From the English Channel to the Caribbean and the Mediterranean, cooperation in sea basins was at the heart of discussions at the conference on Regional Cooperation in Maritime Areas (ReCMA), organised in September by the University of Lille, the TVES laboratory and the MOT. To report on this work, the MOT is publishing a "Focus" on this theme at the heart of European integration.
"For over 20 years, the Pas-de-Calais department has maintained strong, friendly bilateral relations with its neighbor across the Channel, the county of Kent.
Climate change doesn’t care about borders and calls for greater solidarity! The Finistère Department and Cornwall County Council have shared values and challenges: regional languages, a Celtic culture, and a strong relationship with the sea and the environment.
Since it came into force on 31 January 2020, the effects of Brexit on the territories oriented towards the Channel are tangible. On both sides, the new procedures for exports are penalising small producers, the fishing and agri-business sectors, as well as the services sector (tourism and hospitality). The economic context linked to the double crisis (Covid and Brexit) is also putting many cross-Channel transport links at risk.
The first call for proposals under the 2 Seas Programme (2014-2020) between France and the United Kingdom has been launched (deadline for the first stage: 15 February).
On Wednesday 22 October, the NOSTRA (Network Of STRAits) project was closed in Brussels. NOSTRA is a European cooperation project led by the Pas-de-Calais Department. The 16 partners along 8 straits, from North to South, including the Danube delta, share the objective of preserving the biodiversity and natural heritage of their territories, while also highlighting their common concerns: governance, the environment, tourism, mobility and maritime safety, etc.
The final conference of the French-British project CAMIS (Channel Arc Manche Integrated Strategy) took place on 21 November 2013 in Rouen.
In a dynamic context of reform - redefinition of cross-border policy and decentralisation process in France, preparation of the 2014-2020 programmes at European level - the MOT has produced a methodological guidebook aimed at improving articulation between cohesion policy, governance structures and cross-border territorial approaches.
