Last Saturday, November 23, a series of three workshops organized as part of the We Make Transition project came to an end. 'Gdynia Transition Arena: crossectoral sustainability' is a process organized in accordance with the Transition Arena method - a strategic transformation management tool engaging various entities, including grassroots, to co-create solutions for sustainable eco-social development. In the We Make Transition! project partners from Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Poland, Germany and Norway are working with a total of 12 cities and municipalities to adapt the Transition Arena method to co-create a transnational vision of sustainable development, favoring social inclusion, and at the local level, to build implementation paths and specific actions aimed at transition to sustainable development, focusing on the role of diverse civil society actors. Transition Arena is a series of workshops, and the topics of arena processes include, among others: sustainable lifestyles, agriculture and food, biodiversity and the circular and sharing economy As part of the project, a total of 30 change agents from six partner countries were engaged to co-create a vision for sustainable development and develop recommendations to strengthen cooperation between local authorities and civil society actors to advance ecological and social sustainability. The transnational group of change agents includes representatives of civil society, local authorities and entrepreneurs. The agents' Vision for Sustainable Living in the Baltic Sea Region by 2035 provided an inspiring framework for all local processes in the transformation arena.
Over 30 people were invited to participate in the Gdynia Transition Arena, including residents, entrepreneurs, local activists, representatives of non-governmental organizations and local government officials. During the first workshop, which took place on October 25 in the friendly space of the Consulate of Culture in Gdynia, workshop participants began group work on the vision of sustainable development of Gdynia in three key areas: 1) Zero Waste urban gardening and green spaces, 2) Circular economy and waste reduction, 3) Mapping sustainable enterprises.
The next meeting focused on developing potential solution paths for selected issues and proposals for specific actions that can be implemented in the city in order to implement the jointly chosen vision of sustainable development of Gdynia.
In the final stage of the Gdynia Transition Arena, one pilot project was selected, which will serve as a model for implementation in Gdynia, promoting sustainable practices and cooperation at the local level. You can find more about Local Arenas of Change and our sustainable process here: https://interreg-baltic.eu/project/we-make-transition/
