On 21 September, the players from the Greater Geneva area presented an innovative new tool that makes it possible to monitor air pollution across the cross-border territory: the G²AME (Grand Genève Air Modèle Emissions – Greater Geneva Air Emissions Model) platform.
On the occasion of the European Cooperation Day and a week after the celebration of the 25th anniversary of Interreg, the umbrella framework for Regional Policy's cross border cooperation programmes, the Commission has launched an EU-wide public consultation on the remaining obstacles to cross border cooperation.
In the context of the 25th anniversary of the launch of Interreg, this month the European Commission is publishing a book entitled "Territorial cooperation in Europe, a historical perspective".
A French-German ministerial conference, attended by French secretary of state for European affairs Harlem Désir and his German counterpart Michael Roth, both general-secretaries for French-German cooperation, took place on 6 and 7 July in Metz.
The report "Qualité de vie, habitants, territoires" (quality of life, inhabitants, territories), delivered to the French Minister of Housing, Territorial Equality and Rural Affairs on 11 May 2015, is available for downloading from the Observatoire des Territoires website [in French].
With a view to its presidency of the EU Council in the second half of 2015, the Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg has placed the clearing of obstacles to cross-border cooperation at the centre of its priorities. A member of the MOT, the Grand-Duchy commissioned it to provide assistance, generating input for one of three technical seminars which took place on 19 May 2015 in Luxembourg City in preparation of its presidency. The MOT analysis is online.
Following an exploratory study carried out by the CGET*, the MOT and the FNAU** and the first European seminar on the observation of cross-border territories held in Nancy in December 2012, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Andorra and Spain concluded an agreement that affirmed their desire to coordinate their initiatives for the statistical observation of border territories.
According to a study by the INSEE published in February 2015, the number of French people living in France but working abroad has increased by 42% since 1999. The study analyses the different causes and characteristics of the resulting flows.
Since the overhaul of the MOT's website in November 2013, nearly 150 maps illustrating the intensity of cross-border relations along France's borders have been put online. Presentation of the latest additions.
This European research project, led by the University of Eastern Finland, held its final conference on 20-21 February 2015 in Istanbul. This event was an opportunity to present the findings and the studies carried out during the four-year research project, the aim of which was to analyse regional development at Europe's external borders through cross-border cooperation policies and practices.
The Canton of Geneva and the Ain and Haute-Savoie Departments are going to cooperate in order to better identify "false Swiss residents", who are responsible for a shortfall of nearly €40 million on the French side. It's the first time that the Canton of Geneva is going to provide this type of information to the French authorities.
As 2014 draws to a close, the technical work to update the report of the French-Belgian parliamentary working group (GTPFB), initiated by the prefecture of the Nord-Pas de Calais Region, is being finalised. This initiative has benefited from the support and expertise of the MOT.
The CESCI, the MOT and INFH co-organised the 2nd European Seminar on cross-border territorial observation on 30 September 2014 at the Institut français de Budapest in Hungary.
The final report of the ESPON ET2050 research project "Vision and Scenarios for the European Territory towards 2050", conducted by the members of the ESPON Committee, in liaison with the European institutions and other European experts, has been published.
The cross-border statistical observatory for the France-Geneva area has published an analysis of the housing stock and construction on both sides of the border, counting nearly 70,000 additional housing units in 11 years in this cross-border area.
The "Observatoire des Territoires"* of the Commissariat Général à l'Égalité des Territoires (ex DATAR, France) has put on line a thematic dossier devoted to the study of the cross-border regions that France shares with its neighbours.
The MOT has published the 9th issue of its thematic guides on the "Observation of cross-border territories”.
Final report – “Cross-Border Metropolitan Regions” (MORO IMeG project, Germany)
The Budapest Platform organised a seminar on 2 July at the Union Benelux headquarters in Brussels on the role of the national level in supporting cross-border cooperation.
The MOT produced a map summarising the main cross-border agreements, structures and programmes on French borders.
