The project objective was to foster balanced spatial development by sustaining the development of medium-sized cities. Within this objective the project aimed at exploration of urban restructuring processes, formulation of recommendation for interlinking of local and national strategies and for economic, environmental and social development of the medium sized cities. This work was to be achieved through cooperation of newly formed network of medium sized cities, facilitating exchange of experiences and mutual learning.The project is closely related to the VASAB initiatives, first and foremost the former Interreg IIC project Urban Systems and Urban Networking in the Baltic Sea Region (USUN). USUN showed that a most crucial challenge of urban and regional development within the BSR is the development of the small and medium sized cities outside the national core areas.The MECIBS project will run for 3 years via 6 conferences on different locations in the BSR. At the conferences cities present experiences on planning and development - and the researchers present comparative outlooks on planning practices and development patterns. Recommendations for local strategies as well as national and EU regional policies will be prepared.The project focuses on how the medium sized cities are threatened by changes in their economic base and key urban functions and how they cope with the challenges of restructuring. The interplay between city and its regional hinterland is emphasised and so are the endogenous capabilities and the interplay between local and national policy measures. Another focus is the social, demographic and environmental problems caused by urban restructuring and hence the need for sustainable strategies in urban revitalisation. Finally, the impacts and prospects of transnational networking between cities and urban regions in the BSR will be analysed taking its point of departure in a case study on industrial links between Danish and Polish/Lithuanian industrial districts within the branch of textile. Achievements: The performance of the network was very efficient: within the project lifetime 6 conferences and 7 seminars were organised, touching upon the different aspects of medium sized cities development. Involved partners visited each other very often so now they better understand their common grounds as well as slight differences between their cities. The formal agreement between 3 city partners has been concluded with the goal to form a subsidiary networking-project within education field; another concluded agreement is on conducting a sub study on out-sourcing.A data base has been established by cities and researchers presenting information on urban profiles on key statistics and key subjects. 11 case-study reports on the cities involved were drafted, 16 professional publications released, 71 recommendations formulated and communicated to the respective stakeholders at the project events and in the publicity materials (10 project brochures, 1 leaflet and 55 thematic presentations, 2 websites active after project termination