RUS in Luleå: "City with a thousand opportunities"

Luleå – the industrial city that has become a city of knowledge. One of Sweden's best cities to live in, according to the newspaper Fokus. But even here there are major challenges on the road to 2040. At the dialogue meeting on the county's new regional development strategy, goals, pitfalls and solutions were discussed. – The young are such an important target group – build on them, said Jenny Lindberg, community planner at Luleå Municipality.

When the summer ended in the fall, the long RUS tour reached the county's largest city. Several people from different parts of society participated in the dialogue meeting. They came from LTU Business, Luleå Science Park, Luleå Municipality, municipal companies, Danscentrum Norr, RF-Sisu, Rädda barnen, politics, authorities and a number of companies.

Carina Sammeli, chairwoman of the municipal board, gave a current picture of the municipality, with strengths and concerns.

 – We have a fairly equal society where many people have access to what society builds. We have logistical opportunities, you can take the train - not good enough, I want to emphasize that - we have a port, we have flights. We are strong on the authority side: universities, the Swedish Transport Administration, courts, the Swedish Maritime Administration, so we are quite versatile. The region is a large employer. We have a defense force that has been here for a long time and is now growing. We are a city with a thousand opportunities, I am proud to lead it, I work with opportunities for everyday life, not problems.

Luleå municipal councillor Carina Sammeli in a group discussion with Christophe Bakaka Rugumba and Eva Jonsson.

But there are still problems. There are two in particular that keep Carina Sammeli awake at night: the supply of skills and the need for social investment.

 – About a third of Luleå Municipality's staff will retire before 2030. There are not that many unemployed preschool teachers. The Armed Forces are growing, government agencies and not least industry. We need to streamline, digitize, automate to cope with our challenges and the tasks we have. We are tasked with providing schools and elderly care. This is the issue I am most worried about, because I actually don't see how it will work.

“We are too few”

She emphasized that Sweden lacks a system for managing skills supply.

 – In all matters, there is someone who decides. Whether to lay an electricity line, or whether F21 should grow. But when it comes to skills supply, moving and training, there is no system that works in Sweden today. That is what keeps me awake at night. There are totally too few of us. And people will not move if they do not have a home. We need a lot of housing of all kinds. Many construction companies are owned in southern Sweden and there is no image that this is a brilliant place to do business.

At the same time as the municipality is going to grow, major investments are needed in what already exists, such as infrastructure and municipal water pipes. How can this be done? Carina Sammeli does not have a ready answer.

In a rapid societal transformation, it becomes necessary to make decisions even if the supporting data is not perfect.

 – We need to work less on details and more on direction in the board. We need to unleash the power we have in our employees, we don't have time for anything else.

Janus Brandin, Regional Development Director in Region Norrbotten, participated in the RUS dialogue and gave a picture of the external situation and the importance of RUS in a larger context. Carina Sammeli, Chair of the Municipal Executive Board in Luleå, gave her picture of the situation in the municipality.

Andreas Jönsson, democracy strategist at the municipality, highlighted that there are also dangers in societal transformation happening so quickly.

 – We have a goal of maintaining a safe society with great social capital. But there are a lot of people who need to be hired, it's incredibly stressful. So how do we ensure that we don't bring in enablers for criminal organizations who want a piece of the pie? This is a huge risk, he said.

Working with target images

During the afternoon, the focus was on target images within the four focus areas of the RUS, and there were lively discussions around the many tables in the conference room.

 – We focused on innovation, renewal and entrepreneurship. The goal is that by 2040 we will have a highly diversified labor market and business sector. It is easy to attract new immigrants thanks to everything that is happening, and the image of the North as a prominent region. We have high resilience to changes in structure or economic conditions and high international attractiveness. Culture is coming in everywhere, we need a rich cultural life too, said Anna Engström, CEO of Selim Utveckling AB.

Lena Ramström (on the right), who works with infrastructure issues at Luleå Municipality, highlighted, among other things, the road choices that are required if Luleå is to be an attractive community.

Another group talked about transportation and that the future requires a change in behavior.

 – Political risk-taking is required. It is not only investments that are required, but also a cultural change, a behavioral change in which mode of transport we choose and how we live. Changes in how we live our lives can be sensitive and personal, such as how we transport ourselves. We talked about Luleå urban area, how we use the space in the center. Should we have parking and roads or create a pulse to have an attractive community?, said Lena Ramström, infrastructure strategist at the municipality.

“Housing construction in attractive areas”

Jonas Vinblad von Walter, CEO of Luleå Lokaltrafik, highlighted the educational opportunities as a way to attract people here.

 – The companies then create the conditions to stay, as well as housing construction in attractive areas. Good local transport, those who come may not have a driver's license. But we also want more people from Luleå and Norrbotten to choose LTU, he said.

Eva Jonsson, cHead of the Growth and Integration Unit at Luleå Municipality, and Jonas Vinblad von Walter, CEO of Luleå Local Transport.

Helena Sjaunja, section manager for landscape and traffic at Luleå Municipality, emphasized how important the Norrleden traffic route will be, not only for Luleå but for the entire county.

 – The Norrleden route should be in place by 2040. Then we will have efficient transport to the port via E4 and will not need to have that traffic in the city. It will provide more attractive housing, reduced noise, increased traffic safety, densification. The Swedish Transport Administration says that it is important for Luleå Municipality, but it is not – it is important for the entire county. Early dialogues and cooperation are a major important factor, she said.

Collaborate with civil society

Several participants highlighted the important role of civil society and the need to work with young people.

 – Municipalities need to work together with civil society to create more opportunities for cultural practitioners, associations and young people. Instead of competing, highlight the unique opportunities that exist in the places and create a common asset in it, said Therese Sidevärn from the communications agency Brightnest.

Jenny Lindberg urged people to focus on long-term values ​​when building the society of the future.

Jenny Lindberg, community planner at Luleå Municipality, urged people to think long-term by investing in those who are young today.

 – They are such an important target group. They are very mobile and choose to move south. Build on them! It is an opportunity for public actors to contribute to civil society and see the value in it, a long-term value that you cannot count on immediately. A good upbringing to look back on, that is long-term value.

Text & image: Sara Stylbäck Vesa