Interreg NPA Awards - A celebration of shared success

The Interreg NPA Awards are designed to recognise and celebrate the achievements of projects that exemplify the values and impact of transnational cooperation in the Northern Periphery and Arctic.

The Interreg NPA Awards honoured the outstanding creativity, resilience, and collaboration that have defined 25 years of shared innovation across the NPA regions. While the awards were formally presented to specific projects or organisations, they recognised the collective effort of all Interreg NPA partners — each contributing to sustainable development, solidarity, and innovation across Europe’s northernmost regions.

The Interreg NPA Programme Director, Annika Blomster, and Head of Secretariat, Kirsti MIjnhijmer, presented 10 NPA Awards across 10 different categories. These categories represent the areas of cooperation and legacy that all NPA projects have built over the past 25 years.

A Continuity of Commitment recognition highlighted the lasting dedication of those who have supported the Programme’s implementation and administration since its early days.

1. Building Solidarity

Awarded to: W-Power, Arctisen, and Etrac
Accepted by: Timo Rui, Karelia UNiveristy of Applied Sciences and Heli Hirvonen, Business Joensuu (Finland)

This category celebrates transnational projects that increase trust beyond borders for a stronger Northern Periphery and Arctic. These initiatives build lasting connections between communities, ensuring that no one is left behind. W-Power, Arctisen, and Etrac were recognised for empowering women entrepreneurs and Indigenous peoples, fostering inclusive networks, and strengthening cooperation, especially during the pandemic.

2. Achieving Synergies

Awarded to: CIRCNETS, BCE, CIRCULAR OCEAN, SYMBIOMA, THREADS
Accepted by: Niko Hänninen, Oulu University (Finland)

One of the priorities of this programme is making a more efficient use of our resources. One of the best ways to do this is by finding synergies—connections between what is discarded and what still has value. These Interreg NPA projects do exactly that: they turn environmental challenges into opportunities.

Each project works in different areas, but together they connect disconnected systems and create circular solutions. This award recognises their success in turning waste into opportunity.

3. Delivering Change

Awarded to: ERNACT for projects including INNOCAP, MINDSET, IMPROVE, EMERGREEN, SMARCTIC, and DISTINCT
Accepted by: Leona McGee and Jose Manuel San Emeterio, ERNACT (Ireland)

Honouring projects that incubate the transition to a green and digital Northern Periphery and Arctic, this category celebrates how innovation and participation transform ideas into action. Through digitalisation and collaboration, ERNACT and its partners have enhanced public services and made research more accessible, driving positive change for communities across the region.

4. Emerging Trends

Awarded to: CAP-SHARE
Accepted by: Jessica Aquino, Hólar University (Iceland) 

Acknowledging projects that spot new patterns, ideas, or practices shaping the future. These are the pioneers, showing us that the future is already here—in the present.

CAP-SHARE was created to bridge the growing gap between communities, scientists, and policymakers. This gap is often widest in rural areas, where the effects of climate change, fewer opportunities, and feeling under-represented can lead to a sense of being left out.

To change this, CAP-SHARE creates spaces for open dialogue, making sure that young people and indigenous communities have a real voice in shaping solutions.

5. Sustainable and Inclusive Use of Resources

Awarded to: HYBES, EMERGREEN, SECURE, COPOWER, and Smartrenew, ENFORCE...
Accepted by: Bjarti Thomsen, Faroese Environment Agency (Faroe Islands)

Celebrating initiatives that turn ecological challenges into opportunities for all, this award honours projects that demonstrate how sustainable, community-focused resource management can create shared value. These projects show that even in sectors with high emissions and complex challenges, such as energy, cooperation and innovation can turn necessity into opportunity, delivering more sustainable solutions today while safeguarding resources for the future.

6. Shaping Sustainable Tourism

Awarded to: SAINT, SCITOUR, SHAPE, SUB, Glow 2.0...
Accepted by: Steve Taylor, University of the Highland and Islands (Scotland)

Celebrating projects that harness tourism’s potential to support vibrant communities, this category highlights how heritage, storytelling, and technology can promote authentic, responsible travel experiences. These initiatives connect visitors with the rich culture and natural beauty of the North, fostering sustainable growth and local identity.

7. Attracting People and Skills

Awarded to: Making It Work, Recruit & Retain, Sendoc, Tech2Heal, Remoted, Selfcare, and ASTRIC
Accepted by: Niclas Forsling, Centre for Rural Medicine, region Västerbotten (Sweden)

Recognising efforts to make NPA regions attractive places to live and work, this category honours projects addressing demographic challenges with creativity. Through innovations in healthcare, digitalisation, and professional retention, these initiatives strengthen remote communities and improve quality of life across the region. They highlight how cooperation can turn remoteness into a magnet for talent and opportunity.

8. Reaching a Critical Mass

Awarded to: MyCreativeEdge and Creative Momentum, Spot-Lit, N-LITE...
Accepted by: Ian Brannigan, Western Development Commission (Ireland)

This award celebrates projects that bring together creative talent to amplify economic and cultural impact. The Western Development Commission has championed initiatives that empower creative entrepreneurs, connecting them across borders and helping them access new markets, while raising the international profile of NPA’s cultural industries.

9. Reimagining Cultural Heritage

Awarded to: CINE, PHIVE, STRATUS, DACCHE...
Accepted by: Geir Are Johansen, Museum Nord (Norway)

Honouring leadership in digital innovation, these projects showcase how immersive storytelling and technology can bring heritage to life while raising awareness about climate change. The initiative has inspired the museum sector and set a benchmark for reimagining cultural heritage in the digital age.

10. Peripheral Opportunities

Awarded to: Gorm Vold, Nalik Ventures (Greenland)

Recognising individuals and organisations that demonstrate how even the most remote regions can turn their unique position into strength, this award celebrates Interreg NPA Regional Contact Point for Greenland, Gorm Vold’s tireless efforts to build bridges between Greenland and the wider NPA community. His work ensures that even the most distant regions have a strong voice in transnational cooperation.

Continuity of Commitment

This special recognition celebrates the people and organisation whose long-term dedication has shaped the Interreg Northern Periphery and Arctic Programme from the very beginning.

Awarded to Irene McMaster, European Policy Research Centre (Scotland)

For studying and documenting the Interreg NPA Programme’s implementation and project impacts over many years. Through her dedicated research, Irene McMaster has helped the Programme understand its true potential and effects. Her work has highlighted both the areas for improvement and the points of excellence, and with remarkable clarity, she has described the territorial features that connect the NPA regions. By doing so, she has not only analysed the Programme but also helped to shape it — giving it a clear vision, a stronger identity, and a community united by shared goals.

Awarded to Christopher Parker, Programme Manager for Project Development, Interreg NPA Secretariat

For guiding and supporting project development across successive programming periods.
With his deep knowledge and passion for nurturing project ideas and partnerships, Christopher has played a key role in helping generations of NPA projects learn from experience, grow stronger, and stay relevant in a changing context. His encouragement and expertise have inspired partners to turn good ideas into successful cooperation — keeping the spirit of the NPA alive and forward-looking.

Awarded to Kajsa Berggren, in representation of the County Administrative Board of Västerbotten (Sweden).

This recognition went to the organisation that has hosted the Programme’s Managing Authority for all 25 years. Its steady leadership and professional administration have ensured that the NPA has always run smoothly, allowing projects and partners to focus on cooperation and results.

Together with all project partners, these people and the organisation have helped make the NPA what it is today — a trusted community built on collaboration, continuity, and shared belief in the power of working transnationally.

A Celebration of Shared Success

The 25th Anniversary Conference “Connecting the Dots” brought together more than 200 participants from across the NPA cooperation area. Over two days, the event celebrated 25 years of transnational collaboration with project showcases, site visits, and discussions on the future of regional and Arctic cooperation.

As Kirsti Mijnhijmer and Annika Blomster presented the awards on an unforgettable evening glowing with northern lights, they highlighted that the heart of the NPA is its people and their cooperation.

These awards are not only for individual projects, but for every person and partnership that makes the Northern Periphery and Arctic stronger together.

 

Our thanks go to each person involved in this meaningful cooperation.

View the Interreg NPA Awards photo gallery

Photo credits: InterregNPA/Mariia Filiushina