Key challenges to sustainability on small islands in the Baltic and Eastern European context

Islands in the Baltic Sea and Eastern Europe, and especially in Croatia, Estonia, Finland and Sweden differ from most island nations as these countries have many small islands and archipelagos.

When compared with large island nations, such as Malta and Iceland, small island communities share several characteristics.

The most important is that small island societies are affected by institutional fragmentation and they are especially exposed to economic, social and cultural distance to the mainland (Cottrell, 2017; Räikkönen, et al., 2023; Rytkönen, et al., 2022; Starc & Stubbs, 2014).

Countries with many small islands require distinct island policies and face unique challenges, therefore there is a need to study small islands in their own right.

The purpose of the conference “Key challenges to sustainability on small islands in the Baltic and Eastern European context” is to promote island research within a Baltic Sea and Eastern Europe perspective. An additional purpose is to map scholars involved in island research and their topics of interest.

The conference will bring together scholars, specialists, and representatives for island communities in Baltic Sea countries former Soviet Union countries and includes state-of-the-art research and early-stage research and ideas.

The conference is organized by Södertörn University, Gothenburg University, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences and the Archipelago National Confederation It will be held at Holmön 12-14 Oct., 2023.