The Baltic Sea Region was the first multi-country region in the world to adopt common goals and actions for sustainable development. The instrument for that cooperation is Baltic 21 (formally "An Agenda 21 for the Baltic Sea Region"). There are two de"nitions of sustainable development (SD): technical and nontechnical. Technical definition: "a sound balance among the interactions of the impacts (positive and/or negative), or stresses, on the four major quality systems: People, Economic

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... nt, Environment and Availability of Resources". The non-technical definition was given as being: "a sound balance among the interactions designed to create a healthy economic growth, preserve environmental quality, make wise use of our resources, and enhance social benefits" [Global Community Assessment Centre].