Baltic lessons on resilience and shared prosperity during Nordic Security and Competitiveness Day
The Baltic countries have a distinctive perspective on what makes societies resilient, shaped as much by the challenges of the present as by their experience of Soviet occupation and the recovery of independence.
Their geographical position on NATO and the EU’s eastern frontier, the continuing war in Ukraine, tensions at their borders, and recent drone incursions and hybrid incidents have made resilience an immediate and practical concern.
SSE Riga’s panel at Nordic Security and Competitiveness Day will explore what these experiences can teach us about building stronger societies, strengthening security, and creating wealth together across the Nordic-Baltic region.
For Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, resilience is not simply a historical lesson or a question of preparing for future crises. It is something that societies must develop and sustain in their everyday lives. The independence movements demonstrated the power of civic organization and collective action, but today's challenges are different. They require societies to respond to uncertainty, disinformation, security threats, and economic pressures while maintaining trust, democratic institutions, and the capacity to act together.
The panel, “Resilience realities: examples from the Baltics,” will examine how resilience is built and sustained in practice, and the roles played by citizens, voluntary organizations, schools, businesses, and public institutions. Latvia’s approach to comprehensive national defense illustrates how widely this responsibility extends, from civic education and household preparedness to protecting critical infrastructure and keeping essential services running. Drawing on experiences across the three Baltic countries, the discussion will consider what works, what remains difficult, and what lessons can be shared across the Nordic-Baltic region to strengthen both security and competitiveness.
Mantas Bilesis, Dean of the Public Security Academy at Mykolas Romeris University in Lithuania, works on public and security governance. His responsibilities include educating national security and law enforcement officials.
Annes Kalle is Head of Planning and Crisis Preparedness at the Government Office of Estonia. His experience includes national crisis planning and the coordination of civilian and military defense, with earlier roles in the Ministry of the Interior and the Estonian Defence Forces.
Veiko-Vello Palm, Chief Operating Officer and Board Member of Frankenburg Technologies, brings experience from military leadership and industry. A retired major general and former Deputy Chief of Defence of Estonia, he now works in a company developing air defense missile systems and manufacturing capacity.
Dr Kata Fredheim will moderate the panel. She is Executive Vice President of Partnerships and Strategy and an Associate Professor at SSE Riga. Her research on migration and Ukrainians displaced by war adds to the discussion’s attention to people and communities.
The SSE Riga panel takes place from 10:00 to 10:45 a.m. on November 16, 2026, at the Stockholm School of Economics. Nordic Security and Competitiveness Day is hosted by the Center for Security and Resilience under the theme “From strategic autonomy to strategic coordination.” Explore the program and registration options.
