THE INITIATIVE
About the partners
CPMR
The Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions brings together more than 150 Regions from 24 States from the European Union and beyond, it is representing about 200 million people. The CPMR campaigns in favour of a more balanced development of the European territory.
It operates both as a think tank and as a lobby for Regions.
Through its extensive network of contacts within the EU institutions and national governments, the CPMR has, since its creation in 1973, been targeting its action towards ensuring that the needs and interests of its Member Regions are taken into account in policies with a high territorial impact.
It focuses mainly on social, economic and territorial cohesion, maritime policies, blue growth, and accessibility. European governance, energy and climate change, neighbourhood and development also represent important areas of activity for the association.
The CPMR has six Geographical Commissions. One of those, the Balkan and Black Sea Commission (BBSC) has been strongly involved in the implementation of the AI-NURECC project activities. CPMR led both projects, in line with its Balkan and Black Sea Agenda policy activities.
The two AI-NURECC projects were in line with BBSC priorities to have an involvement in the implementation of the Macro-regional Strategies around the Balkan Peninsula, both on the EU Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR) and EU Strategy for the Adriatic and Ionian Region (EUSAIR). In the later through the CPMR Adriatic-Ionian Task Force.
The CPMR BBSC contributed via the AI-NURECC projects’ events, to create occasions to exchange among the stakeholders of two strategies.
The CPMR BBSC is also focusing on shaping of new macro-regional and maritime strategies: in networking, new projects and contributing to capacity building).
Adriatic Ionian Euroregion
The Adriatic Ionian Euroregion (AIE) is an international association legally established as an NGO on June 30th 2006, in Pula (Croatia).
The association works for the promotion of trans-national and inter-regional cooperation between regions and authorities of the Adriatic and Ionian basin.
It counts 33 members (Regional and Local authorities from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Greece Italy and Montenegro). All members are units of territorial self-governments. The total extension of the involved territories is about 200.000 square kilometers with an estimated population of around 20 Million of inhabitants.
The AIE represents a model for cross-border and interregional co-operation aimed to promote the coordinated and integrated development between regions of the area. Since 2006, AIE has been focusing its efforts towards ensuring the interests of its members and towards the common development of the whole area. Furthermore the Association supports the members, especially those in the European pre-accession process, in participating to EU regional policies and programmes and in qualifying for administering and absorbing related financial instruments.
The AIE invested a lot of efforts in youth engagement activities.
Forum of Adriatic and Ionian Cities (FAIC)
The Forum of Adriatic and Ionian Cities (FAIC) is a non-profit international association open to municipalities of the Adriatic-Ionian basin.
It was founded in Ancona in 1999, upon the initiative of the Municipality of Ancona and of the National Association of Italian Municipalities (ANCI), with the approval of the “Charter of Ancona”, establishing a set of principles aimed at creating a place for intercultural dialogue and political mediation and fostering a peaceful Adriatic and Ionian community, open to Europe.
It represents a tool for economic, political, cultural and human cooperation, in line with the European Union Strategy for the Adriatic and Ionian Region (EUSAIR). The FAIC has been officially recognised as key actor of the implementation of the EUSAIR macro-regional strategy, supporting it through all its activities and collaborating with the European Commission and other relevant European and international institutions. The FAIC is also formally involved in the Adriatic Ionian Initiative (AII) Round Tables works, fostering the EUSAIR Thematic Steering Groups.
It brings together local authorities of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Greece, Italy, Montenegro, Slovenia, and it is open to those from San Marino, Serbia and North Macedonia.
UniAdrion
The association of Universities of the Adriatic-Ionian area (UniAdrion) is a non-profit international association open to Universities and Research centers from the Adriatic-Ionian basin: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Greece, Italy, Montenegro, North Macedonia, San Marino, Serbia, and Slovenia.
The main purpose of UniAdrion is the collaboration between universities and research centres with the aim of strengthening international cooperation and of favouring the progress of culture, science, training and research in the countries of the Adriatic-Ionian basin.
UniAdrion promotes scientific-academic cooperation mainly through the implementation of teaching and research initiatives, such as training courses, post-graduate diplomas, summer schools, joint research projects. The cooperation is focused on different topics, coherent with the pillars of the EU Strategy for the Adriatic-Ionian Region (EUSAIR).
In order to contribute to the development of the association and to collaborate more closely with the UniAdrion Secretariat, UniAdrion has set up six working tables:
1. Communication and Dissemination
2. Quality Management
3. Brussels week
4. EUSAIR Students Think Tank
5. Calls and Research
6. Education
Many tools have been developed during the last years, such as Didactic database , Business database , INTERREG projects Database matched with EUSAIR Pillars , survey on the level of use of distance learning tools within the Adriatic Ionian region, on the level of knowledge about EUSAIR and on the consultation of the new European Territorial Cooperation Programmes 2021 2027.
Forum AIC
The Forum of the Adriatic and Ionian Chambers of Commerce (Forum AIC) is a transnational, non-profit association linking the Chambers of Commerce of countries residing on Adriatic and Ionian Region: Italy, Croatia, Bosnia, and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia, Greece, and Albania.
The aim of the association, established in 2001, owing to the will and vision of the founding two founding members, the Chambers of Ancona and Split, is to strengthen the synergies and opportunities for socio-economic development of the Adriatic and Ionian area. Forum AIC has been recognized as one of the main stakeholders of the EU Strategy for the Adriatic and Ionian Region (EUSAIR).
The Adriatic-Ionian area was recognized as European Macro-Region in 2014 when its strategy was endorsed by the European Council (EUSAIR), after the Baltic and Danube Regions and before Alpine Macro-Region.
In order to reach its mission Forum AIC works actively and closely with the Fora of Universities (UniAdrion) and Cities (FAIC), representing together more than 130 institutions of the Adriatic Ionian Area. The three Fora appear in the official documents of the European Commission as the main representatives of EUSAIR civil society.
As years go by, their strategic work is confirmed and further reiterated in the Declarations of the Adriatic and Ionian Council/EUSAIR Ministerial Meeting Declarations, adopted at the end of each rotating Presidency at the occasion of the EUSAIR Annual Forum.