The STRING Organisation

Governance in STRING

STRING’s Organisational Structure

STRING brings together its member cities and regions through a structured collaboration of political and administrative bodies. These groups work together to define priorities, guide implementation, and foster cross-border cooperation.

  • The Political Forum is STRING’s highest decision-making body. Composed of politically elected or appointed officials from member region and cities, the Forum meets three times a year to set the political agenda and strategic priorities of STRING.

  • The Steering Group consists of civil servants at managerial level from each member region and city. The group meets three times a year to suggest politices and strategies toe adopted by the Political Forum.

  • The Contact Group consists of one contact person from each member reigon and city. The group collaborates closely with the STRING Secretariat, and serves as the daily administrative contact between the Secretariat and its members.

  • Working Groups are formed around specific themes such as sustainable infrastructure and green growth and projects including green public procurement and collaboration between investement promotion agencies. These groups bring together experts to develop new ideas, foster collaboration, and support the delivery of STRING’s strategic goals.

  • The Secretariat is the permanent administrative body responsible for implementing STRING’s priorities. Led by a Managing Director and staffed by a dedicated team, the Secretariat facilitates cooperation between public, private, and academic stakeholders and advocates for STRING’s work at regional, national, and European levels.

Members of STRING

The Political Forum

Eirik Lae Solberg (H)

Governing Mayor, City of Oslo

Anette Marie Solli (H)

Governing Mayor, Akershus County

Siv Henriette Jacobsen (AP)

Majority Leader and Member of the Regional Council, Østfold County

Per Tenggren (S)

Vice-President of the Infrastructure and Public Transport Committee, Västra Götalandsregionen

Karin Pleijel (MP)

Deputy Mayor and Member of the City Executive Council, City of Gothenburg

Helene Andersson (C)

1st Vice Chairman of the Regional Board and Chair of the Regional Board’s Growth Commitee, Region Halland

Carl Johan Sonesson (M)

First Governor of Region Skåne

Christian Orsing (M)

Mayor and Chair of the Executive Commitee, City of Helsinborg

Sofie Hedén (S)

Deputy Mayor, City of Malmö

Emil Moselund Østergaard (RV)

Member of Copenhagen City Council

Lars Gaardhøj (S)

President of the Regional Council, The Capital Region of Denmark

Lars Lindskov (K)

Member of the Regional Council, Region Zealand

Bo Libergren (V)

Chair of the Regional Council, The Region of Southern Denmark

Werner Schwarz (CDU)

Minister of Agriculture, Rural Areas, Europe and Consumer Protection, Schleswig Holstein 

Ulf Kämpfer (SPD)

Governing mayor, City of Kiel

– CHAIR OF STRING

Liv Assmann (SPD)

State Secretary and Plenipotentiary to the Federation, the European Union and for Foreign Affairs, The Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg

The Steering Group

Anita Lindahl Trosdahl

Chief Adviser, International Office, City of Oslo

Rune Bakkevoll

Cheif Advisor International Relations, Akershus County

Thomas André Hansen

Senior Advisor for International Affairs, Østfold County

Max Falk 

Infrastructure Strategist, Västra Götalandsregionen

Magnus Sigfússon

Director for special structural issues and operations, City of Gothenburg

Ulrika Bertilsson

Vice Deputy Director of regional development, Region Halland

Maria Korner-Westin

Head of Unit external Relations, Region Skåne

Mikael Kipowski

Development Director, City of Helsingborg

Angelica Nilsson

Head of Unit Society and Infrastructure, City of Helsingborg

Micael Nord

Director for Business and External Relations at the city of Malmö

Jeppe Grønholt-Pedersen

Head of Division in the Finance Department, City of Copenhagen

David Jens Meinke

Director of Regional Development, The Capital Region of Denmark

Peter Talarek-Andersen

Team Leader for Cross-Border Regional Cooperation and Attractiveness, Region Zealand

Jørgen Bjelskou

Director of Regional Development, The Region of Southern Denmark

Stefan Musiolik

Head of Unit for Baltic Sea Affairs, Land Schlewswig-Holstein

Thorsten Augustin

Head of Department for European Affairs, Land Schleswig-Holstein

Wolfgang Schmidt

Head of Foreign Affairs, City of Kiel

Corinna Nienstedt

Director General of the Office to the State, The Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg

Stefanie Wodrig

Head of Unit Northern and Eastern Europe and Deputy Director for International Affairs

The Contact Group

Anita Lindahl Trosdahl

Chief Adviser, International Office, City of Oslo

Martine Matre Bonarjee

International advisor, Akershus Fylkeskommune

Thomas André Hansen

Senior Advisor for International Affairs, Østfold County

Josef Gustafsson

Regional Developer, Västra Götalandsregionen

Cecilia Örtendahl

Head of Urban Development, City Hall, City of Gothenburg

Ulrika Bertilsson

Vice Deputy Director of Regional Development, Region Halland

Carin Peters

Business Development, Region Skåne

Sofie Qvarfordt

International Coordinator, City of Helsingborg

Jarl Zinn

Senior Advisor at the Finance Department, City of Copenhagen

Eva Christina Jacobsen

Special Consultant at Centre for Regional Development, Captial Region of Denmark

Hanne Edelweiss Beckert

Chief Consultant at Centre for Regional Development, Region Zealand

Olav Sønderskov

Development Consultant, The Region of Southern Denmark

Susanne Grahl

Advisor at Unit for Baltic Sea Affairs, Land Schleswig-Holstein

Cathrin Truckenbrodt

Project Manager, Dept. of Economic Development, City of Kiel

Stefanie Wodrig

Head of Baltic Affairs Desk, The Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg

Merle Andraschko

Desk Officer Northern and Eastern Europe, Baltic Sea Cooperation, The Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg

Our History

STRING (South Western Baltic Sea Transregional Area – Implementing New Geography) was formed in 1999 as an EU Interreg A project to stimulate the construction of the Fehmarn Belt Fixed Link.

In 2008, Germany and Denmark signed a State Treaty on the construction and operation of the Fehmarn Belt Fixed Link.

In light of this, the cooperation between the STRING members changed towards promoting regional development, along with further infrastructure projects and the stimulation of green growth in the region between Western Scandinavia and Northern Germany.

In the last years, we have seen five new members joining our organisation.

Today, we stretch from Hamburg to Oslo, consisting of 16 members across nine regions and seven major cities in Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Norway.