The Central Baltic region encompasses Estonia, Latvia, Finland and Sweden which are also part of the wider Baltic Sea Region (BSR). Between these two geographic areas, the countries around the Baltic Sea are implementing a number of cross-border Disaster Risk Management (DRM) instruments aimed at safeguarding the maritime borders. DRM targets some of the most common hazards faced in the region – extreme weather, coastal flooding and oil and hazardous noxious substance discharges.

In terms of natural disasters the region is a comparatively safe area, or at least that is the common perception. This can translate into reduced capacity to properly react to natural disasters, particularly when considering the effects of climate change on the region shown by recent studies and how this translates into increase in risks. 

In response, regional stakeholders are taking steps towards DRM capacity building. Notably the INTERREG Central Baltic Programme includes DRM actions, particularly through funding opportunities for cooperative projects between the Central Baltic countries. The Council of the Baltic Sea States (CBSS) and its Civil Protection Network are likewise funding new initiatives to strengthen regional resilience. 

Experts consider the effect of climate change poised towards being an increasingly major source of maritime risks in the coming years. In response, countries are starting to reevaluate their DRM strategies to account for the effects of climate change and that is where the role and importance of regional initiatives and platforms enabling country collaboration can be seen. 

Furthermore, cross-sectoral collaboration continues to need strengthening. Deepening the available knowledge base in terms of how and why risks emerge can only support DRM experts in their activities. 

CBSS has approached DRM support with a focus on areas that are not being covered by other international bodies, initiatives and legal frameworks. CBSS supports a bottom-up approach to DRM, targeting local communities, building capacity of different stakeholders across different sectors and civil society. The benefits of CBSS actions are in facilitating knowledge sharing, networking both nationally and internationally. CBSS experts indicates the importanceof contacts between peers. 

Similarly, INTERREG Central Baltic Programme involves local level stakeholders in projects that are developing novel solutions to support local level actors in addressing risks. The support for local level stakeholders to engage in DRM actions is necessary to ensure meaningful involvement in DRM activities (data collection and data analysis, DRM tool use, DRM training, etc.). 

It is important to note that such networking actions have to ensure that societal value is created through their implementation. Furthermore, capacity building actions for DRM must recognise the level of support needed for their target groups to engage in DRM activities. Projects designed to strengthen DRM capacity should not be viewed as “off-the-shelf” solutions; rather, careful consideration must be placed on the beneficiaries needs and capacity to engage in DRM.