Project communication

Project applicants will be asked to describe the general approach to communicate the project in the part of the application called “project management”. Detailed information on communication activities should be specified in each work package.

The European Commission is drawing attention to the importance of communicating results of cohesion policy. The Commission hopes to achieve a greater awareness among citizens about the results achieved with Interreg funding, attract more potential project partners and increase transparency. In line with this strategy, the Interreg Aurora programme, together with its beneficiaries and stakeholders should raise awareness of the benefits of cross-border cooperation and of the results achieved with funding received from the European Union.

Projects have an important role to play in communication strategy:

• Projects form the link between the programme and the citizens in the programme area

Project partners are normally located in the communities that the programme wishes to reach. This means that project partners are best able to communicate with the citizens, target groups and policy makers in their native language.

• Projects produce concrete outputs that impact citizens

It is easier to communicate the results and benefits of cross-border cooperation to the general public and stakeholders when projects show concrete outputs and improvements in the daily lives of end users.

Interactive exchange
The Interreg Aurora programme aims to create an interactive exchange regarding communication with the funded projects. The Managing Authority and the Joint Secretariat supports projects in fulfilling visibility requirements by providing guidance and feedback. Activities are coordinated by the programme Communication Officer. In addition to this Programme Manual, a communication toolkit for projects, including templates and guidelines, is available on the programme website. The programme promotes sustainable communication, accessibility and encourages projects to take part in European campaigns, events and competitions.

Interreg Aurora also contributes to raising awareness about the role of the programme in EU Arctic Policy by facilitating synergies and clustering among Arctic and near-Arctic stakeholders in the Arctic Cooperation framework.

Communication is an important part of the application
Communication is an important strategic tool at all stages of a project. A communication strategy is an important part of the application process and it contributes to achieving project objectives.

The application must contain a description of how the project plan to work with communication and dissemination of results. This description must give an overview of both planned internal and external communication, as well as communication channels and the chosen languages in communication with target groups. It should also include planned communication activities such as events, publications, newsletters, films, etc. Applicants are also asked to give a more detailed description about communication in all work packages and to identify which project partner is responsible for communication in each work package.

All communication and visibility material produced in a project financed by the Interreg Aurora Programme shall be made available for use by the Managing Authority and the Union institutions, bodies, offices or agencies upon their request.