Page 25 - BEST PRACTICES_SOCIAL

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Description

The Halland Model, with its initial focus on conservation of cultural heritage in Sweden, was an
innovative and successful strategy in times of recession and all-time high unemployment. The focus
was on regional sustainable development and employment. The actors and stakeholders in the Halland
Model represented different sectors from national, regional, and local authorities, the construction
industry, as well as the cultural heritage sector all of them with different objectives and viewpoints,
values, policies, resources as well as legal frameworks. To make it possible to cooperate it was
important to develop common objectives built on trust and an intermediate language which allowed
them to communicate and create new cooperation. The negotiations between the actors and
stakeholders were based on the concept of trading zone, which could be understood as a useful
instrument for understanding innovation processes in various fields of e.g. planning and research. The
Halland Model could be described as an innovation and paradigm change through interaction between
the groups belonging to different disciplinary fields. Such collaboration does not require all the
participants to share all the objectives of the action, but joint action may occur in a trading zone, even if
objectives are conflicting. Full agreement is therefore not necessary.

Major achievements

The cross- sectorial project created more than 1,400 jobs in the construction industry and
approximately 350 new jobs on the improved premises in cultural and creative industries, tourism
industries, and digital and clean technologies. More than 130 historic buildings were conserved within
a cross-sectorial and multi problem-oriented regional cooperation between regional authorities, the
construction industry and the cultural heritage sector. The project was nominated by the United
Nations to the World’s best project during the World Summit in Johannesburg 2002.
Outcome
1,100 = One third of all construction workers trained in traditional techniques
235 new jobs
100 historic buildings conserved 500 MSEK (55 M€) (Halland 300,000 Inhabitants)
Impacts:
Economic
• obvious return on the investments moreover contributed
• regional sustainable growth
• created jobs
Social
• regional territorial and social cohesion
• developed cross-sectoral networks and a multi-problem-oriented approach
• strengthened the local identity
Environmental
• take hand on existing resources
• environmental friendly materials were used
• energy efficiency