The two Interreg Aurora Steering Committees, for sub-area Sápmi and sub-area Aurora, have met for the fifth time in the funding period of 2021-2027. The meeting was held the 21-22 January 2025 in Kajaani/Kajana. Katja Sukuvaara from Regional Council of Kainuu welcomed the Committees to the Arctic Lakeland on the external border of the European Union. Key industries in the region are tourism, bio economy, technology industry with state of art data centres and sustainable mining and chemical industries.
The Steering Committee for sub-area Sápmi approved two new projects that will strengthen the Indigenous Sámi languages. All the Sámi languages are threatened or critically threatened according to UNESCO. The project Online tools for Inari Saami and Ume Saami will support learning and preservation for school pupils, academics, and businesses. The project will develop freely accessible online tools, such as electronic dictionaries and text analysers. The other approved project Lohkanlihkku will develop a game-based learning solution that will improve children’s reading skills and developing teachers’ pedagogical competencies in Sámi languages.
Ole-Anders Turi, Chair of the Steering Committee for sub-area Sápmi stated that it is positive that sub-area Sápmi have equal number of applications as the previous Interreg Nord programme. But there are still knowledge gaps regarding the Interreg Aurora programme and the funding opportunities in the Sámi communities and the Sámi organisations. Ole-Anders Turi stressed that it is important that the Steering Committee members together with the Managing Authority and Norwegian Managing Organisation continue to inform and communicate the possibilities with Interreg Aurora funding for Sámi organisations.
The Steering Committee for sub-area Aurora approved 19 new projects. One of the approved projects is the XRHealthEdu project that will provide nursing students with a more immersive and interactive learning experience by Extended Reality (XR) and Artificial Intelligence (AI). Another project that was approved was the SEEC project – Sustainable and energy-efficient energy communities that will contribute to a more energy-efficient housing, and microgrid systems.
Pål Arne Davidsen, Chair of the Steering Committee for sub-area Aurora highlighted that the Steering Committees do not only deal with project applications but also handles important strategic discussions affecting the programme area. Following recent global events, Davidsen stressed that cross-border collaboration in the high north has never been more important. The Steering Committee for sub-area Aurora discussed projects covering all programme priorities, such as research and innovation, education, mobility and climate change adaptation. Davidsen also underlined the importance of attracting private sector companies and small- and medium size enterprise to the programme.
Best wishes for a successful cross-border cooperation to all the new approved Interreg Aurora projects.
Interreg Aurora will open a new call for regular project application the 17 February 2025. Read more about upcoming calls and terms of reference.
