More than 30 years after the creation of the INTERREG programme, the European Commission has teamed up with some of the most renowned experts* in the field of ETC to produce the very first MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) entirely dedicated to European Territorial Cooperation!
AEBR and the European Commission’s DG REGIO have released a series of publications aiming at raising awareness of cross-border cooperation. These showcase relevant information gained through the implementation of the b-solutions initiative, which AEBR has managed on behalf of DG REGIO for the past four years.
The 3DS bill (standing for differentiation, decentralisation, deconcentration and simplification of local public action) was adopted in its final reading at the Assemblée Nationale and the Senate in France on 8-9 February. The MOT is delighted about the inclusion for the first time of a chapter devoted to cross-border cooperation in a piece of legislation.
The Occitanie Region, the Generalitat of Catalonia and the government of the Balearic Islands approved in Brussels on Thursday the creation of a Youth Parliament. An initiative of the Occitanie Region, and its Vice-President, Nadia Pellefigue, which holds the rotating presidency of the Euroregion until the end of the year. We may recall that 2022 is the "European Year of Youth".
From 1 January until 30 June 2022, France holds the presidency of the European Union Council, for the 13th time. At a press conference on 9 December, President Emmanuel Macron set out the presidency’s three main themes: "recovery", "power" and "belonging". On this last point, he emphasised that the feeling of belonging to the European region had "declined" in France, as in other EU countries.
On 7 December in Brussels, the French Health Minister, Olivier Véran, and his Spanish counterpart, Carolina Darias, signed a declaration of intent concerning the cross-border hospital in Puigcerdá, which sets out the framework for cooperation with respect to healthcare professionals practising between the two countries.
The Alzette Belval EGTC has unveiled its new cross-border strategy for the next six years.
Following the sixth Franco-Luxembourg Intergovernmental Commission (ICG) that took place on 19 October in Belval in the presence of the Minister of State Clément Beaune, agreements between the two countries were reached notably with respect to transport and teleworking.
At the research seminar "The model of the Franco-German border – Reconciliation, cooperation, integration", organised by the Jean Monnet FRONTEM network, a "Manifesto on the future of cross-border cooperation in Europe", addressed to France’s presidency of the EU, and to the Conference on the Future of Europe, was published.
This European Commission report, published on 13 July, looks at the lessons of the Covid crisis and the initiatives carried out since the publication of its 2017 Communication “Boosting growth and cohesion in EU border regions”.
Feedback on the MOT Network’s Working Groups: since 2020, the working groups of the MOT network have been bringing together MOT members at regular intervals to share the experiences of border areas and encourage the emergence of propositions for action. Here we present the findings of the first three groups established.
The Eurodistrict is in the final phase of the process of drawing up its new territorial strategy. The issues it addresses are varied, and in the special context of the pandemic, cross-border cooperation has taken on particular importance, notably in the area of healthcare.
On 15 March 2021 the 26th Franco-Spanish summit was held in Montauban, the first to be held between the French President, Emmanuel Macron, and the President of the Spanish government, Pedro Sánchez. As well as an agreement on recognition of dual nationality and management of the Covid crisis, cross-border issues were at the heart of the discussions.
On 3 February 2021, Saarland’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Peter Strobel, went to Paris to receive the "Prix coup de cœur 2021" awarded by the magazine "Acteurs Publics".
A declaration of intention on the future of institutional cooperation in the fields of higher education and research in the Greater Region was signed on 25 November 2020 in Saarbrücken, at a ministerial conference held under Saarland’s presidency. At the conference, the ministers and representatives from the five partner regions took stock and discussed the consequences of the health crisis for cross-border cooperation between higher education and research institutions.
This guide is targeted at those involved in young people’s services across the Eurodistrict: social workers, teaching assistants, youth workers and coordinators, members of associations, administrative staff in the field of young people’s services, teachers, etc. It aims to guide these players in the development and implementation of cross-border projects.
The 21st Franco-German Council of Ministers took place in Toulouse on 16 October 2019, bringing together France’s President, Emmanuel Macron, Germany’s Chancellor, Angela Merkel, as well as the French and German ministers. On this occasion, and following on from the Aachen Treaty, the “Franco-German Declaration of Toulouse” was signed, which reaffirms the commitments made at the highest level of government with respect to Franco-German cooperation.
Cross-border metropolitan cooperation initiatives were spotlighted at the MOT network’s day-long meeting, co-organised with the Greater Besançon Metropolis, on 25 September.
"How can we encourage citizens in border regions to take part in the discussions about the future of Europe?" This is one of the questions at the heart of the "TEIN4citizens" project being implemented by nine partners from the TEIN network.
Editorial by Tristan Atmania, Deputy Director of the Territorial Attractiveness and Competitiveness Department – Saint-Avold Conurbation: "In this crucial year for Europe, our territory of the Moselle, at the crossroads of the founding countries of the European Union, and also of the Saar-Lor-Lux Greater Region, is at a turning point in its history. In this respect, the cross-border cooperation that is already being forged in all areas of daily life represents a major asset to be developed in the context of the competition that we face with the other regions of the world. [...]"
The Master in Border Studies is a two-year joint international study program, which addresses the complex economic, political, social and cultural issues of borders and of border regions in Europe and beyond. The Master provides students with the major concepts and analytical tools to understand the various challenges of border regions and cross-border cooperations.
In a new call for proposals, the European Commission is allocating €30 million to the European universities project: a major step towards higher education without borders.
Launched in 2017 in the Pamina Eurodistrict, the educational game “Passe-partout – Weltenbummler” (“Globetrotter”) has successfully completed an initial pilot phase, and in September 2018 begins a new phase now covering the whole of the Upper Rhine region. A project to replicate!
Around 50 young workers from the border region between Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Liechtenstein got together in June 2018 for the first transnational symposium of young workers.
