Background: An increasing production of renewable energy requires planning strategies that are able to coordinate the higher-level energy goals with local-level land use interests. While the spatial scope of energy objectives is usually set up on a federal state or national scale, decisions to allocate and implement renewable energy sites are often taken on a municipal scale. This leads to a lack of regional coordination, as the task to achieve a balanced regional energy demand and renewable energy production cannot be solved by individual municipalities alone and calls for cooperation on a regional level. This paper focuses on a recently applied method to support decisions that are committed to empowering the production of renewable energy on a regional scale. In addition, it reflects the generic use of this method, which should be manageable and repeatable under the conditions of an input of only a few quantitative data. At the same time, it addresses the question of how planning decisions, both in spatial and energy planning, may be empowered. Methods:The research team applied a cardboard games approach that required several steps of analysis. First, energy data and spatial attributes of different renewable energy sources were collected from reference projects and the literature. The end product was a catalogue of renewable energy generators, which also included the estimated energy output (kWh/a) and land consumption (m

Land use, land resource demands, and landscape management practices are linked to many of the environmental, climatic, and socio-economic challenges faced by contemporary society. The study focuses on a comparative analysis of the experience of the land resource management (LRM); thus, the study aims respond to how the land-related resources are managed, what policy instruments support it, and what improvements would promote the sustainable management of these resources. Exploring LRM policies in selected countries, the experience of three Baltic countries and two other countries under the jurisdiction of continental Europe was analyzed, and their comparison was made based on qualitative research methodology. Based on the study’s results, the most important comparative characteristics of LRM policies are discussed. The findings of the study in selected countries provide recommendations for improving the institutional framework related to LRM. However, the outcome encourages a transfer of the research experience to other jurisdictions.

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