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AER Appoints Christian Spahr as Secretary General

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The Executive Board has appointed Christian Spahr as the Secretary General of the Assembly of European Regions (AER), which represents regional governments in wider Europe. A former European Commission Spokesperson for Regional Policy, Spahr will lead the work of the AER Secretariat, which has offices in Brussels and Strasbourg and also includes the AER’s Southeast Europe Hub in Alba Iulia, Romania. He takes over the role in November from his predecessor Mathieu Mori, who led the daily work of AER from 2013 until 2020.

Christian Spahr, a German national, has held a number of key management roles in the fields of European policy, communications and media. Between 2018 and 2020, he was in charge of the European Commission’s media relations on issues of economic governance and Cohesion policy, among other topics. From 2012 to 2018, Spahr led a ten-country programme of the German think tank Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung in Southeast Europe, based in Sofia, Bulgaria. Earlier in his career, he worked as a spokesperson for Germany’s digital business association Bitkom, and was business editor for a large regional newspaper. He is also a founder and board member of a non-profit association for government communication, serving in an honorary capacity.

Announcing Mr Spahr’s appointment as Secretary General, AER President Magnus Berntsson first thanked his predecessor, Mathieu Mori: “for his strong dedication to building stronger regions and successfully managing our ambitious and transformative organisation with 150 member regions.”

“The Executive Board is very happy to welcome Christian Spahr as our new Secretary General”, Berntsson continued. “With his knowledge of European policymaking, management experience in member-driven organisations, and an excellent working knowledge of the EU and its neighbourhood, Christian will be a key player to overcome the challenges for regions ahead.” Some of the AER’s current and ongoing priorities are to strengthen subsidiarity in times of crisis, to ensure sustainable development including in rural areas, and to equip regional governments so they can successfully transition and use EU funding. 

Speaking of his appointment, Spahr said: “It will be a great privilege to work for the hopes and ambitions of Europe’s regions. Many of them need to reinvent themselves for the future, to strengthen their economy and develop better living conditions in difficult times. In line with AER’s inclusive and bridge-building approach, I am committed to offer the regions an even greater package of support.”

His predecessor Mathieu Mori explained: “In the past decade, AER could play its part in building stronger regions and striving for more solidarity in Europe. I am grateful for this inspiring experience and would like to thank the AER President and Executive Board for their support and trust; the team for their professionalism, and all the AER members and partners for their engagement and passion.”

Spahr will formally take up his role on Monday, 2 November 2020.

***

The Assembly of European Regions is the political platform of regional governments in wider Europe, with direct membership of public authorities from 30 countries. As the largest independent network of its kind, AER promotes the regions as key players in the European project, as well as democracy and good governance.

For press inquiries, please contact our Communications & Events Officer, Justin Sammon via email at [email protected]

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“The Future We Want, the UN We Need”- AER Reactions

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The United Nations 75th Anniversary consultation on “The Future We Want, The UN We Need”, is an ambitious UN exercise in crowdsourcing priorities and solutions. The Global Taskforce of Local and Regional Governments facilitated the drafting of a Visioning Report on behalf of the constituency to which the Assembly of European Regions is part of.

On 21st of September, world leaders of the United Nations General Assembly gathered virtually to commemorate the seventy-fifth anniversary of the UN. On 8th of October, the constituency of Local and Regional Authorities met to not only celebrate but to also share the future United Nations they envision for 2045. On this occasion, the AER President, Mr Magnus Berntsson, will be representing the Assembly of European Regions.

The year 2020 will mark a turning point for our societies. Local and regional authorities found themselves at the forefront of the health crisis, having to coordinate a quick response to protect their citizens and their economy from the pandemic. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has reinforced the importance for a renewed system, “multilateralism is not an option, but a necessity, as we build back better for a more equal, more resilient and more sustainable world”, as claims the statement from the adopted declaration on the commemoration of the seventy-fifth anniversary. 

At the Assembly of European Regions, we consider this to be the right time to advocate for a new model of governance in which the Local and Regional Authorities have the opportunity to be represented at the global level and are welcomed to seat at the global decision-making table. 

In the next forty-five years, the Local and Regional Authorities Constituency hopes to see a structural shift towards a territorially integrated multilateral system, which promotes a bottom-up approach. A structural shift that is achieved through the principle of subsidiarity, collaborative governance and effective decentralization. 

Global challenges are also the local and regional challenges, as a matter of fact, we all have interconnected problems, hence we should ensure interrelated solutions. “Think globally, act locally” this should be the concept of the new system. 

In 2045 we expect to see Local and Regional Authorities sitting on the same table with global leaders, and confronting together global challenges from a local and regional approach to guarantee the wellbeing of the world citizens. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed and widened the profound inequalities that exist among our regions and cities. We have just entered the decade of delivery and we can not let this global crisis undermine our joint efforts and achievements reached so far. The AER envisions a future in which through stronger collaboration and enhanced dialogue across generations are found alternatives to deliver on sustainable development. It is our shared responsibility to advocate for the structural shift towards a community-driven multilateralism, and we should do it hand in hand, unifying forces and coordinating responses and actions to ensure that no one is left behind.

Local and Regional Authorities are in charge of bringing the voice of their citizens to the global level and placing citizens at the core of governance. However, this can only be achieved with the establishment of partnerships and with the support of key stakeholders, such as the Assembly of European Regions. Together we will fight inequalities and ensure that all groups of the population are listened to. 

Image credits: The Global Taskforce of Local and Regional Authorities

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Culture, a pillar of sustainable regional development

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The AER conference “Territorial Approaches to Regional Development” focusing on the ways in which regions address differences between urban and rural areas aimed to look in detail at the role of culture to create inclusive and welcoming rural areas. In the below article, Eugenijus Kaminskis from Xwhy / Agency of Understanding in Lithuania, and a lead partner in the CUBES project, shares his experience on why and how culture is the fourth pillar of sustainable development, as stated by UNESCO.

Cultural identity’s role for sustainable development


There is a new positive direction of involving cultural sector and communities while developing strategies for regional development.
Culture in relation to sustainable regional development is a horizontal priority and it plays an important role not only in promoting, but also enabling sustainable development. Therefore, creativity, creative society, and creative economy are the essential drivers of regional prosperity.

Cultural interventions aim to address not only the problems of the cultural sector, but also the problems of economic competitiveness, social cohesion and sustainable development of regions. Cultural policy and cultural initiatives are becoming much more than a specific area of ​​public policy, but also as a strategic direction of regional development, cooperating with other sectors of public policy.

Together with economic prosperity, social justice, environmental sustainability, culture is recognized as the fourth pillar of sustainable regional development. Sustainable regional development requires to ascertain a region’s identity, values, and forces shaping its future. Identity enables values, and values define the direction of actions. This direction is only effective when applied in accordance with trends and the broader strategic framework.

Culture in this context helps to define regional identity, express its core values, and communicate the desired change. Each region is a unique territory not only as a geographic area but also as a specific historical and cultural domain.

Culture as a tool for localising the Sustainable Development Goals


Regional planning needs to encompass the identity arising from the place and has often contradictory value logics. Taking cultural dimension into account invites regional stakeholders to decide, which values to prioritize what is important and move away from crisis management towards sustainable development.

Cultural values exercised locally by stakeholders in combination with the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) framework by the United Nations, can be put into practice at the organizational, local, regional, national and international levels, and become a great planning tool.

Without seeking synergies between the local cultural context, the complex past, and an uncertain future of the region, development goals can remain simply declarative slogans that mean nothing to places and people. Regions now have a unique opportunity to take advantage and localize the principles of sustainable development according to their local cultural context.

Culture is also at the heart of the CUBES project, where AER is a partner. Partners are creating a bridge between cultural heritage, administrative bodies, and digitalization. Adjacent to raising awareness and emphasizing the importance of culture, one of the project’s main externalities is that of increasing competitiveness and economic growth. The actions to be implemented are targeted at local communities, public authorities, NGOs, and CSOs.

CUBES project webpage

Photo credits: Remis Scerbauskas, Cultural initiative “Cabbagge field” revitalising neighbourhood in Kaunas city, Lithuania.

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Regions at the core of the European Green Deal

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The first AER series of webinars on European Green Deal in collaboration with the Advisory Council for Sustainable Development of the Catalan Government (CADS) was launched on 14 September. During the online session entitled EU Green Deal: Challenges and Opportunities for EU regions in times of COVID-19, it was discussed the key role that the European Green Deal and its Just Transition Mechanism will play in building more resilience and economic recovery to tackle the consequences that will be confronted by European regions in a post-COVID-19 era. 

For this occasion, the more than one-hundred participants enjoyed the presence of experts working on the ground and implementing the new EU growth strategy from different perspectives. In this regard, the panel was composed by an institutional representative, Peter Berkowitz, Head of Unit of the Smart and Sustainable Growth department from the Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy European Commission. Representing the regional perspective: the Secretary for Vicepresidency and Economy from the Government of Catalonia, and AER Vicepresident for Sustainability, Albert Castellanos; and Iris Flacco, Director of the Energy Department from the Italian region of Abruzzo. And representing the Institute for European Environmental Policy (IEEP), Céline Charveriat, Executive Director. 

The online session moderated by Arnau Queralt, Director of the Advisory Council for Sustainable Development of Catalonia and chair of the European network of Environment and Sustainable Development Advisory Councils (EEAC), started with an introduction of the new EU growth strategy by the hand of Albert Castellanos. The AER Vicepresident for Sustainability highlighted the key role that the European Green Deal will play in supporting European regions recovering from the economic crisis as a result of the pandemic, for instance, as Castellanos reiterated and also brought up by Céline Charveriat later on the debate, this EU growth strategy should not be seen as a contradiction to the COVID-19 crisis, but as a new framework and opportunity for regional governments to bring at the top of their priorities the green and sustainable transition.

Albert Castellanos highlighted the relevance of placing regional administrations at the core of the EU recovery, regions and cities are closer to the citizens than national governments, and therefore can address and understand the needs of their citizens better. He also reminded that most European regions have key competencies that play an important role in the recovery, such as health, social care, and research and development.

The Head of Unit from the Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy (DG REGIO) from the European Commission, Peter Berkowitz, explained that the European Green Deal has been created as a new framework for linking economy and climate environmental goals, and therefore it should be placed at the centre of the EU recovery plan and co-finance the green transformation. At DG REGIO are strong advocators of involving territorial and regional levels in the so-called sustainability transitions and putting into practice the main idea from the Just Transition Mechanism: leaving no region behind on the transformation planned.

Peter Berkowitz also mentioned the relevance of placing cohesion policy at the heart of the green transition in order to deliver on the targets set by the European Green Deal from a territorial and regional approach. The main idea is to put into place the right mechanisms to govern this transition, and by governance meaning the right actors that are aware of their capabilities to deliver on a fair and sustainable way. There is a strong capability to use the fund for this transformation and the right governance to engage all the needed actors on this process. He agreed that this will be a big challenge, although also a big opportunity, that can only be achieved by joining efforts from all levels of governance.

The Executive Director of the Institute of European Environmental Policy (IEEP) added to the debate a tone of reality when she remembered to the audience and the panellists that this pandemic has only aggravated an already existing problem at the European Union concerning inequality between European regions and countries, and most governments were far beyond from achieving the previously established environmental goals. Therefore, Céline Charveriat called to address the three main challenges ensuring intra-country and intra-generational equity. She asked to harness the green deal and green recovery for greater cohesion and solidarity, establishing a new contract between rich and poor regions and regaining the lost terrain by this crisis in becoming more sustainable and fair. 

Iris Flacco, representing the Government of Regione dall’Abruzzo (IT), highlighted the important role that regions and cities, such as in Abruzzo, played during the last months, being at the front line, directing all the efforts to protect the health and welfare of citizens, which led to leaving aside for a while environmental and climatic ambitions. However, in line with the representative from DG REGIO, she agreed that the European Green Deal has to be at the core of the recovery, and regions must put into practice measures as soon as possible. Regional governments must promote sustainable mobility measures, invest in the digitization and accessibility to all the people of a stable and fast Internet network. The region of Abruzzo, in order to face the resulting crisis from the pandemic, has developed strategies to address the energetic and climate issues by identifying the projects immediately applicable and relevant financing lines.

Interesting questions were raised by the more than one-hundred participants, for instance, the relationship between 2030 Agenda and the Green Deal. Peter Berkowitz responded with a reminder: “the 2030 Agenda it’s like the structure of a building, it’s integrated into most strategies and initiatives but you can not see it”, therefore, the goal of the European Green Deal is to deliver and make progress on achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. 

As concluding remarks, Albert Castellanos highlighted that is key to understand the link between economic growth sustainability and the achievement of environmental challenges. And closed the debate stating the relevance of involving regions in the implementation of the European Green Deal.

For further inputs or in case you missed it out, watch the video now!

Future related events to this topic:

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Funding Opportunities under the EU Programme for Employment and Social Innovation

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New opportunities are arising for fostering social wellbeing in Europe and beyond! Two calls have been launched under the European Union Programme for Employment and Social Innovation (“EaSI”). The call are both aimed to actively address the major societal needs of nowadays societies through two different actions: On one side, VP 2020/010 is designed to fund the establishment of national competence centres for social innovation; On the other, VP2020/003 supports the development of policy innovations in the frame of the Principle 14 of the European Pillar of Social Rights providing that “everyone lacking sufficient resources has the right to adequate minimum income benefits ensuring a life in dignity at all stages of life, and effective access to enabling goods and service”.

Competences centres for social innovation (VP 2020/010)

In the current fast-changing world, societal innovation is becoming increasingly important to address the major social and economic trends as the low-carbon economy transition, digitalization, demographic change, migration, and the recent pandemic. In this context, social innovation refers to a set of “activities linked to the development testing, validation and implementation and scaling-up of (a combination of) new products, services, models or practices that meet social needs and resolve societal challenges” (VP 2020/010).

Given the increasing importance attached to social innovation by the new Commission and within the future ESF+ Regulation, the call aims to contribute in the shape the adequate context for societal innovation actions through the establishment, development, and professionalism of organizations

Need to empower social innovation initiatives and partnerships and boost the stakeholders’ capacity to act. The call aims to support the “establishment, development and professionalism of organisations that do or can assume the function of a social innovation competence centre in an EU Member State” (VP 2020/010) acting as a hub for capacity building, transnational transfer of knowledge, creation of synergies, and networking.

The expected outputs of the call include:

  • The establishment of a competence centre for social innovation, and its recognition from relevant external stakeholders as well as entitlement to formal endorsement.
  • An analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of social innovation and the definition of areas and approaches that can inspire other territories
  • A joint blueprint by stakeholders for a social innovation’s strategy and action plan in the country
  • A system to pursue ongoing improvements and adaptions of their tools and methodologies, resources, and practices for each competence centre
  • A collection of social innovation initiatives initiated or scaled-up

Deadline for submitting proposals: 16th November 2020

More information can be found here

Establishing and testing integrated interventions aimed at support people in (the most) vulnerable situations (VP/2020/003)

Through this call, the European Union wants to address persisting threats to the social and economic wellbeing of people as the lack of long-term employment and activity, and poverty and social exclusion. The need of making social protection and social inclusion as resilient as possible increases and becomes even more urgent in light of the new challenges posed by the COVID-19 crisis, which has further enhanced social disparities and caused constraints to public services’ accessibility and a serious decrease in the employability call.

To counter these trends, the call supports existing or new partnerships in the development and testing of policy innovations and experimentations particularly aimed at the delivery of Principle 14 of the European Pillar of Social Rights through the multi-stakeholder innovative approach.

Deadline for submitting proposals: 15th October 2020

More information can be found here

Izmir Metropolitan Municipality is currently looking for partners to develop a proposal for the call. More information can be found in the dedicated article.

Photo Credits: United Nations COVID-19 Response (Unspalsh)

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AER participating in #EURegionsWeek

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The Assembly of European Regions (AER) is pleased to announce our participation in the European Week of Regions and Cities (EURegionsWeek) in two sessions during the week of 12-16 October.

The EURegionsWeek is an annual event taking place in Brussels dedicated to regional policy. During this week, political representatives, decision-makers, experts and practitioners of regional policy, as well as stakeholders from business, banking, civil society organisations, academia, the EU institutions and the media discuss common challenges for European regions and cities. In 2019, over 9000 participants took part in over 330 sessions.

Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic, the EURegionsWeek will be fully digital over 3 weeks from 5 to 22 October, each week covering a different theme:

October 5 – 9: Green Europe
October 12-16: Cohesion and Cooperation
October 19-22: Empowering Citizens

Achieving 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development through Cohesion Policy

On 15 October from 11:30 – 13:00, we invite you to join our webinar in partnership with  Regions 4, ORU Fogar, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the Catalan Directorate-General for Development Cooperation (ACCD), and the European Union EUROsociAL+ Programme.

The Sustainable Development Goals should be met leaving no one and no place behind. Cohesion policy will be an essential instrument for countries, regions, and municipalities to make progress towards the SDGs through its multi-level and multi-stakeholder implementation approach and investments in strengthening people’s skills, creating job opportunities, fighting poverty and social exclusion, supporting small and medium enterprises, as well as addressing major global issues such as climate change and migration. Regional and local governments must ensure cohesion policy programmes bring about the best outcomes for sustainable development and the localization of the SDGs, turning the 2030 Agenda into reality across Europe.

The webinar will aim to address the main question of “How cohesion policy can make regions deliver for a sustainable and fair Europe, and progress on the implementation of the SDGs“.

Speakers:

Stefano Marta, Coordinator Territorial Approach to the SDGs, OECD, Centre for Entrepreneurship, SMEs, Regions and Cities
Agustí Fernández de Losada, Specialist, EUROsociAL+ Programme.
Leyre Madariaga, Director of Foreign Relations, Basque Government.
Natàlia Mas, Secretary of Economy, Government of Catalonia.
Javier Sánchez Cano, Head of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, Directorate-General of Development and Cooperation Catalan Government.
Moderated by Mr Magnus Berntsson, AER President

For further information and programme, please refer to the concept note.   

Deadline: 27 September

Eurodyssey35: Regions on the move

On 14 October from 9:30 – 11, we invite you to join us for our participatory lab about what is at stake for youth development, and the instrumental role of youth mobility in fostering territorial cohesion and a sense of European identity. 

Mobility is at the core of European integration. For over 25 years the EU has actively promoted the mobility of students, researchers and citizens to deliver in strategic policy areas: employment, education and inclusion. Since 1985, the AER has put regions at the forefront of fair mobility for young people through our Eurodyssey programme. Regional and local authorities have a key part to play in driving youth development and tackling barriers to short-term mobility and longer-term cohesion.

Through parallel discussions, the audience will not only take a deep-dive into the ins and outs of youth mobility but will also challenge the invited storytellers to reflect upon the linkages between fair mobility, quality employment, social inclusion and active European citizenship

Speakers:
Mr Hrvoje Kovač, Chair of AER Subcommittee on Youth, Assembly of European Regions (AER)
Ms Andrea Ugrinoska, Chairperson of the Advisory Council on Youth, Council of Europe
Ms Floor Van Houdt, Head of Unit for Youth policy and Volunteer Solidarity, European Commission’s Directorate-General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture

Deadline: 27 September

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European regions and the green transition in a COVID-19 era

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The European Green Deal is the new EU growth strategy launched by the European Commission with the objective of transforming the European Union into a fair and sustainable society with a competitive and green economy where there are net emissions of greenhouse gases by 2050. This EU strategy includes a roadmap to accelerate the green transition in Europe and to address a large number of economic, environmental and social challenges; such as global warming, biodiversity loss, food security, secured energy, sustainable mobility, carbon-free societies, etc. Moreover, the European Green Deal is an integral part of the European Commission’s strategy to implement the Sustainable Development Goals, which aims at putting sustainability and the well-being of citizens at the centre of the economic policy while at the same time places the Sustainable Development Goals at the heart of the EU’s policymaking. 

However, the COVID-19 pandemic has endangered the implementation of the European Green Deal and the development of regional and national strategies in line with it. For instance, the European Member States are falling behind when it comes to the development and establishment of National Energy and Climate Plans, and this has only been worsened by the pandemic crisis. European regions and cities have been at the forefront of the outbreak, changing their priorities and putting all their efforts to protect the health and well-being of their citizens.

Nevertheless, and as the President of the European Commission reminded: “The European Green Deal should become our compass to turn the COVID-19 crisis into an opportunity to rebuild our economies and make them more resilient; the European Green Deal should be the motor for the recovery”. As a matter of fact, the global pandemic should not be seen as a contradiction with the European Green Deal, on the contrary, the COVID-19 crisis could offer an opportunity to accelerate the implementation of it providing the best framework to construct a pathway towards recovery and strengthening resilience; a path for a social, just and fair transition that leaves no region and no one behind. 

On 14 September, the AER series on European Green Deal launched in collaboration with the Advisory Council for Sustainable Development of the Catalan Government (CADS) will celebrate its first webinar: The EU Green Deal: Challenges and opportunities for EU regions in times of COVID-19. During this online session, it will be discussed the key role that the European Green Deal and its Just Transition Mechanism will play in regions and the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic will have on its implementation. On this occasion, the panellists will reflect on the relevance of this European growth strategy concerning building more resilience and economic recovery to tackle the consequences that will be confronted by European regions in a post-COVID-19 era. 

This panel debate will bring together representatives from the European Commission, as well as representatives from regional authorities and think tanks to address some of these questions:

  • How the COVID-19 pandemic can accelerate the European green transition?
  • How the European Green Deal can build more resilience and boost economic recovery from this crisis in European regions? 

Check the events page for further information and registration!

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ARLEM Award 2021

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Are you a young entrepreneur running a local business in the Mediterranean region and collaborating with your regional or local community? Then you may be eligible for the ARLEM Award 2021.

The Assembly of the European Regions is pleased to present this initiative launched by the Euro-Mediterranean Regional and Local Assembly (ARLEM) to award a young innovative entrepreneur addressing their local needs. Created in 2010 by the Committee of the Regions (CoR), ARLEM aims to give a territorial dimension to the Union for the Mediterranean; promote local democracy, multi-level governance and decentralized cooperation around the three shores of the Mediterranean; encourage North-South and South-South dialogue; promote exchange of best practices; and promote regional integration and cohesion.

In the context of the current COVID-19 pandemic, the importance of the local economy and the realisation of the limits of globalisation came to the forefront. Now more than ever before, young local entrepreneurs need support to develop their businesses and address local communities’ needs. With this award, ARLEM focuses on stimulating local business, supporting young entrepreneurs and encouraging collaboration between local public authorities and the private sector. 

Deadline for this award is 20 September 2020. More information and the application can be found here.

The winning enterprise and local/regional authority will be announced at the 12th ARLEM Plenary Session at the beginning of 2021 (#ARLEMaward).

Eligibility Requirements:

  • Young Entrepreneur (under 35)
  • Supported by her/his regional or local community
  • Enterprise has been registered and running for at least 3 years
  • Headquartered in a country on the three shores of the Mediterranean (Albania, Algeria, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Monaco, Montenegro, Morocco, Palestine, Tunisia and Turkey

Take a look below at the previous winners:
Arlem Award 2020
Arlem Award 2019

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AER delivering universal basic services at the 3rd Local and Regional Government Forum

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On 13 July 2020, Mr Magnus Berntsson joined the Local and Regional Government Forum (LRGF) organised within the framework of the United Nations High-Level Political Forum. The AER President had the pleasure to represent the constituency of Local and Regional Governments of the Global Taskforce and speak on behalf of those who could not make their voice heard on such an important day.

The 3rd edition of the LRGF was marked by the pandemic, which prevented the participants to convene in New York as planned in the first place. The world has been put to test during the past several months, a test to which anyone was prepared for. As reiterated by many local and regional representatives, all of them found themselves at the forefront of the health crisis, having to coordinate a quick response to protect their citizens and their economy from the pandemic. Some months have passed since the COVID-19 destabilized the global health systems and most regional and local governments have been able to take quick action in responding to the pandemic through universal public service delivery. Indeed, housing played a fundamental role in our fight against COVID-19 allowing social distancing and hygiene, two key elements to stopping the further spread of the virus.

However, while some member states and regions are already recovering and making progress against the pandemic, others, the poorest and most vulnerable ones, the ones that have not been granted access to basic services, are still suffering the most from this crisis.  

In this regard, the local and regional governments should take responsibility for the provision of basic services to their citizens in order to improve their living standards and their quality of life. Basic social services are part of the fundamental human rights, and no one is better placed than regions and cities to understand and respond to the needs of the most vulnerable.

According to the last progress report by the UN Secretary-General, half of the world’s population do not benefit from any form of social protection nor have access to essential health services. Food insecurity has been on the rise since 2015 and due to the pandemic, the figures have been exacerbated. Global health systems have been devastated amid COVID-19, which has revealed the insufficient healthcare facilities and medical supplies. Children’s education has been put at risk by the closing of schools during the global lockdown affecting over 90% of the student population, remote education has worked well in some countries whereas in others it has only widened the digital gap. Billions of people throughout the world still lack access to safely managed water and sanitation services which are critical to preventing the spread of the virus. 

And these are only a few examples that show how COVID-19 has exposed and widened the profound inequalities that exist in the year 2020 among regions and countries. The AER President remembered to all the participants that we have just entered the decade of delivery and the global pandemic should not undermine the joint efforts and achievements reached so far, and it is the shared responsibility from local and regional governments to ensure that no one is left behind. 

As reiterated on several occasions by the UN: there is an increased acknowledgement of the necessity to involve all stakeholders in order to provide basic services to those furthest left behind. Providing basic services means protecting the fundamental human rights, and promoting social, territorial, and economic cohesion. Thus, in order to deliver basic universal services, it is urgent to strengthen multilateral systems, increase knowledge transfer and open dialogue, as well as investment and cooperation at all levels of government. 

The AER President concluded his speech with a call to action to members states, regions, cities and civil society organisations to coordinate efforts in order to establish a fair future for all with resilient regions and cities and to guarantee the quality living standards that each citizen of this world deserves.

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Localising Agenda 2030: how regions can help meet the SDGs

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Last week, on 24 June, the online conference ‘Localising Agenda 2030: how regions can help meet the SDGs’ took place from 14:30 until 16:00 pm.  This event, the first of a series of events focusing on SDGs leading up to our final conference taking place in Strasbourg in June 2021, aimed to emphasise the importance of local actions in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. The event gathered 64 attendees via the Zoom platform and 50 others followed the live web-stream.

With the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic, citizens have seen quick responses and actions from both regions and cities. The crisis has exposed inequalities and the role of regions for sustainable recovery and action for a more fair and resilient society can no longer be postponed. Together with national authorities, regions now have a moral responsibility to advance the achievements of the SDGs, namely by focusing on health and wellbeing and financial recovery through inclusive and sustainable economic growth.

Through this webinar, we had the opportunity to hear our speakers tell us more about the importance of regions. The webinar was moderated by Dharmendra Kanani, Director of Insights at Friends of Europe. The panel debate included five speakers.

The first speaker, who opened the discussion, was Magnus Bertnsson, President of the Assembly of European Regions (AER). He started the discussion by stating that yes, progress in achieving the SDGs had been made in Europe, but with COVID-19 appearing, there is a higher need for action and efforts to reduce inequalities must be accelerated. Local and regional authorities are among the main actors to achieve a more fair and resilient society which stresses the importance of a multilevel and a multilateral approach. Europe, post COVID-19, has the opportunity to create something new and to rethink what kind of society people want to live in. 

The second speaker, Aziza Akhmouch, Head of the OECD Division for Cities, Urban Policies and Sustainable Development, shared a more analytical and factual approach to the importance of regional development policy. She stated that 65% of the SDGs could not be achieved without local and regional governments. While national governments are ultimately accountable in their performance to the UN, this does not mean that regions cannot be held liable. 80% of the regions from OECD countries, about 600 regions, are far from having reached the targets which shows why it is equally important to attribute an agenda to both national and local governments. The localisation of the SDGs is crucial.

The next speaker, Raffaele Cattaneo, Minister for Environment and Climate of Lombardy (IT); member of the Regions 4 Steering Committee, reflected on the need for a transformation in today’s economy. As a result of the public health crisis, economic recovery, alongside jobs and public health have become the top priority where a few months ago, climate used to be at the top of the agenda. Indeed, a lot of resources are now moving from green deal to health care systems. There is a need for a discussion between citizens and EU institutions to reset our priorities and transform our economy which will require clear political decisions as well as responsible production and consumption.

Wallis Goelen, Senior Expert at the European Commission Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy, emphasised the efforts of the EU Commission in order to respond to the needs of regions and cities as a result of COVID-19. She stated that the current cohesion policy measures respond to 11 SDGs out of the 17 existing while fostering regional development. However, she also stressed the importance of capacity-building and the use of place-based strategies which will now be at the forefront in the Commission’s new priorities.

The last speaker of this webinar, Damià Calvet, Minister of Territory and sustainability of the Government of Catalonia, representative of UCLG-Global Taskforce, explains the importance of regions in liaising national and European interests on SDGs and other topics. Regions have the capacity to empower a wider network of actors to bring change and achieve sustainable development together. According to him, sustainable development cannot be achieved without greater input from regions. Moreover, the contribution of the Global Taskforce Regions has a great importance in bringing regional and local authorities in order to unify forces and reach Agenda2030. 

It is key to reiterate the need to give a more relevant role to regions. Whereas local governments are doing a great process in developing sustainable strategies and are very vocal about it, regions seem to be more silent. The COVID-19 crisis has opened the “pandora’s box” and has shown how many processes and involvement are needed from regional governments in order to achieve a sustainable and equally developed global society. AER as a regional network has assumed the role to raise awareness and to call into action its member regions to engage in achieving a global society that leaves no one and no territory behind.

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COVID-19: What is at stake for youth development?

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Undeniably, youth play a crucial role in the action plans to limit the spread of the COVID-19 and its adverse impact on public health, society and the economy at large. Young people are also among the most vulnerable groups who suffer from the pernicious consequences derived from this crisis.

Labour turmoils

The pandemic is admittedly making young people the main victims of labour market shocks. According to Eurostat, in April 2020 while the general unemployment rate increased by 0.2%, from 6.4% to 6.6%, the youth unemployment rate increased by 0.8%, from 14.6% to 15.4%. In OECD countries, the unemployment rate rose faster among women and young people aged 15 to 24 as reflected in the graphic below:  

Source: OECD Statistics

Over 1 in 6 young people worldwide have stopped working since the start of the crisis, according to ILO. This disproportionate escalation of youth unemployment can only be attributed to the fact that young people are overrepresented in informal employment –77% of employed young people hold informal jobs worldwide [1]– and in job sectors most at risk (ex. tourism, retail trades, personal services) from the COVID-19 shutdown. In light of these negative developments, the quality of jobs for young people will severely deteriorate and temporary contracts will become more prominent.

Socio-economic gaps

As unemployment grows, the socio-economic gaps between young people, and across generations, become more profound amid the economic and health crisis. Access to social protection is one of the major concerns and significantly varies depending on a person’s background (including age). As many welfare programmes are linked to formal employment, that leaves many young people unprotected, especially young women, and more exposed to health-related hazards [2].

In Education, the COVID-19 pandemic is altering learning, compromising nutrition and increasing the drop-out rates as a result of the nationwide closures of educational institutions. In this context, disadvantaged children and youth who have fewer economic or educational opportunities outside of school, limited access to e-learning tools and depend on free or discounted school meals are at risk of falling further behind [3].

Not to mention the young migrants and refugees. Given that 70% of all international migrants are below 30 years of age globally [4], epidemics like the COVID-19 will hit this concrete population group the hardest. What is more, the pandemic will limit even more their access to healthcare and livelihood provisions while exacerbating the social stigmas towards any minority group.

Building mental resilience

The COVID-19 outbreak has triggered detrimental effects on the wellness and mental health of children and young people. The short-term quarantine measures and social distancing turn out to have greater psychological implications for the young population and contribute to exacerbating other household and individual circumstances: personal safety, prospects of job and income losses, medical conditions in the household, social connectedness or trust in other people and in institutions [5].

According to an OECD survey, more than half of young people express great concerns about their mental health. This requires immediate policy responses and long-term solutions to mitigate harm and proactively improve systems of support for young people and children. These measures may include: providing online resources; advice to general practitioners and youth workers; inclusive telemedicine consultations; and, overall, reinforcing resources for mental health services in the aftermath of the pandemic.

Source: Eurofund

The WHO or Voices of Youth have published a compilation of resources such as guidance documents and Q&As in the area of COVID-19 & youth mental health. Furthermore, initiatives such as the Global survey on youth rights and COVID-19, a joint effort of the Global Initiative on Decent Jobs for Youth (DJY) and its partners, will shed further light, among various areas, on the psychological implications of COVID-19 for young individuals.

A call for intergenerational solidarity!

It is more imperative than ever that every administration level across Europe and beyond include young people in the recovery strategies and cooperates with every economic and social player to safeguard their rights and wellbeing. The Sustainable Development Goals are paramount in accelerating a vigorous response to overcome the epidemic as well as build resilience and “social immunity” that the world needs to prevent the next pandemic.

References

[1] UN DESA, World Economic Situation and Prospects, April 2019 briefing, no 123.

[2] Special issue on COVID-19 and Youth (27 March 2020). Programme on Youth Unit, Division for Inclusive Social Development (DISD), Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), United Nations.

[3] UNESCO ”COVID-19 Educational Disruption and Response”: https://en.unesco.org/themes/education-emergencies/coronavirus-schoolclosures

[4] 2019 International Migration and Displacement Trends and Policies Report to the G20: https://www.oecd.org/migration/mig/G20-migrationand-displacement-trends-and-policies-report-2019.pdf

[5] “The impact of COVID-19 on children and young people”. March 2020 The Children’s Society – United Kingdom. Policy and Research team.

Photo credits: Mathias Jensen on Unsplash

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AER Regions taking part in Regiostars Awards 2020

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Did you know that some of AER’s member regions are taking part in the Regiostars Awards this year? These awards go to EU-funded projects which demonstrate excellence and new approaches in regional development. These projects are made to inspire other regions and project managers across Europe. 

Five categories are on the list for the competition and a public choice award are up for grab every year :  

  • Industrial transition for a smart Europe, 
  • Circular economy for a green Europe, 
  • Skills & education for a digital Europe,
  • Citizen Engagement for cohesive European cities, 
  • Youth empowerment for cooperation across borders (through 30 years of Interreg)

Check out some of the projects that AER members have submitted below!  (If we have missed your project, please contact Tina Wu with the name and the category)

You can vote for these projects on the competition platform by giving them a heart. The independent jury will choose up to 5 finalists per category, to be announced on 9 July.

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

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Generalitat de Catalunya’s Webinar on the necessity to feminise the management of public resources

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On 22 June, the Generalitat de Catalunya is holding a webinar to discuss the necessity to feminise the management of public resources. The event is held in the context of the European Cohesion Calendar of the project Together for Cohesion and will target public authorities representatives.

The webinar will be held in Catalan.

It will start with a presentation from Lluís Juncà, General Director of Economic Promotion, Competition and Regulation, followed by an instructional welcome from Pere Aragonès, Vice President of the Government and Minister of Economy and Finance. Mercè Brey, consultant and speaker specializing in diversity and inclusive leadership, will present her paper titled: ‘Més enllà del gènere, una realitat possible’ (Beyond gender, a possible reality). A round table to debate and reflect on the impact of the gender perspective on the management of public resources will follow. Various panelists will take part in the discussion:

  • Anna Tarrach, Director General of Budgets, Department of the Vice Presidency and of Economy and Finance.
  • Mercè Corretja, General Director of Public Procurement, of the Department of the Vice-Presidency and of Economy and Finance.
  • Ariadna Rectoret, director of the Public Employment Service of Catalonia (SOC), of the Department of Labor, Social Affairs and Families
  • Núria Espuny, Director General of Transparency and Open Data, of the Department of Foreign Action, Institutional Relations and Transparency.
  • Mireia Mata, Director General of Equality, in the Department of Labor, Social Affairs and Families.

The event will end up with a conclusion from Alba Vergés from the Minister of Health.

Event Page

What’s next?
In the coming weeks, more activities will be organised by the regions involved in Together for Cohesion. We invite you to check out our Cohesion Calendar to be updated on upcoming events! You can also have a look at the success stories gathered from projects funded by the Cohesion policy around Europe.

Visit together4.cohesion.eu

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Territorial Approach to Smart Specialisation: Experience from Värmland

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The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic led to the cancellation of the AER Spring Committee Plenaries in Covasna County, Romania. The debate on “Smart specialisation strategies in rural areas, inclusion & wellbeing” could therefore not go ahead as planned. In order to harness the knowledge and expertise of our membership, AER is sharing content from speakers online instead.

In the below article, Kenneth Johannesson, Committee 2 Vice President for Health Innovation shares experience from Värmland (SE) on Smart Specialisation.

Welcome to Rural Värmland…

The Värmland region is part of North Central Sweden. Värmland borders Norway and the Oslo region and is thus a border region in the EU. Proximity to Oslo is an important condition for business and employment. The population of the region in 2014 was 274,691 inhabitants and the population grew by 0.5% from 2009 to 2014.

Värmland is facing important challenges, such as slow population growth, a low level of education, low wages and a low degree of employment compared to the Swedish average. Companies in Värmland are dependent on good communications due to the long distances to the metropolitan regions. Compared with other regions, Värmland is home to large tracts of forestland, which is promoted as an asset for the region and its forest industry in the Värmland strategy. The public sector provides most of the jobs in Värmland, followed by the manufacturing and steel industries and retail trade industry.

The labour market is gender-segregated both horizontally and vertically, which means that women and men find themselves in different sectors and industries, and in different positions within one and the same industry or workplace. In the case of business and entrepreneurship, most men in Värmland operate businesses in farming, forestry and fishing, while most women run companies offering cultural and personal services.

Defining Smart Specialisation in Värmland

The goal of smart specialisation in Värmland is to create new good jobs and sustainable and inclusive growth in Värmland. It is a holistic strategy that involves citizens, industry, the business community, municipal councils, the county council and the region of Värmland.

In short, smart specialisation involves learning how to prioritize and invest in innovations in order to bolster Värmland’s competitiveness. This is achieved by profiling the business and research sectors of Värmland, defining the areas of specialisation, as well as forming collaborative partnerships in Europe to successfull network and influence European policies.It is important that it is a comprehensive process where actors understand the importance of the strategy that they are creating.

Värmland has a number of priorities when it comes to Smart Specialisation, they include:

Leading the way for gender equality…

Värmland is the first region in Europe to have conducted a gender analysis study and undertaken a conscious gender-mainstreaming of the strategy for smart specialisation. In this regard, Värmland stands out as a pioneer for gender equality.

Services that create value for users

Given the progress already made in Värmland within research related to service innovation, service design and servitization, we are continuing to develop research in order to enhance the abilities of private and public actors to contribute to value-creation for customers, users and society as a whole.

Forest-based Bioeconomy

A thriving bioeconomy is demonstrated throughout Värmland through innovation and also by increasing the selection and demand for forest-based products and services. At the same time, we blaze a trail to convert to a fossil-free and sustainable society. Our fundamental strength is a sustainable forest industry with high-quality raw materials. Forest industry processes and products are the spearhead of our industries.

Digitalisation of Welfare Services;

We are developing and testing welfare services in actual environments with users: women, men, girls and boys as co-creators to provide varying types of solutions, many of which are digital. The public sector is an important user and producer of these processes. This results in better and more efficient care, education and other social services and ultimately happier, more competent and healthier citizens.

Advanced Manufacturing and Complex Systems;

We develop and offer energy- and resource-efficient system solutions and components for – primarily –  heavy vehicles, the forest industry and within renewable energy, energy efficiency and hydrodynamics. For companies, we offer membership in a cluster organisation with an open climate of collaboration in which we help each other with solutions to problems, in the development of composite systems, and with service offers.

Nature, culture and Place-based Digitalised Experiences;

We visualise knowledge, stories and natural values of places using digital technology and media in order to create unique experiences for visitors. Värmland possesses a rich diversity of more or less utilised opportunities for outstanding experiences. We have a lively cultural legacy in music, art, handicrafts, historic finnish culture and storytelling traditions. Värmland’s nature offers features such as clean water, biological diversity, different climate zones and activities such as hiking, cycling, canoeing and boating as well as an unexplored unique inland sea. Our region is also popular for winter sports with good access to skiing.

System Solutions with Photovoltaics;

We contribute to renewable power for more people all over the world and we have solutions for our own control over the production of electric power. The specialisation helps to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases as we develop and offer solutions for the production of electric energy from photovoltaics.

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Active and Assisted Living Forum: Call for Workshops

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Do you work in the active and healthy ageing sector? Do you want to participate in the European discussion driving the future of healthy ageing?

Then the AAL Forum is the perfect opportunity for you to be involved in an ecosystem that promotes a new social and economic approach to grow a more inclusive silver economy benefiting individuals, society and industry.

The AAL Forum is the annual event for the community of healthy ageing gathers to discuss the existing opportunities in health technology and reflect on the future of ageing well in the digital world. It gathers more than 700 delegates from different fields and domains. The 2021 edition of the AAL Forum will be held in Trieste, Italy, from 10-12 May.

The Friuli Venezia Giulia Region, member of the Assembly of European Regions and co-organizer of the 2021 edition of the AAL Forum, is glad to invite you to submit your workshop proposal to create discussions and promote new ways of approaching either of the four tracks of the upcoming AAL Forum in Trieste. Workshops should be interactive and motivational sessions and follow the below described thematic areas dedicated to the upcoming Decade of Healthy Ageing.

The AAL Forum will take inspiration from the Decade of Healthy Ageing launched by the WHO in 2020, in order to discuss and exchange on key active & healthy ageing priorities for a collective and collaborative approach in Europe.

The Forum will touch upon some of the main topics put forward by WHO, such as:

  1. Driving a platform for innovation and change;
  2. Adapting health and care systems to the changing needs of an ageing population & drawing on the emerging learnings from the Coronavirus outbreak in 2020;
  3. Promoting Intergenerational Solidarity;
  4. Make the socio-economic case for impact investment into healthy ageing.

Apply with your workshop by sending your application to: [email protected]
Deadline: 26 June 2020

For further information, please refer to the following website: https://www.aalforum.eu/about/programme/call-for-workshops/

Contact person in Brussels:
Luisa Poclen – Friuli Venezia Giulia Brussels Office
Email: [email protected]

Find out about AAL funding opportunity: AAL Call 2020 “Healthy Ageing with the Support of Digital Solutions”

Photo by Product School on Unsplash

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