European policy with the Lisbon Treaty includes the aim of territorial cohesion. There is a need to develop monitoring systems for territorial development that can support policy makers at different levels in order to contribute to European competitiveness and cohesion. The stronger political focus and improved understanding of structures, trends and scenarios influencing territorial development highlights the need to improve the monitoring also at macro regional level. This ESPON project shall support evidence informed territorial development and cohesion in the Baltic Sea Region (BSR). This will contribute to increased knowledge and understanding of territorial cohesion processes in the BSR and at the same time allow for a comparison and benchmarking with other European regions and macro-regions. It will also support the contribution of the BSR to smart, sustainable and inclusive growth in Europe as mentioned in the EU2020 Strategy. Achievements: Reports:Interim Report PDF Inception Report DOC Project Specifications PDF http://www.espon.eu/main/Menu_Projects/Menu_ScientificPlatform/bsr-temo.html