Press release: Follow-up of Commitments made at the Baltic Sea Action Summit

One year has passed since the Baltic Sea Action Summit. Now it is time to report on how the Commitments have progressed so far. The media is welcome to listen to what the states, companies and other organizations have done during the first year of the process. New Commitments, made after the Summit, will also be presented.

The follow-up will take place at SEB (Unioninkatu 30, Helsinki) on Thursday, 10 February 2011starting at 9:00. SEB has kindly offered its premises as part of the company’s Baltic Sea Commitment. SEB’s Chairman of the Board Marcus Wallenberg will open the event.

At the Baltic Sea Action Summit in Helsinki in February 2010 states, companies and NGO’s met to present their Commitments to solve the problems of the Baltic Sea. The international media showed a high interest in the new way of working, the social innovation, using cross-border cooperation between all sectors of society to save the Baltic Sea.

Short reports of the Commitment progress will be presented at the event and the discussion can continue at the buffet lunch.

Among others, the President of the Republic of Finland Tarja Halonen and Prime Minister Mari Kiviniemi will attend. The Minister of Immigration and European Affairs Astrid Thors will report on the progress of the Commitment of Finland. Representatives of the other countries around the Baltic Sea will also tell about their Commitments’ progress. The Baltic Sea Action Group (BSAG) will be represented by Chairman of the Board Ilkka Herlin. BSAG will give examples of Commitments made by companies and other organizations. An analysis made by the Finnish Environmental Agency about the progress of Commitments will also be published.

The Minister of the Environment Paula Lehtomäki will also attend the event. Representatives of NGO’s and organizations who have made Commitments after the Summit last year will also be invited.

The language of the event is English.

We kindly ask media representatives to sign up by 3 February 2011.

Welcome!

For further information, please contact:

Baltic Sea Action Group

Commitments: Secretary General Mathias Bergman, mathias.bergman@bsag.fi, +358 50 380 7155

Event: Communications Manager Linda Lindfors, linda.lindfors@bsag.fi, +358 40 543 9820

Ministry for Foreign Affairs

Ambassador for Baltic Sea Issues: Timo Rajakangas, timo.rajakangas@formin.fi, +358 9 1605 5438

Media arrangements: First Secretary René Söderman, rene.soderman@formin.fi, +358 9 1605 5812

Background information:

Commitments made by states: https://www.bsag.fi/content/view/full/1326

All other Commitments: http://www.bsas.fi/commitments/all-commitments

www.bsag.fi (Baltic Sea Action Group)

www.bsas.fi (Baltic Sea Action Summit 2010)

Written about the BSAS in the international media (Ministry for Foreign Affairs 26.2.2010): http://formin.finland.fi/public/default.aspx?contentid=187142&nodeid=39793&contentlan=1&culture=fi-FI​