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In March 2020, the French President called to war against the COVID‐19 which was followed by the launch of a military operation called Operation Resilience. This use of martial rhetoric initiated an effective mobilisation consisting in logistical assistance to the health sector. While armies are increasingly used to deal with environmental disasters, aside from their traditional role, this paper postulates that the geography of the French and international military engagement can be used to analyse both the institutional strategy of crisis management and the message governments send to their population. Military involvement differs in terms of missions given and of the amount of troops mobilised. It first questions the use of the military in the name of national resilience in the political discourse and the way it displays a symbolic message to the population, before analysing the role of armies in the crisis through the spatiality of their interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper contributes to the understanding of socio-spatial trends and urban systems in Europe, with a specific focus on smaller settlements. First, a morphological delimitation of urban settlements as geographical base is used to identify the different settlement structures that characterise regions across Europe. Secondly, an analysis of population and GDP performances of NUTS 3 regions for the 29 countries of the European space (growth rates in 2001-2011) provides evidence of the variety of territorial phenomena that characterise smaller-settlement regions across Europe. Finally, the paper highlights the diversity and complexity of urbanisation structures in Europe and how general trends observed at larger scale are articulated locally according to prevailing structures of urbanisation. It shows the character of 'embeddedness' of smaller settlements within urban systems and territorial structures and how the socio-economic performances of smaller-settlement regions are defined by a combination of macro trends, national contextualisation, local dynamics and regional path dependency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the 'policy dimension' of the TOWN project drawing on the implications of the case studies for policy(ies) for small and medium-sized towns (SMSTs) across Europe. It first considers approaches at European and national levels to SMSTs arguing in recent years there has been limited recognition that SMSTs have a significant role to play in the European territory. The paper provides an illustrative selection of towns from the ten case study countries. The research shows that the category SMSTs contains a varied and often dissimilar group of towns in a wide variety of regional contexts. This is true not only between countries but within them. The results indicate that while there are actions to support SMSTs that can be done at European level a prescriptive 'one-size fits all' approach should be avoided. Policy approaches should be developed within particular national and regional contexts supported by the European level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The unique contribution of this paper is to empirically compare and contrast demographic change in settlements with a population between 5,000 and under 50,000 (defined as towns) across different national urban systems in Europe with common definitions for the first time. The analysis uses a new data set based on harmonised small area data and harmonised morphological definitions of what a town is. The paper hypothesises first that a general model of demographic growth can be applied across national urban systems and secondly that regional demographic change is a significant predictor of demographic change in towns nested within those regions within this generalised model. A fixed effect multi-level regression analysis tests the importance of town-level and regional factors among towns from five national systems but also within two individual national urban systems. The findings suggest that national context still matters and within some national systems, regional context also strongly predicts demographic change in towns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

European regions experience accelerating ageing, but the process has substantial regional variation. This paper examines the effect of this variation on regional economic cohesion in Europe. We measure the effect of convergence or divergence in the share of the working age population on convergence or divergence in economies of NUTS 2 regions. The effect of convergence or divergence in ageing on economic convergence or divergence is quite substantial and, in some cases, is bigger than the effect of changes in productivity and labour force participation. Convergence of ageing leads to economic convergence only when the share of the working age population in rich regions exceeds that in poor regions and the former regions experience a substantial decline in the share of the working age population, or the latter regions experience an increase. During 2003–12, an inverse relationship between convergence in ageing and economic convergence was the rule rather than the exception. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates how eleven Dutch small and medium-sized enterprises ( SMEs) transnationalised with East and Southeast Asian economies by means of establishing a foreign subsidiary. The study's aim is to elucidate how firms learned to become a transnational corporation and to gauge the relevance of the firm's external networks in the acquisition of the appropriate knowledge. The paper conceptualises SME transnationalisation as an organisational process that can be understood by theories developed in innovation studies. Through qualitative research on transnationalisation pathways, inferences are drawn on the skills and routines that are necessary to bridge institutional differences and the process by which these skills are acquired and routinised within the firm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper begins with an introduction into the interlocking network model (INM) initially specified by Peter Taylor in the context of the Globalization and World Cities (GaWC) research network. For that purpose, the intellectual background, purpose, key principles and subsequent applications of the INM are presented. Since the overall purpose of the Special Issue is to take research inspired by the INM further, this paper gives, second, an overview of some of the main critiques raised against the INM. Third, the relevance of the different papers of the Special Issue is framed within these critiques. The papers in the Special Issue can be divided in two groups: while the first set discusses the measurement framework, the second focuses on the conceptual remit of the INM. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A quarter of the European population lives in ‘polycentric urban regions’ (PURs): clusters of historically and administratively distinct but proximate and well‐connected cities of relatively similar size. This paper explores whether tighter integration can increase agglomeration benefits at the PUR‐level. We provide the first comprehensive list of European PURs (117 in total), establish their level of functional, institutional and cultural integration and measure whether this affects their performance. ‘Performance’ is defined as the extent to which urbanisation economies have developed, proxied by the presence of metropolitan functions. In this first‐ever cross‐sectional analysis of PURs we find that while there is evidence for all dimensions of integration having a positive effect, particularly functional integration has great significance. Regarding institutional integration, it appears that having some form of metropolitan co‐operation is more important than its exact shape. Theoretically, our results substantiate the assumption that networks may substitute for proximity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the importance of national borders in the process of European integration and its destiny, border areas remain relatively misrecognised. This is particularly true as regards the contemporary geography of border cities across Europe. It is therefore difficult to assess what importance border cities and cross-border urban regions have and how they have evolved in parallel with the transformation of European borders. The aim of this paper is to highlight the urban dimension of border regions in Europe and, in particular, the diversity of configurations present. Through an original cartography of border cities, we hope to draw the attention of the research community interested in borders and border regions to an unfamiliar aspect of European borderlands and some of the issues and questions it raises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides a first attempt at the construction of a unified, homogeneous inventory of different classes of urban settlements in the European space, building on the approach of international institutions such as OECD and the EU in relation to larger urban areas and extending it to the specific challenge presented by smaller settlements. Its objective is twofold. The first is to address the fundamental empirical problem that was central to the development of the ESPON 2013 project 'Small and Medium sized Towns in their Functional Territorial Context' (TOWN), that is the proper geographic identification of different classes of urban settlements. The second is to introduce one basic classification of urban settlements, and two more refined typologies of small and medium sized towns (SMST). These typologies are used to provide a first impression of territorial structures of urbanisation throughout Europe, further elaborated in functional terms in the TOWN project. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite that small and medium-sized towns (SMSTs) have been, and continue to be, a central part of the history of Europe, these places have largely been neglected by urban research. The ESPON TOWN project, on which this Special Issue builds, sought to redress this neglect performing a comparative analysis of their position and role across Europe. In this introductory paper we discuss some of the theoretical and methodological challenges when it came to identifying, studying and analysing SMSTs and the theoretical framework developed to inform our understanding of SMSTs. In particular, three themes are discussed. The first one is about the ontological problem of defining a town. Administrative, morphological and functional perspectives are considered. The second one reflects on a wide array of interpretative approaches about the relationship between towns and their regional context. The third one is about the thematic and multi-scalar perspectives that can characterise the policy approach to towns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is part of the research on functional roles of European towns conducted by a group of researchers gathered around the ESPON project 'TOWN'. Building on the systematic analysis of the socio-economic dynamics of 31 European small and medium-sized towns (SMSTs), we identified three profiles of their local economies. The first profile is defined as a dominant 'residential' economy that mostly relies on local activities that satisfy the needs of people in an area (residents, commuters or tourists). The second profile corresponds to a dominant 'productive' economy based on the production of goods and services to be mainly exported and consumed out of its area. The third profile is the mixed type that is characterised by an important share of activities in productive and residential sector with a complementary 'creative-knowledge' dimension, based on entrepreneurship, creativity and collaboration in innovation. Moreover, we analysed the economic performance and the shift in profiles in order to detect in which way towns make choices between residential economy, competitiveness and innovation for their local development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The EU's borderland between Finland and Russia provides a fascinating setting to study how different understandings of state and civil society meet, overlap, and fuse. Focusing on this border region, this study pits the conventional bilateral framework against the more recent EU one in depicting a cross-border space for civic activity. It offers a critical perspective on the official European Neighbourhood and illustrates a complementary vision of a non-territorial civic neighbourhood seeking to capture the networked and fluid topologies of contemporary cross-border processes. The paper underlines the role of civil society in bridging the gaps created by borders, and suggests that they provide a powerful driver for maintaining neighbourly relations in a tense climate. To better understand the transnational network-space they fashion, we must abandon the geographical idea of territorial exceptionality and be receptive to alternative interpretations not tied to a particular policy framework and the restrictions defined by it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT The current economic crisis has had spatially differentiated impacts in both the US and Europe. A growing collection of literature investigates the determinants of the magnitude of this recession across regions. This paper aims to contribute to this literature by analysing variations in unemployment rate across European regions over the period 2004-11. In particular, we focus on two apparently neglected issues, namely labour market rigidity and the sensitivity of the local economy to the national or European business cycle. The rigidity of the labour market is increasingly viewed as a possible reason for differences among countries in terms of the performance of labour markets, although existing empirical evidence remains inconclusive. In this respect, our aim is to assess the relevance of national labour legislation, as measured by the OECD Employment Protection Legislation (EPL) Index for the performance of regional labour markets by taking advantage of the natural experiment provided by the crisis. Furthermore, for the first time in economic literature, we employ quarterly data on unemployment rate for all European regions over the period 2000-11 to construct an index of co-movement regarding regional cycles with national or European cycles, to be used as an important determinant of variation in the unemployment rate. After controlling for a number of covariates, as well as for spatial dependence in various forms, our results indicate that EPL did not affect unemployment growth over the entire period. However, we did find that regions with a low long-term unemployment rate in countries with high EPL performed better in the pre-crisis period (2004-07), whereas no effect was found during the crisis. We also found that synchronisation of the regional cycle with the national one was significant for explaining regional labour market performance. Taken together, these results denote the limited relevance of national policies and legislation for accommodating spatially differentiated shocks, whereas policies aimed at modifying local cycles may prove to be more effective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT The aim of recent redevelopment plans and projects for European city centres is to remove intra-urban 'borders' and thereby to promote the profitability of cities. Consumer mobility within city centres is encouraged to facilitate flows of consumption capital and generate consumer spending. Contextualised by international border studies and related EU integration policies, the Van Heekplein redevelopment project in Enschede, the Netherlands, is discussed here to scrutinise the redevelopment focus on economic 'flows' in city centres. The paper brings to the fore how European border studies speak to city centre plans and their redevelopment focus - resulting in a critique for ignoring the social production of borders. To achieve a more comprehensive understanding of consumer (im)mobility in city centres and processes of bordering, the paper proposes a perspective on borders as spatial 'folds'. Analysing four types of folding - the folding of 'bodies', 'forces', 'knowledge' and 'the outside'- provides both a much more dynamic and kaleidoscopic picture of city centres and their users and a more comprehensive understanding of border perceptions and experiences and related practices of shoppers. Such an analytical perspective and approach not only seems of interest for border-related studies and policies at the urban level but also at the European level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to refine existing approaches for classifying nodes in spatial networks. Apart from generally used variables measuring (i) the total connectivity of a node and (ii) the spatial make-up of this total connectivity, we argue that a third indicator should be taken into account when describing the structure of a spatial network, namely, (iii) the degree of ‘polarisation’ in a node's connectivity configuration. We measure ‘polarisation’ by applying multiple linkage analysis, a technique that allows determining the number of meaningful connections for each node in the network. In this paper, we illustrate this approach by clustering 65 European cities based on their insertion in European air transport networks in 2005. The number of meaningful flows of a city is hereby considered alongside both traditional measures of connectivity. The results of the cluster analysis suggest that including a measure of polarisation may indeed lead to a more satisfying typology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper takes the framework of the ‘economics of proximity’ to distinguish between territory-based and agent-based proximity approaches in dealing with the dynamic interaction between changes in the organisation of production on the one hand and the role of territory on the other. The paper sets out to determine which of these approaches works best to explain the main changes carried out in the most recent configuration of value chain in the European automotive industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent years have witnessed a proliferation of food labelling schemes that claim to promote sustainable forms of food production. Viewed as a process of reterritorialisation or, more specifically, ecological localisation, such initiatives potentially provide constructive tools to re-address some of the environmental problems connected with agricultural restructuring and to re-organise production and consumption relations in the food system. This paper first examines the approaches and motives behind 24 food labelling schemes in selected European countries. It then uses this empirical material to conceptualise two development rationales: ‘territorial’ (place-based) and ‘critical’ (process-based). The rationales are explored through a comparative assessment of two Dutch case studies – Waterland and Milieukeur strawberries. The paper argues that producer involvement requires a clear economic incentive and that most food labelling schemes need significant institutional support if participation in more sustainable modes of production is to be fully realised. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the end of the Cold War the concepts of the geopolitical order of Europe have changed. Within this process the European Union plays a significant role. When the Iron Curtain came down, negotiations about the potential enlargement to the East started and the EU positioned itself differently regarding worldwide conflicts and wars. The influence of the new geopolitical situation on national long-term orientations and changes in the representations of the national representatives is the focal point of this paper. It analyses the current discourses on Europe, the European Union and its global role based on selected interviews with high ranking politicians. The main issues are: how far does Europe extend and which part of Europe will form the EU? And which internal power relations will the EU develop in the future. A discourse analysis shows how the current problems are verbalised within the geopolitical representations and how they affect the political arena. In this paper the word discourse is used to describe a social process which can be called ‘inclination of sense’ or, in a more sophisticated manner, ‘genesis of meaning’. This meaning refers to (a) the processual character of political, social and territorial organisation, (b) its reflection in the mass media and its construction of what can be called ‘European’ or ‘familiar with Europe’ and (c) the influence of the semantic order on political decisions, which impose a specific structural order and social organisation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During the last decade, in many European countries and cities, area-based Urban Development Programmes have been initiated, in response to major problems of poverty and social exclusion. Urban Development Programmes are usually developed in a complex interplay between different governmental levels, and implemented by a wide variety of public and non-public parties. This paper addresses the organisation of these programmes, concentrating in particular on the form and extent of ‘public-public partnership’, i.e. on the role that the different levels of the public administration play, both through the administrative system and through policy-making. The ‘empirical’ basis for the paper consists of case studies, derived from the UGIS project (‘Urban Governance, Social Inclusion and Sustainability,’ a research project financed by the European Commission, DG RTD). The short analysis makes clear that both the model of public administration, in terms of the extent and form of decentralisation, and the presence (or lack) of a national policy framework determine the extent to which UDPs can be planned, approved and implemented at the local level. One of the main findings is that the central influence over UDPs depends more on the urban policy framework of the central government than on the model of public administration of a country. Countries with strong national (regional) urban policies, sufficient decentralisation of public administration to the municipal level and the use of governance methods at the local level open up possibilities for successful UDPs. Without upper-level urban policy frameworks UDPs might be successful as well, but their replicability and the control over their external effects will not be ensured. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Regional identity has become an important category in the ‘Europe of regions’, and one that is often taken as self-evident in the relations between a group of people and a bounded region. The movement of people, capital and information across spatial boundaries that takes place in the contemporary world challenges the supposed harmonious link between regions and people on all spatial scales. This paper analyses the meanings of region and identity, and the links between them. Regions are understood as historically contingent structures whose institutionalisation is based on their territorial, symbolic and institutional shaping. Regional identity is understood as an abstraction that can be used to analyse the links between social actors and the institutionalisation process. This paper suggests that an analytical distinction between the identity of a region and the regional identity of its inhabitants, i.e. regional consciousness, is useful for problematising these links. The conceptual arguments will be illustrated with analyses of identity discourses related to Finnish regions and of the mobility of the Finns between regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The German discourse on the future role of the state is currently at the turn of the millennium is I dominated by the joint paper by Tony Blair and Gerhard Schröder, ‘Europe: The Third Way/ Die Neue Mitte’ (Blair & Schröder 1999). Using the crisis of the post-war Fordist mode of regulation as a background, various concepts of the restructuring of the State and society are discussed. This paper intends to show that the prevailing dominant social democratic restructuring discourse is rooted in a number of important elements in preceding conservative and neo-liberal discourses about the future of society and the State. The notion of desolidarisation is identified as the common denominator of conservative and neo-liberal approaches as well as the ‘Third Way’ (Neue Mitte). To cope with growing social inequality it is argued j that only a new European political project that re-animates solidarity and sustainability is viable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is the introduction to a TESG ‘dossier’ on regulation and discourse in Europe. Regulation is explained as a set of social adjustments motivated by the economy, or its crises, but not always clearly related to its performance. By way of supplement to the other papers in this issue, special attention is paid to the Netherlands. Regulation hi the Netherlands is a product of self-regulation and balancing induced by the comparative weakness' of the different social and political actors (interest groups). Finally some conclusions are drawn about the reactions to the neo-liberal challenge in the countries dealt with in this special issue: the UK, Germany, France and the Netherlands. The author argues that the differences in regulatory discourse reflect differences in political tradition and culture in these countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses the spatial distribution of seat capacity in the EU from 1990 to 2009 and sheds light on the contrasting results in the literature. It contributes to the debate on the deregulation and whether the rise of hub-and-spoke networks and the success of low-cost carriers lead to concentration or deconcentration. We use the Gini index and its decomposition to evaluate the contribution of airport subgroups and airline networks to the overall concentration of seat capacity. We conclude that, overall, seat capacity follows a spatial deconcentration pattern. While intra- EU seat capacity became more spatially deconcentrated, extra- EU seat capacity concentrated. However, our results do not support the general view that network carriers tend to increase concentration levels and low-cost carriers to decrease them, leading us to a reinterpretation of the impacts of air transport deregulation. The results show the increasing importance of foreign carriers and new strategies such as hub-bypassing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present study investigates the relation between urban form and the socio-economic patterns of the resident population in three southern European cities ( Athens, Lisbon and Rome) featured by different processes of urban diffusion. The paper goes beyond the literature on sprawl focused on (residential, income and ethnic) segregation and the different features of the inhabitants of the suburbs and those of the inner cities residents. By integrating multivariate statistics and spatial analysis, a methodology is proposed, based on morphological and socio-economic indicators available at a fine geographical scale. Results show how urban diffusion processes vary widely according to the context, as does the socio-economic profile of the actors, stressing the need to think about different 'southern European alternatives' of sprawl. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we analyse the sectoral and functional division of labour in Central and Eastern European ( CEE) regions within the convergence debate. By analysing the investment decisions of multinational corporations in 49 NUTS 2 regions across six European CEE countries ( Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria), we show that capital city regions not only receive more greenfield FDI but also attract a larger variety of investments in terms of sectors and functions. Capital cities are more likely to host higher-end sectors and functions, which provides an explanation for the existing regional disparities within CEE countries. These results highlight the importance of functional and sectoral divisions of labour in the view of regional profiling and contribute to the recent EU Cohesion Policy debate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the coming years, the share of the working-age population in the total population will start to decline in all countries of the European Union. All other things remaining equal, this so-called demographic burden will have a downward effect on economic growth. This paper examines whether the Europe 2020 employment targets would be sufficient to compensate for the downward impact of demographic burden and whether the impact of demography on economic growth differs between EU countries and between urban and rural regions. The results show that raising employment rates to the Europe 2020 targets can restore positive opportunities for economic growth, but not in all countries and only to a limited extent. They also show that even though urban and rural regions differ in terms of population growth and growth of the working age population, the prospects for demographic burden are highly similar for both types of regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Comparative research on gentrification is on the rise, especially since gentrification is no longer confined to historical, central neighbourhoods in First World countries, but also appeared in rural, new-built areas and Second World countries. In this paper we present our comparative approach to investigate gentrification processes in four European cities (Arnhem, Istanbul, Vienna, Zurich), which differs from previous studies in its use of assemblage theory as research framework. The multi-layered framework discerns three levels: 'metrics', 'interpretations', and 'practices'. We argue that many comparative studies mainly focus on metrics, while researching interpretations and practices instead - and how these three levels influence each other through processes of actualisation and counteractualisation - would enhance our knowledge on gentrification. In doing so, we aim to provide a precise account of the nested relations of different layers of empirical reality and thus respond to various calls in the debate to intensively examine 'geographies of gentrification'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the last few decades professional service firms have increasingly expanded their activities beyond national borders and established international offices throughout the world. This paper describes and analyses spatial patterns of internationalisation within the engineering consulting sector. By mapping expansion biographies of European engineering consulting firms and conducting dynamic Cox regression models, external factors influencing international market selection are examined. It is shown that current spatial patterns are only partly shaped by the declining importance of cross-national distance. Instead, market seeking motivations and the exploitation of time-critical opportunities appear to be of more significance. Further, changing patterns of market selection are observed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

After half a century of corridor development in Europe, the corridor concept is well-established in the academic discourse on transportation. Transport corridors have also been common practice in European transport policy since the creation of a borderless Europe in the 1990s. What is largely lacking in present-day research on European transport corridors is a consideration of a sector-transcendent and comprehensive spatial approach. We argue that adopting such an approach is beneficial to a valued analysis of European transport corridors, especially in the light of EU cohesion policy, agglomeration effects and place-based development. Also, negative external effects of persisting bottlenecks on welfare and quality of life in transport corridors should be better assessed and contextualised. This paper therefore suggests that policy can and should capitalise more on spatiality in corridors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper deals with the failure of the Avantis cross-border business estate. The inception of this hitherto largely undeveloped site took place in the early 1990s, a period which we suggest characterising with the notion of EUphoria, that is, a widely held belief in the future of a borderless Europe. EUphoria is seen as the key to bringing together otherwise separate discourses under one shared ambition of constructing a cross-border business estate. With the fading of EUphoria, however, Avantis resurfaces as a shared problem and appears to have been built on expectations and promises held within a discourse of European integration rather than among private investors. In retrospect, Avantis as a product of EUphoria remains a EUtopia, albeit with very few believers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT Knowledge-intensive services (KIS) are important activities for regional growth and considered to be located at the top of urban and regional hierarchies. However, the widespread use of information and communication technologies (ICT) may lead to a higher degree of decentralisation. This paper presents a detailed analysis of the geographical distribution of KIS across European regions, highlighting some important patterns. Our results confirm that the location of KIS remains linked to regions with a high international profile but, contrary to what some previous studies have suggested, the relative concentration of KIS is rather low. However, important differences exist depending on the type of KIS, the country analysed and the comparative statistical level. Recent trends also present uneven results, but show a higher concentration of business services-related KIS. The importance of tacit knowledge may play a role in explaining this result. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One third of Europe's regions is confronted with a shrinking population: they are losing inhabitants due to ageing, low fertility and brain drain. To turn the tide, many local authorities invest in place marketing aimed at attracting new residents and firms. This paper deals with the question as to how useful place marketing to beat demographic shrinkage really is. Theoretical and empirical insights from geography (e.g. place fuzziness, sense of place and locational inertia), are used to argue that there are limits to place marketing to attract newcomers. To illustrate this argument, some examples and data from European territories are presented. We conclude that it is more useful for Europe's shrinking territories to focus on 'warm' marketing that tries to retain rather than to attract place customers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the main questions for politicians is how to introduce more flexibility in the labour market while still providing employees with ample social security. The concept of flexicurity has sprung to attention through its success in Denmark. This paper explores whether the Danish model can also be successful in other European countries. A simultaneous equations model is constructed and estimated using regional data, which is an extension of the Blanchard-Katz model developed in 1992. It is found that a European country such as the Netherlands can permanently lower its unemployment rate and increase its participation and employment growth rates at the regional level, by 1.47, 2.08 and 1.05 percentage points respectively, if it copies the Danish model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Across Europe, area-based policies have been developed as a mode of urban governance to deal with the unfavourable situation in many urban neighbourhoods, particularly large post-Second World War developments. The philosophy behind these area-based policies is that integrated initiatives to deal with the physical, economic and social aspects of these urban neighbourhoods, will lead to the most effective solution. This paper focuses on the ‘integrated’ aspect of area-based policies in the Netherlands. We find that there is an unbalanced relationship between policies that focus on physical interventions and those that focus on social interventions. Also, findings show that some area-based initiatives claiming to be using an integrated approach are not. ‘Integration’ is often a term used by policy-makers but not implemented. This lack of integration is partly due to the limited flexibility in decision-making at the local level in dividing funds between and within the different policy fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The literature on regional innovation systems has considerably enhanced our understanding of the critical role played by geographical proximity and local institutional conditions for the production of new knowledge and its economic exploitation. In most cases, however, both theoretical and empirical work has focused on regional innovation systems situated within a national context. Little research has been done so far on cross-border regional innovation systems. The aim of this paper is to explore conceptually whether the theoretical approach of regional innovation systems can be applied to cross-border settings. It investigates some critical conditions for the emergence of transfrontier innovation systems and concludes that cross-border areas differ enormously regarding their capacity to develop an integrated innovation space. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses and illustrates the ‘knowledge turn’ in urban policy across Europe. We identify four manifestations of it: 1) widespread efforts to lure knowledge workers; 2) a growing involvement of knowledge institutes in urban development and planning processes, 3) an explicit ‘knowledge based’ approach to planning and the design of public space, and 4) efforts to underline a ‘knowledge city’ identity using all kinds of marketing and branding techniques. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the spatiality of transnationalism and meanings of borders as displayed in the tourism business sector operated by Chinese migrants in Europe. Drawing upon empirical research conducted from 1999 to 2002 and from 2006 to 2007, it will illustrate how Chinese migrants practise transnationalism and transculturality in their entrepreneurial activities. Instead of serving simply as a bridge between their two home economies, migrants engaged in the tourism sector are active and innovative agents in crossing and redrawing the borders of different geo-cultural spheres they are embedded in, producing modified tourism landscapes that suit the desire of their compatriot travellers. An examination of the spatiality of their business networks also suggests that transnationalism and diaspora studies should go beyond focusing only on ties between the sending and receiving societies. Furthermore, an analysis of the interactions among members of this business community from different places will exemplify the power of borders in the Chinese diaspora. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the 1990s, Istanbul regained its long-forgotten role as a regional gateway between Asia and Europe. With the growing importance of the city in global flows, hypotheses concerning the global city and social/spatial polarisation were advanced for Istanbul, arguing that it could best be characterised as a ‘divided city’. This paper suggests that despite the city's growing integration with global dynamics, the degree of segregation is not on the rise but even registered a slight fall between 1990 and 2000. The distinct nature of social mobility that provided the poor with the opportunities for upward mobility generated an easily legible pattern of segregation. In the mid-1990s these dynamics changed and the forces acting upon segregation became too diversified to be reduced to a single factor, generating unpredictable results in parts of the city. Our findings indicate that the mobility of the existing population and locational choices of newcomers work in opposite directions as far as their impacts on segregation are concerned, with the former increasing and the latter decreasing the existing levels of segregation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Segregation of minority ethnic groups is a returning issue in public and political debates in many parts of the world. This paper focuses on Western European cities and presents information on levels and dynamics of segregation. While acknowledging the measurement problems, we feel comfortable in saying that overall segregation levels do not appear to increase. However, big differences exist, not just between immigrant groups in one city, but also between similar groups in different cities and countries. ‘Integration’ processes of those who settled a long time ago may be counterbalanced by new and difficult to predict immigration. Likely, individual preference, availability of resources, the role of the state, globalisation and economic restructuring as well as discrimination simultaneously impact on segregation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the issue of the relationship between internal migration rates at NUTS 2 level and economic developments. For five European countries, several hypotheses were tested on three groups of economic variables: general business cycle indicators, financial variables as well as variables reflecting more structural labour market developments. The empirical analysis is based on first differences of all variables. Although some support was found for all of the hypotheses tested but one, the main conclusion is that there is a stable relationship between GDP per capita and internal migration that is highly similar across countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Do the people in the European Union share a cultural identity? One important aspect of cultural identity is shared histories or common memories. Such histories can be presented by heritage. Heritage is those traces of the past a society chooses to preserve. Heritage is therefore also a way of defining oneself. To this day, the European Union has not yet compiled its own list of heritage. This paper analyses the World Heritage Sites of EU member states: sites that are considered to be of universal value. When taken together, what image of European history do these sites represent? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cities throughout Europe are increasingly importing the concept and techniques of product branding for use within place marketing, in pursuit of wider urban management goals, especially within the new conditions created by European integration. However, there is as yet little consensus about the nature of city branding, let alone its role in public sector urban planning and management. This exploratory paper will first, use contemporary developments in marketing theory and practice to suggest how product branding can be transformed into city branding as a powerful image-building strategy, with significant relevance to the contemporary city. Second, it will define city branding, as it is being currently understood by city administrators and critically examine its contemporary use so that a framework for an effective place branding strategy can be constructed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Today, many who are involved in the governance of urban development and housing plea for area-based strategies to tackle urban social problems. Various arguments may be given to legitimise that kind of policy intervention. In this paper the assumptions behind the policy application are evaluated. Recurrent discourses and ideas regarding the backgrounds of neighbourhood effects receive extra attention. That discussion will be followed by a critical evaluation of the views that are expressed, both in the literature and through interviews with key actors. Finally, the question will be raised whether it is a good idea to continue with area-based policies or whether it might be wiser to replace the area-based policies by domain or sector policies in order to achieve a more direct approach towards the problems that should be tackled. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the importance of border effects for the location of foreign firms within Poland using a regional data set for the 1990s. In contrast to previous studies the border effects are estimated for individual neighbouring countries that belong to two groups: EU member countries and EU non-accessing countries. It is shown that border dummies for three EU non-accessing countries: Belarus, Russia and Ukraine are negative and statistically significant. These results suggest that regions located along the Polish segment of the Eastern frontier of the enlarged European Union are less attractive to foreign investors compared to other Polish regions, having controlled for their economic and social characteristics. This finding has important implications for the conduct of regional policy as public aid or special economic status may be necessary for these disadvantaged regions to prevent uneven regional growth and widening of development disparities within Poland. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper introduces some concepts for analysing scalar aspects of governance, governance failure, and meta-governance. There is now a significant corpus of work on multi-level governance in the European Union as well as an enormous literature on various modes of governance. Although the problem of scale is often posed directly for the EU case (notably in terms of the‘multi-level’ character of its political regime), scalar issues are also important for all forms of governance. For effective governance must take account of the specific spatio-temporalities of its objects and mechanisms as well as the spatio-temporal location and horizons of action of the subjects involved in its exercise. In particular, among their other relational properties, the objects of governance are more or less embedded in space, place, and scale and linked to distinctive temporal relations and emergent temporalities. This indicates the relevance of a strategic-relational concern with space, place and scale, with spatial, local and scalar imaginaries, and with attempts to secure spatio-temporal fixes to facilitate the reproduction of objects of governance. Given space constraints, I focus here on two sets of issues: (i) theoretically, the role of scale, scalar divisions of labour, the relativisation of scale, and multi-scalar governance; and (ii) substantively, the now paradigmatic case of the European Union as a novel form of multi-scalar meta-governance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The notion that there is a European‘system of cities’ or‘urban hierarchy’ has been an attractive idea, since it appears to provide a coherent subset of cities to study within a regional context. Under conditions of contemporary globalisation, however, the spatial order of European cities can only be properly understood as a‘porous Europe’. That is, it is impossible to sensibly discuss European intercity relations separate from an encompassing world city network. This paper therefore analyses 88 European cities in the context of a global urban analysis of 234 cities around the world. The main conclusion is that leading European world cities are specifically distinguished through their forming of global urban arenas. They should therefore not be thought of as being un-European, but as a special kind of world city that is highly cosmopolitan in its intercity relations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hub-and-spoke networks of airlines create entry barriers at large hub airports. As a result, deregulation does not necessary lead to more competition. In this paper, airline competition at European airports in the 1990s is analysed. Results show important differences between airports, which are related to size and geography. At most airports, competition increased with the successful entrance of new competitors. Yet, competition decreased at hub airports and at airports in the northern periphery in Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract In the information society, information and communication technology (ICT) is potentially an important policy tool. Especially at local levels, scholars stress the essentiality of active intervention and use of ICT tools. However, since these technologies are still new, little experience exists relative to urban ICT initiatives. This paper therefore aims to examine the way urban front-liners (both elected politicians and administrative professionals) perceive the opportunities of urban ICT policy. Using a European survey, the authors researched views and beliefs about different aspects of urban ICT policies. Following that, they tested whether there is a relationship between the activity field of the respondents and their views on ICT policies. Significant differences among urban planners and economists were established. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses the locational suitability of industrial sites in five urban regions in Western Europe for five classes of economic activity. In the selected regions a total of 46 industrial sites and office locations were visited and judged on their suitability for each of the five classes of economic activity. Given the small sample size and the qualitative nature of the information collected, conventional statistical tools could not be applied, and rough set analysis was used. This proved to be a useful tool in identifying the major driving forces in the relative competitive position of the European regions. The study shows that the regions are not competitors in all aspects, but have their own individual geographic–economic specialisations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]