Forum 2020: Planning and policies for inclusive towns and cities part 1

The keyword for the second session of Nordregio Forum is "inclusiveness": How to create communities where everyone can contribute and thrive - regardless of background. The session will start with a dive into recent migration trends and demography in the Nordics, and the causes and effects of growing minorities in small and medium-sized cities. We will also compare policies and urban development projects for social inclusion and youth involvement across the Nordic region, from Reykjanesbaer via Arendal, Norway, to Pori in Finland. Last but not least, you will meet the evaluator of the Danish 'Ghetto policy' and hear about positive and negative impacts.

13.00 Our moderator, Åsa Ström Hildestrand, Head of Communications at Nordregio will introduce today’s session together with Kristin Marklund, Project Manager at the Nordic Integration Programme: www.integrationnorden.org

13.10 Timothy Heleniak, Senior Research Fellow at Nordregio, will talk about Migration and mobility – growing minorities in small towns. He will also share some interesting maps showing migration patterns and demographic changes.

13.25 The next topic is Overcoming barriers to inclusion in Nordic cities, presented by Mats Stjernberg, another Senior Research Fellow at Nordregio, and Sandra Oliveira e Costa, Research Fellow at Nordregio. Mats Stjernberg and Sandra Oliveira e Costa have worked with a project called "Inclusive Cities" and this presentation will focus on some of the cases and findings from that study.

13.45 Claus Bech-Danielsen will talk about the Danish ghetto policy in practice – lasting effects? Claus Bech-Danielsen is a Professor in architecture and spatial planning at Aalborg University and Principal Investigator in an ongoing evaluation of the reconstruction of certain Danish “ghettos” or segregated areas.

14.05 Ask your questions!

14.30 Short coffee break

14.40 Effective local measures for inclusive towns: Hear our Nordic experts dwell on what effective local measures can be. With us are Hilma Hólmfríður Sigurðardóttir, Project Manager for Diversity and Inclusion in Reykjanesbær, Lisbeth Iversen, Project Manager, Med hjerte for Arendal, Antti Kurvinen, Post-Doctoral Researcher at Tampere University, and Ali Ababneh, representative of Haparanda-Tornio cross-border collaboration. Questions from the Q&A will be addressed throughout the session.

15.10 The key to sustainable inclusion: Youth engagement. Meet Thomas Melin from the Swedish Local 2030 Hub and Lotte Fast Carlsen, Nordic Safe Cities Network.

15.25 Wrap-up and next steps, Kjell Nilsson, Director Nordregio.