The goal of the research was to evaluate the opportunities in preparation of logistics specialists offered by Latvian universities and to formulate problem solutions. To achieve the goal, study programmes and course syllabuses offered by Latvian universities and colleges were analysed from the logistics perspective. Opportunities to acquire logistics knowledge offered in Latvia by distance, in further education and life-long learning programmes were reviewed. In the end, it was concluded that the development of logistics education in Latvia does not correspond to the speed of the development of logistics industry. Currently Latvia offers 4 Logistics study programmes, but only one study programme offers education corresponding to the professional standard – Manager of Logistics Department – as approved by the MoES. Latvia University of Agriculture currently has no logistics study programmes but different logistics subjects are included in the study programmes of 4 Faculties, therefore there are vast opportunities and it is necessary to develop the offer of logistics education, first by giving students the opportunity to choose specialisation in logistics in the Faculties in the study areas of which logistics is especially important and necessary – Faculty of Economics, Technical Faculty, Faculty of Forestry, Faculty of Food Technology, and Faculty of Agriculture.

Rural areas in Poland are vastly differentiated in their level of social and economic development. Adverse natural, social, economic and technological processes contribute to the formation of problem areas. Negative phenomena can spread across several municipalities, contributing to the number and severity of problems. Rural municipalities characterized by a low level of social and technical development are not attractive sites for prospective investors or home buyers. Geographical location can also contribute to the formation of problem areas. The Region of Warmia and Mazury borders the Kaliningrad Region, and it is one of the least developed areas in Poland. Rural areas in Warmia and Mazury are characterized by significant disparities in the level of social and economic development. The aim of this paper was to identify problem rural areas in the Region of Warmia and Mazury based on indicators of social, demographic, economic and infrastructure development. Problem areas in the Region of Warmia and Mazury were identified using Hellwig’s taxonomic measure of development. The results of our analysis indicate that in rural areas in the Region of Warmia and Mazury, the most severe problems are observed in typically agricultural municipalities which have a peripheral location and where state-owned farms had acted as the main employer.

Rural areas in Poland are characterized by great diversity in their functional spatial structure. Throughout history, their distinct features have been shaped by natural, historical and socio-economic factors. The aim of this study was to analyze the changes in the functional spatial structure of North-Eastern Poland. The analysis involved a comparison of data for 1988 and 2012. Research data was supplied mainly by the Central Statistical Office in Poland. The key drivers of change in the investigated region are agriculture, tourism, forestry and environmentally-friendly industrial processes. The results of the economic and social development are constantly changing in rural areas. Based on analysis, the functional structure of rural areas in North-Eastern Poland between 1988 and 2012 shows that they are more diversified. Over the years, rural areas in North-Eastern Poland were identified with agriculture but now they have multifunctional character.

Competitiveness is the key factor in order to reach the economic transformation, smart growth, governance and legal framework for the state and society for sustainable development that are stated as the major goals in the current planning period in Latvia. High-technology industries are the main drivers of economic activity in developed economies. To ensure data comparability, the official definition of the high-technology industries by Eurostat is applied in this research including two industries: manufacture of basic pharmaceutical products and pharmaceutical preparations and manufacture of computer, electronic and optical products. The research aims to analyse high-technology industries in Latvia taking into account the competitiveness and the regional allocation using a set of several indicators. According to NUTS 3, Latvia is subdivided into 6 regions; however, the high-technology industries are regionally allocated mainly in two regions, Riga and Pieriga regions. Manufacture of basic pharmaceutical products etc. employs 99% of employees in these two regions, manufacture of computer etc. products – 81% despite the fact that only 54% of employees reside in these two regions. The research confirms that the high-technology regional allocation depends on available labour resources and also education and professional training facilities in the region. We conclude that the high-technology industries are competitive in the global market as the share of the high-tech products in total exports is several times higher than the share of these industries in the manufacturing sector or in total economy. The global competitiveness of Latvia’s high-tech industries is stable and gradually rising.

Society aims to develop frames for recognizing important geological and geomorphological sites and features or landscapes within their national and even transnational boundaries. Earth heritage sites educate the general public and preserve cultural and environmental matters. New trends of sustainable development, importance of site conservation are demanding that landforms and landscapes, rocks, minerals, fossils, soils should be protected legally, as they give understanding about the evolution of Mother Earth in local and regional context to generations. The Geopark concept was developed in cooperation with UNESCO and followed a large number of requests to UNESCO from all over the world, from geological institutions and geoscientists and non-governmental organizations, and it became extremely popular and influential to preserve those geological heritage areas, nowadays still recognized only nationally or not at all. This paper aims to give comprehensive overview of existing geoparks in the Baltic Sea Region, as well as analyse aspiring geoparks and unpublished initiatives of potential geopark (Livonia and Vooremaa) eventual establishment in frames of cultural and landscape preservation context. Criteria, requirements and earlier studies are given in context. The geoparks should mainly contain cultural and educational purpose while targeting the least possible damage in preservational aspect.

The variety of study methods used at universities still is conservative and more pragmatic, but there is an increasing tendency to change study methodology to more and more student-centred and to focus on the students’ ability to become valuable workforce for SMEs. The necessity for development of study methods clearly demonstrates the research problem. At the same time, universities are facing pressure from governmental authorities to internationalize – student and teacher mobility, international partners and projects are highly recommended. The main process at universities is the study process. But also internationalization should support the study process and students in achieving practice-based learning outcomes. Facing these challenges, NOBANET network of universities has elaborated and piloted the study method Cross-Border Assignments (CBA) linking students’ future ability to successfully incorporate in the job market and the requirement for internationalization of studies. The aim of this article is to introduce and assess the CBA as a method to involve student work and students to engage in entrepreneurship problems. The authors have collected and analysed feedback of 10 CBAs implemented in 6 different universities. The feedback was received by using questionnaires with mainly closed questions. The results show that companies are satisfied with students’ work and they also appreciate teachers. The main conclusion about assessment of this method gives valuable contribution to scientific literature as a description of modern study method and good practice in linking HEIs and SMEs. Gratitude is expressed to the Nordic Council of Ministers for funding NOBANET project and project EKOSOC-LV, part 5.2.2. and INTERFRAME-LV.

Based on data on the number of newly established enterprises and the total number of enterprises, the authors analysed whether and what changes occurred in the industries of the national economy that have high transfer potential in relation to smart specialisation implementation in the country, broken down by region, thereby identifying the RIS3 specialisation field on which the focus has to be placed and to which attention has to be drawn. The aim of the research is to identify the entrepreneurship development in RIS3 specialisation fields broken down by region and economic development according to the RIS3 specialisation fields. The research has found that the number of enterprises in the industries having high transfer potential in relation to RIS3 as a percentage of the total number of enterprises was slightly above 50%; the regional breakdown of the enterprises revealed that two thirds were located in the regions of Riga and Pieriga, and that ICT was the most significant RIS3 specialisation. In the post-crisis period, the number of newly established enterprises increased at the highest rate in 2011, exceeding the rate of the previous year more than two-fold, whereas in the next two years the rate decreased below the 2009 level.

This article analyzes the experience of economic clustering of Finnish industry. This experience is described in the report of the fundamental investigation which was carried out by the Research Institute of the Finnish Economy (ETLA) - Advantage Finland - The Future of the Finnish industries. The study deals with the competitiveness and future growth prospects of the Finnish industry on the basis of Michael E. Porter's theory of the competitive advantage of nations. The comparative advantage of Finnish industries has been moving from capital-and resource-intensive branches to those driven by know-how and technology. The author recommends to study this experience and to use it in Latvia. The finding of the real and potential business-groups in the economy of Latvia may be realized with the algorithm of clustering described by the professor of Colombian University (USA) David Stark on the base of Lursoft data of the Latvian enterprises.