The Future

There are several trends showing that UBC will have an important role in the future.

• Local and regional authorities are gaining in importance in the democratic world. The decisions are taken nearer to the citizens. In Europe, this is a consequence of the subsidiarity but it is also an inevitable consequence of democracy.
• The processes and structures in the societies are becoming more network-based instead of the traditional hierarchical. Information spreads with the modern information technology in new directions, and it is very important to have access to information.
• The Baltic Sea Region is a new region, among the fastest growing in the world and with very bright perspectives in the long run: stable and sustainable economic, political and social development secure a peaceful region with high potentials.

These factors will strengthen the need of UBC even more as a platform for political and practical co-operation between cities in the Baltic Sea Region.

UBC is a valuable complement to the national local authority associations in the countries around the Baltic Sea. But UBC is also needed for expressing views from the Baltic Sea Region perspective in European forums, and to connect to other regional and European networks.

The main aim for the UBC is, however, to meet the needs and expectations of the UBC member cities. The changing situation in cities must be reflected in UBC, and thus UBC must be constantly on the move in order to be even better adopted to be a spokesman and at the service of its member cities.

The decentralised structure of UBC is also one of its main organisational strengths. It is easy to take an initiative in the UBC network. But it is also important to conclude that the key to success for UBC goes through its members. Only if UBC is able to identify the demands from the cities and to take measures to meet them, it is possible to survive and develop.