UNION OF THE BALTIC CITIES (UBC)

6) Panevezys (Lithuania), 29th of April 2000 - representatives of 8 cities from Lithuania, Latvia, Denmark and Poland participated in the meeting. The participants discussed the budget for the current year and decided to co-finance 6 sporting events organized in the member cities.

7) Sopot (Poland), 7th of April 2001 - in the meeting participated the representatives of 13 cities from Lithuania, Latvia, Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Germany and Poland. In the course of the meeting there were presented among others: (1) an initiative of organizing sporting activities for elderly people (Aalborg, Denmark), (2) rules of promotion of sports through the Network for the European Youth Work in Sports (Frankfurt am Main) and (3) a still not well-known in Poland discipline of unihockey ( Gdynia, Poland). As each year, the Commission on Sport allocated means to 7 international sporting events.

8) Karlskrona (Sweden), 16th of March 2002, Integration of the disabled through sport. Representatives from 13 cities from Denmark, Estonia, Lithuania, Poland and Sweden participated in the meeting. The representative of Gdynia introduced the Polish system of municipal social services and Gdynia's work within the activities of the disabled. The representatives of Karlskrona and Stockholm (Sweden) presented the participants with the Swedish model of activation of the disabled. A delegate from Aalborg acquainted the gathered with the activities of the Sporting Union for the Disabled in Aalborg. During the meeting the budget of the Commission on Sport for the year 2002 was discussed. It was also Mr. Magnus Johnsson, a politician from the Commission on Sport in Karlskrona who was elected the new vice-chairman of the Commission on Sport. The new host of the annual meeting of the Commission on Sport in 2003 was as well chosen - the city of Aalborg in Denmark. As each year, the Commission on Sport decided that the events organized in the member cities would come under its auspices and gave small grants to them. Giving grants in the year 2002, the Commission put emphasis on the participation of the disabled sportsmen in the events. From the sporting events applying for the auspices of the Commission on Sport (financial and honourable) in the year 2002 eight were chosen.
9) Aalborg (Denmark) 11-13th of April 2003, Sport as an rehabilitation tool in the process of integration. The 2003
Annual Meeting in Denmark gathered representatives from 6 cities of 4 countries: Denmark, Estonia, Lithuania and Poland. In addition to discussing organizational matters, UBC Social Campaign "Without Limits" and Agenda 22 were introduced together with other presentations, namely: (1)"Broadness for the most important life spheres among disabled people"; (2) "Youth Games in Aalborg with special focus on the sport for disabled persons"; (3) "Sport as a rehabilitation tool for integration - A life after the working life"; (4) "Senior Sport project" - the project offering sports activities to elderly people (5) "Sport as an integration tool for refugees/fugitives". Additionally, during a study tour in "The Association for Disabled in Aalborg" the participants of the meeting had the opportunity to experience what it is like to be disabled. Moreover, the Commission on Sport decided to organise Equal Opportunity Prize instead of allocating grants. This competition was organised in response to the decision of the Council of European Union to announce 2003 the European Year of People with Disabilities. The Prize was to be awarded to a UBC member city for the best organised sporting event addressed to people with disabilities or sporting event with participation of both the disabled and able-bodied. Four cities participated in the competition: Aalborg (Denmark), Rostock (Germany), Siauliai (Lithuania) and Tallinn (Estonia). It was the city of Tallinn that was presented with 3000 EUR during the VII UBC conference General in Klaipeda (Lithuania) on 18th October 2003. Tallinn was awarded the Prize for the organization of the 6th European Athletics Championship of the Deaf. 240 sportsmen participated in the championship of which 169 were disabled. Sportsmen represented 19 countries. The Championship was accompanied by a rich cultural programme organised by the city which offered performances, folk dances, pantomime, games and integrating events. A performance of deaf people was organised for both the participants and the audiance. The jury took the decision to present Tallinn with "Equal Opportunities Prize" because the event organized by this city really proved that sport is the universal language of communication for disabled people of Europe. The sporting event that took place in Tallinn was the fullest realization of integration idea. It put the emphasis not only on the integration of disabled sportsmen with other participants but also with the general public.

10)  Narva (Estonia) 02-03.04.2004, Education through Sport - the Annual Meeting of the UBC Commission on Sport was attended by representatives of 12 cities from 7 countries: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Lithuania, Poland and Sweden. In response to the announcement of European Year of Education through Sport by the Council of European Union, the Commission on Sport devoted its meeting to this particular subject. Among the presentations, there were examples of projects on education through sport carried out in the fields of sailing, rugby and kick-boxing. The main objective of the a/m sporting activities was to encourage young people to develop themselves both physically as well as socially. This aim was obtained through teaching such abilities as team work, solidarity, tolerance and fair play rules. As a part of the celebrations of the European Year of Education through Sport, the Commission also decided to award grants for the organisation of sporting events with special emphasis laid on counteracting social exclusion of disadvantaged groups. It is the aim of the a/m grants to raise awareness among educational and sporting organisations in order to stimulate their cooperation in the field of education through sport. Awarding grants also aims at promoting values of sport and increasing the number of school and sports exchanges among young people. Besides, the Commission on Sport decided to host the 2005 annual meeting in Klaipeda, whereas in 2006 the meeting would be held in Gdynia.

11)  Klaipeda (Lithuania) 14-16.04.2005, Healthy Lifestyle Through Sport. One of the questions posed during the Annual Meeting of UBC Commission on Sport in Klaipeda was how to motivate people to be more active. Participants from 13 UBC member cities from 6 countries discussed the issue of physical activity and health promotion presented by professor H. Löllgen (Germany) and Mr. D. Kepenis from Palanga School of Health (Lithuania). Moreover, two practical examples were shown by Ms H. Parkkunen (Finland) - Healthy City Programme carried out in collaboration with WHO and by Ms B. Grüner (Germany) - Interreg III C SportUrban Project. During the meeting of the Commission on Sport Ms Beata Łęgowska (Gdynia) was re-elected Chairperson for the next term of office and Ms Lena Ryge (Karlskrona) was elected the Vice-chairperson.

12)  Gdynia (Poland) 4-6.05.2006, Active Living. The UBC Commission on Sport Annual Meeting entitled "Active Living" gathered representatives of 17 cities from 11 countries. The meeting consisted of two thematic blocks: the first one was devoted to multifunctional sports arenas. There were presentations of sports arenas in the cities of Gdynia (Poland), Rostock (Germany), Karlskrona (Sweden), Gladsaxe near Copenhagen (Denmark). The presentations consisted in demonstrating a management system of sports facilities as well as ways of promoting sport among inhabitants of all age groups from the a/m cities. The second block dealt with best practices connected with active living programmes - "Cities on the Move". This part of the Annual Meeting was prepared in cooperation with the Baltic Region Healthy Cities Association. The first presentation entitled "One step - better than nothing" showed how Turku (Finland) promotes healthy lifestyle as well as encourages its inhabitants to be active. Moreover, the representatives of Baltic Region Healthy Cities Association presented the programme "Schools on the move" whose objective is to make schooldays (especially school breaks) more physically active. Next, a representative of Polva (Estonia) presented the town's experiences in developing healthy and active strategies. The following presentation was focused on "Exercise and Diet on Prescription" - the initiative implemented in Copenhagen.

13)  Karlskrona (Sweden), 19-21.04.2007, Sport - a Healthy Alternative. Delegates from 7 UBC member countries participated in the Annual Meeting of the UBC Commission on Sport (that is from Estonia, Finland, Lithuania, Latvia, Germany, Poland and Sweden). The meeting was devoted to the promotion of active recreation as a way of counteracting different addictions. The representatives of Karlskrona (including Government Drug Coordinator) presented methods for prevention of unhealthy lifestyle and addition for example to drugs or doping. In the second part of the meeting speakers from Turku (Finland) as well as Karlskrona presented effective methods for healthy lifestyle promotion. Apart from that, the participants in the meeting had an opportunity to experience healthy lifestyle promotion in practice by visiting two sports arenas: Karlskrona Indoor Athletic Arena and Telenor Arena Karlskrona. In addition, during the meeting Ms Beata Łęgowska, Gdynia City Councillor, was reelected as Chairperson of the UBC Commission on Sport. The representative of Karlskrona, Ms Camilla Brunsberg, was elected Vice-Chairperson. In the course of the meeting the procedure of “Always Active” grant allocation was also presented. It was the aim of the 2007 grant session to support projects encouraging elderly people to maintain good physical condition and promote sport as a means of illness prevention. Grants awarded by the UBC Commission on Sport are addressed exclusively to UBC member cities.

15)  Tallinn (Estonia) 22-24.04.2010, Sport is cool!. The main subjects of the meeting were devoted to the promotion of sport among the youth as an interesting alternative to regular pastime. The presentations during the meeting served as a source of inspiration for participants to introduce activities that encourage young people to pass actively their free time.

Commission on Sport issued four English editions of a leaflet (in 1999, 2002, 2004 and 2005) informing about its activities, initiatives and projects. Furthermore, the Commission on Sport created on its website a database containing sports clubs in the member cities. It makes it possible for the clubs involved to come into a direct contact with one another.
Within the celebration of the 10 anniversary of UBC, the Commission on Sport created in 2001 an occasional exhibition showing the output of the Commission. The exhibition was presented during the Sixth General Conference of UBC in Rostock.

• Within the cooperation with UBC Commission on Environment, Gdynia participated in the Best Environmental Practice in the Baltic Cities Award, a competition announced by this Commission in May 2003. Applications from 9 cities of 5 countries were sent to the competition organisers. The following cities participated in the contest: Aalborg (Denmark), Cesis (Latvia), Gdynia (Poland), Jurmala (Latvia), Kaliningrad (Russia), Panevezys (Lithuania), Kaunas (Lithuania), Sopot (Poland) and Vilnius (Lithuania). The main objective of the competition was to encourage UBC member cities to develop administration and services in an innovative way for the good of the municipality and its citizens. When evaluating particular applications, the organisers took into account the innovative quality of the project, its relevancy and influence on environmental problems as well as its quality and the effectiveness of implemented solutions. It was the city of Cesis in Latvia that was awarded the first prize for its project entitled "Environmental Development Board". The award was presented to the winner during UBC General Conference in Klaipeda. Gdynia was distinguished for its project - "Gdynia - an environmentally friendly city". The project of Gdynia presented a series of different undertakings aiming at raising awareness of the inhabitants in respect of natural environment and sustainable development. These undertakings encompassed among others thematic competitions for example for the most interesting ecological website, informational actions promoting more environmentally friendly lifestyle as well as open-air educational projects. The decision to distinguish Gdynia was justified by the fact that in its undertakings the city used the latest technologies and innovational methods, the aim of which was to activate social groups not dealing with environmental issues on everyday basis. The cities of Sopot and Kaliningrad were also distinguished.
• Gdynia participates in the works of the UBC Urban Planning Commission. The city was one of the partners in an international project entitled "ABC - Alliance of Baltic Cities". The project began in March 2003 and lasted three years. The project objective was to use of as well as develop local experiences and "know-how" in respect of planning, shaping and modifying of urban structures to make a better use of cities' development capabilities. Additionally, the project assumed the organisation of seminars (twice a year). Gdynia played host to such a seminar in 2005.
• In June 2004 representatives of Gdynia participated in the Commission on Transportation seminar entitled "European Transport Projects", which was held in Kaunas (Lithuania). During the meeting a Gdynia delegate delivered a speech on Gdynia experiences regarding the CIVITAS initiative. Moreover, Gdynia delegates attended UBC Commission on Transportation Annual Meeting. Gdynia representatives also participated in a seminar on bicycle communication organised by the UBC Commission on Transportation in September 2004 in Örebro.
• Between 19th and 20th October 2006 the Executive Board of the Union of the Baltic Cities (UBC) had its session in Gdynia. The Executive Board is the body holding supreme power in the time between the sessions of the General Conference. The Board consists of one member city representing each country, the President and three Vice-Presidents. 52 representatives of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland and Sweden came to Gdynia for the 47th Executive Board Meeting. The meeting consisted of two sessions. On Thursday, 19th October 2006 the closed session was organised which was attended only by the Executive Board members, whereas on Friday, 20th October the open session was held. The leaders and representatives of UBC Commissions as well as the delegates of UBC member cities took part in it. During the closed session, the UBC Executive Board admitted two new cities as members of the organisation, that is Robertsfors from Sweden and Jyväskylä from Finland. In the course of the meeting the proposal to establish a new Commission, this time on Energy, was accepted. This Commission will deal with promoting energy best practices, renewable energy issue, the possibilities of reducing carbon dioxide emissions in the transport sector, energy efficiency and safety as well as information and education. Among the subjects discussed there were such issues as the next year's General Conference in the Estonian city of Pärnu, future development of the Union of the Baltic Cities as well as opening of the UBC office in Brussels, the task of which is to lobby for the benefit of the organisation and member cities among European institutions. During the open session there were presented among others the reports of UBC Commissions concerning their activities between October 2005 and September 2006.