Spatial Planning and Regional Competitiveness

Problems addressed
• “If the EU is to realise its economic potential, then all regions wherever they are located, whether in existing Member States or in the new countries about to join, need to be involved in the growth effort and all people living in the Union given the chance to contribute.” (Third Cohesion Report).  How can more regions be mobilised? How can more people, and especially more public officials and local and regional politicians, contribute to Europe’s competitiveness through involvement in INTERREG?
• Integrated spatial development and planning represents a major change from the administrative practices and assumptions that have characterised traditional approaches to land use planning, regional development and public administration within both old and new Member States. Its aims are territorial cohesion and sustainable spatial development. How can this new knowledge and understanding of spatial development and planning be developed and applied in a transnational manner?
• The ESDP aims for "parity of access to infrastructure and knowledge", and asserts that "Policy must ensure that all regions, even islands and peripheral regions, have adequate access”. Can we create parity of access across the European territory to knowledge about spatial development and planning and INTERREG through building a polycentric network of institutions delivering training that connects spatial planning research to the needs of public officials, politicians and also students?

Objectives
• To develop knowledge and skills in integrated spatial development and planning, through training that is targeted at those taking part (or who want to take part) in INTERREG programmes or transnational co-operation under new structural funds after 2007.  These include project promoters, programme secretariats, contact points, representatives on monitoring and steering committees, persons and institutions. Those in local and regional authorities involved in INTERREG programme development and implementation are a special target group. We aim to promote enhanced understanding of linkages between sectoral policies/activities at the EU, member state and sub regional levels and their impact in terms of spatial development, thereby contributing to the horizontal and vertical integration of policies and activities.
• To challenge traditional administrative cultures and practices. We will demonstrate that spatial planning and integrated development is a strategic and visionary activity that operates at and across European, transnational and regional scales.  It is integrative.  It aims for competitiveness and territorial cohesion and sustainable spatial development.   
• To develop a transnational, polycentric network of institutions that can develop and deliver training in spatial development and planning through connecting experience and findings from the European Spatial Planning Observation Network (ESPON) and INTERREG to practical decision-making in different regions.

Approach and methodology
• In consultation with ESPON, the INTERACT Qualification and Transfer Point, and other stakeholders, SPARC will tender and contract the development of a learningpackage called Spatial Planning and Regional Competitiveness that would be in distance learning format (in English) and targeted at those taking part (or who want to take part) in INTERREG programmes or transnational co-operation under new structural funds after 2007. While practical in orientation, this learning package could also be used in teaching at senior undergraduate and postgraduate levels in universities.
• Invite project partners to develop regional case studies (including cross-border regions) and transnational exercises. These would be practical problem-solving projects that would enable those who had studied the distance learning package to enhance and demonstrate their knowledge and skills of spatial development and planning by applying concepts to real situations (e.g. by producing an indicative strategy for polycentric development in a case study region, or by reviewing the implications of telecommunications for the urban/rural divide across Europe). 
• Deliver the learning package, including the regional case studies and the transnational exercises through a polycentric network of partner universities and professional institutions across Europe. Although the materials will be in English, tuition and assessment will be available in other languages, and there will be access to tuition through some face to face workshops as well as by email.