Governance mechanisms for cross-border functional areas: drivers,challenges, opportunities and integration (CROSSGOV)

European border regions are often described as the ‘laboratories’ of Europe and European integration. They show the potential of European integration. Removing border related obstacles supports economic prosperity, social exchange and political innovation. During periods of stagnation in cross-border dynamics, the costs of non-integration become clearly evident. The COVID-19 pandemic with its backlashes of border controls and partial closures has revealed that border regions are not necessarily the places where European integration work most effectively. Border regions are seismometers of European integration with a limited resilience against crises where there is still a large potential to be developed. Border regions show a remarkable territorial diversity. They can be very peripheral or metropolitan, and the border can be a mountain range, a river or a plain land. Disparities can be very high even along the same border, as can differences in labour markets and further mobility phenomena. At the same time, the political cultures and multi-level governance systems on either side of the border can be highly diverse, often characterised by only selective cross-border arrangements. Diversity in border regions implies a high degree of complexity. In this situation, we see a certain paradox: Even if the relevance of cross-border integration is widely recognised, the governance solutions are often incremental, and the analytical knowledge remains limited. The CROSSGOV project aims to reach ‘next levels’ of analytical understanding and to concretise measures for exploiting the potential of governance in border regions. In doing so, the project supports the resolution of the European Committee of the Regions on a vision for Europe: The future of cross-border cooperation. The tendering consortium adopts the Terms of Reference in a comprehensive manner and sees one of its strengths in the innovative exploration of a multi-faceted dataset. Official statistics both from European and domestic institutions will build an initial basis for the analyses. However, only by combining this base with ‘new’ and ‘big’ data allows for a comparative reflection on a fine spatial scale and also beyond EU member states’ perimeters. In reflecting on multi-sectoral issues, mapping and visualisation are of key relevance for the project consortium. Presenting important results in an aesthetic, didactic and attractive way will be a cross-cutting concern of high priority. The consortium brings together different partners with highly comparative expertise, allowing for a comprehensive reflection, interpretation and solution development. More information: https://www.espon.eu/projects/crossgov-governance-mechanisms-cross-border-functional-areas