITAGE CAFÉ “KARASKI KAMBER”. The team members Karmen Kivistik, Anneli Kaur, Cristelle Raudmäe, and Aaron Menind will have the chance to further develop and refine their café concept through these trainings.

Young people from Alatskivi and Kolkja schools formed a joint team at the hackathon, as their idea A QUIET SPOT AT SCHOOL shared a similar vision – creating a cozy corner for relaxation and socializing. The joint team included Meribel Mogom and Meribel Kalda from Alatskivi School, and Alisa Buinitska and Milana Murova from Kolkja School.

All participants of the hackathon will spend a joint day in Viljandi, exploring study programs and the CAMP Creative Entrepreneurship Centre at the Culture Academy. They will also visit the Tartu Centre for Creative Industries (including Antoniuse Courtyard), where they will learn more about creative industries and how to start their own business.

The participating teams will have access to mentoring support for up to a year to help them implement their ideas. They can turn to the KUVAKE team as well as the development adviser, communication specialist, and marketing manager of Peipsiääre Municipality.

There is no idea too small, and no creator too young. Every big thing begins with a first step. The young people of Peipsiääre Municipality have courage, ideas, and support – together we can make our home region culturally richer.

Text and photos by Reet Kruup, Cultural Activities Specialist, Peipsiääre Municipality Culture and Leisure Centre

The dialogue highlighted that the BSR Cultural Pearls project is well aligned with EU cultural policy priorities and provides concrete cases and hands-on experience from across the Cultural Pearls network.

Photos by MLLEV / Lena Backes