The Nordic MSP Forum Report now published!

The Nordic MSP Forum Report follows the Nordic MSP Forum, held in Turku October 2025, where maritime spatial planners from across the Nordic region came together for the very first time to explore new ways of working collaboratively. What began as an open and informal exchange of experiences has now resulted in a report that captures the outcomes of the two days and presents a practical roadmap towards a shared vision for Nordic MSP cooperation. Designed as a flexible and adaptable guideline the roadmap supports ongoing cooperation around common themes and emerging challenges—helping Nordic planners connect, coordinate, and problem solve more effectively across their shared sea areas.

The Forum took place on 9–10 October 2025 in Turku, hosted by the Coordination of Finnish MSP Cooperation at the Regional Council of Southwest Finland and funded by the Nordic Council of Ministers’ Environment and Climate Programme. A total of 22 participants from Finland, Åland, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, and Denmark—along with invited researchers—joined the two-day workshop. The event responded to a recognized need: although the Nordic countries share similar marine challenges and long-standing regional ties, cooperation in MSP has so far been limited mostly to projects and bilateral dialogues. The Forum created a dedicated platform for planners from Nordic countries to exchange knowledge, reflect on future challenges, and identify areas where coordinated efforts could provide significant added value.

Debriefing the group work at the Nordic MSP Forum, Turku, Finland — 10 October 2025.

Over two workshop days, the planners discussed national MSP contexts, governance frameworks, data management, planning practices and the green transition. The discussions revealed widely shared challenges that no single country can solve alone. Climate and biodiversity pressures, offshore wind development, maritime security, and the need for interoperable data all require a more coherent regional approach.

A major outcome of the Forum was the co-created roadmap that will guide Nordic MSP cooperation through 2026–2035. It supports the shared vision of “Maritime Spatial Planning for a flourishing, secure and sustainable Nordic region” and outlines a phased, practical path toward strengthening coordination, improving shared analytical capacity, enhancing cross‑basin collaboration, and gradually aligning national planning processes. Participants agreed that real progress will come from hands‑on, technical cooperation—such as work on cumulative impacts, winter navigation, specific area‑based collaborations and harmonized data—supported by clearer coordination and identified synergies rather than new administrative structures.

Nordic MSP cooperation roadmap — read more in the report.

The roadmap produced in Turku is intended as a flexible and adaptable guideline and  the initially planned upcoming Nordic MSP Forums are expected to serve as checkpoints for reviewing progress, refining priorities, and advancing thematic cooperation, while continued dialogue, data exchange and smaller-scale collaboration between meetings will help maintain momentum and ensure that cooperation remains both strategic and practical.

The Forum confirmed a strong collective interest in an integrated Nordic approach to maritime spatial planning. By building on the foundations laid in Turku, the Nordic countries are well positioned to strengthen cross-border coherence, support the sustainable and secure use of marine areas, and reinforce their joint role in regional and international MSP processes. The roadmap will hopefully serve as a practical and flexible living framework—one that can be adapted to changing circumstances, including new policy developments such as the EU Ocean Pact, the Ocean Act and upcoming national MSP cycles.

To capture the atmosphere and key insights from the event, the full Nordic MSP Forum 2025 Highlights Video is available on our YouTube channel