The partners behind INCLUDE: Härnösand Municipality

To help get to know the partners behind INCLUDE, we asked each organisation to reflect on its main role and contribution within the project, what excites them about the collaboration, the key challenges and opportunities in their region, and what they hope to achieve by the end of INCLUDE. These questions help highlight the expertise each partner brings, the regional context they work in, and the shared ambitions that connect the partnership.

This time it is the turn of Härnösand Municipality as they contribute to INCLUDE by testing and demonstrating innovative approaches to inclusive and digital urban planning in a small and medium-sized municipality context.

What is your organisation’s main role or contribution within INCLUDE?

Its main role is to pilot digital tools, such as digital twins, participation platforms and visualisation tools, in real planning processes. The municipality also works to strengthen citizen engagement, particularly among groups that are traditionally underrepresented in planning. By sharing insights from a northern Swedish context, Härnösand contributes valuable experience on how smaller urban areas can use digital innovation to support more inclusive decision-making.

What excites you about the INCLUDE project?

For Härnösand Municipality, INCLUDE offers an important opportunity to combine digitalisation and inclusion in a practical way within urban planning.

The project enables the municipality to test new technologies in live planning cases, reach new groups of citizens and improve democratic participation. It also provides a platform for cross-border learning with other regions facing similar challenges, helping partners move from theory to practice by applying innovative tools in everyday municipal work.

What are the key challenges or opportunities facing your region/community that relate to INCLUDE themes?

Härnösand faces several challenges that make INCLUDE highly relevant. These include population development and demographic change, difficulties in engaging a broad and diverse range of residents, limited resources for testing new digital methods and the need to modernise planning tools and processes.

At the same time, the region has strong opportunities. Digital tools can help overcome geographical distances, while growing interest in participatory planning and co-creation provides a strong basis for more inclusive approaches. Through INCLUDE, Härnösand also has the opportunity to position itself as a frontrunner in innovative planning for smaller cities, while benefiting from cross-border collaboration and knowledge exchange.

What would you like to achieve through INCLUDE by the end of the project?

By the end of INCLUDE, Härnösand Municipality aims to have tested and implemented one or more digital tools that improve inclusive urban planning.

The municipality also seeks to establish more effective participation methods that reach broader groups of citizens, integrate new working methods into everyday planning processes and build internal competence and capacity. Through its work, Härnösand will also contribute to a shared transnational framework or toolbox for inclusive and digital planning.

Ultimately, the ambition is for INCLUDE to create lasting change in how the municipality plans and engages with citizens, making urban planning more transparent, inclusive and innovative.Its role is to pilot digital tools, such as digital twins, participation platforms and visualisation tools, in real planning processes. The municipality also works to strengthen citizen engagement, particularly among groups that are traditionally underrepresented in planning. By sharing insights from a northern Swedish context, Härnösand contributes valuable experience on how smaller urban areas can use digital innovation to support more inclusive decision-making.