To strengthen the capacity of specialists at the Ministry of Smart Administration and Regional Development of the Republic of Latvia (henceforth – the Ministry) responsible for spatial planning and policymaking, as well as maintaining the Spatial Development Planning Information System, with the financial support of the European Economic Area Bilateral Cooperation Fund the Ministry implemented the initiative “Exchange of Experience on Spatial Planning and Landscape Assessment Practices (between Norway and Latvia)” . The initiative strengthened bilateral relations between Latvia and Norway.
On November 12–13, 2024, four Ministry representatives visited Oslo, Norway, to exchange experiences with the Department of Spatial Planning at the Norwegian Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development, as well as the Norwegian Mapping Authority.
During the visit, representatives from the Ministry introduced their Norwegian counterparts to Latvia’s planning system and planning document types, highlighting challenges in urban and rural planning and procedures for public engagement. The Norwegian colleagues praised the functionality and capabilities of Latvia’s system – TAPIS, commended the ongoing landscape planning policy, and particularly appreciated the novelty of the Landscape Atlas, the effort invested, and methodology used in its creation.
It was also noted that Latvia has developed a lot in the digitalization of project submission options, data and proposal visualization, and national-level landscape assessment within a unified platform. In Norway, spatial planning and assessment information is currently only accessible at the municipal level, reflecting the significantly larger number of municipalities and the country’s contrasting topography compared to Latvia.
This meeting not only enabled specialists from both countries to exchange insights on achievements and the current state of spatial planning but also allowed them to discuss challenges and potential solutions. Furthermore, it fostered continued collaboration with representatives from other countries in the field of territorial development, particularly at the national level.
As part of the initiative, the project methodological material “Ainavu izpētes un novērtēšanas pieejas Latvijā” (“Landscape research and evaluation approaches in Latvia”) was translated in English within the framework of the project “Ilgtspējīga teritorijas attīstība un racionāla zemes resursu izmantošana” of the State research program “Ilgtspējīga zemes resursu un ainavu pārvaldība: izaicinājumu novērtējums, metodoloģiskie risinājumi un priekšlikumi” (No. VPP-VARAM-ITAZRI-2020/1-0002). It has been translated so that Norwegian colleagues can also be informed about the results of this research, on which the initial stage of landscape management is currently based.
The event was financed by the EEA Grants fund for bilateral relations.
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