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Contrasted Regional Realities: The Need for Cohesion

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On Tuesday 24 September at the AER Autumn Committee Plenaries in Podčetrtek, Slovenia, approximately one hundred elected representatives and civil servants came together to discuss regional realities of cohesion across the European continent.

Not only can disparities within regions hamper sustainable regional development, but they also generate tensions and tough decisions between, for instance, innovation, on the one hand, and equal provision of services, on the other.

Using a framework derived from the Sustainable Development Goals, the conference examined the situation using GOAL 3 (Good Health and Well-being), GOAL 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation), GOAL 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure) and GOAL 10 (Reducing inequality within and among countries) as indicators of equalities and inequalities in the regions of Europe.

Speaking at the opening of the conference, Alessandra Zedda, AER Vice President, Regional Chancellor for Labour, Sardinia (IT) welcomed participants on behalf of the AER Executive Board and emphasised the vital role played by cohesion policy and AER’s role in the Cohesion Alliance.

A discussion panel with perspectives from Europe, east and west, subsequently delved further into the debate, shedding light on the situation in two EU member states in particular, Slovenia and Ireland. The discussion panel was moderated by Johanna Pacevicius, AER Coordinator for Policy & Knowledge Transfer.

Lilijana Madjar, President of the Development Council of Zahodna (West) Slovenija made clear that there are major differences in the level of development within West Slovenia, let alone between regions and EU member states.

Her presentation showed that there are numerous and diverse development challenges and needs within West Slovenia and that the development of Slovenian regions largely or almost exclusively relies on European Structural Funds and Cohesion Funds.

Ivan Žagar, President of the Development Council of Vzhodna (East) Slovenija echoed these sentiments saying that there are indeed significant differences in the levels of development within Slovenian regions. He went on to say that the real challenge is that these differences are still increasing today.

He elaborated that one of the major obstacles to improving regional development outcomes in Slovenia is the lack of regions with political and financial competencies. 

Furthermore, emigration is a subject of major significance for Slovenian regions. He stated;

If we want to change regional development in a positive direction we must make our regions more attractive and offer better jobs and opportunities. That is why we are support a stronger future cohesion policy. 

Ronan Mac Con Iomaire, Director of Community Development and Language, Udarás na Gaeltachta, the authority for Irish-speaking areas in the Republic of Ireland weighed in. He reported that there are more contrasted realities than cohesion within the Gaeltachtaí. 

He recognises the diversity of the regions and Europe saying;

Different communities have different needs so require different actions.

At Udarás na Gaeltachta, the strategy is to create area-specific projects, cultivate a shared culture, and align the community with this strategy. Recognising that there is no “top-down” nor a “one size fits all” solution, Mr Mac Con Iomaire stated that

if we want to have a strong development community we must work with community development organisations because when bringing community development organisations together, we give them a stronger voice. Subsequently, because of their engagement, they became much more supportive of the initiatives. 

Achieving Cohesion

Despite varied experiences and indeed, realities, in the regions the speakers represent, it was agreed that a holistic approach to regional development is necessary.

As with the Sustainable Development Goals, a ‘this or that’ approach to regional development risks leaving some areas, groups or individuals behind. Instead, growth must be measured not only in economic terms but also socially, societally and according to its sustainability.

Place-based strategies, participatory approaches and multilevel governance are key elements that help foster regional growth and development. Examples such as the Slovenian regions or Gaeltacht areas, go to show what can be achieved when there are political will and people-power to bring about change.

International cooperation, such as in networks like AER, provides opportunities for mutual learning among regions. This conference being just one example of this.

AER Members interested in getting involved in the AER Task Force on Cohesion may contact Vania Freitas

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Cohesion & Contrasted Regional Realities

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This year’s AER Autumn Committee Plenaries in Podčetrtek (SI), will start off with a conference on Cohesion & Contrasted Regional Realities.

Disparities within regions can hamper sustainable regional development by generating tensions and leading to difficult choices between for instance innovation on the one hand and equal provision of services on the other hand.

A holistic approach to regional development is therefore needed. Place-based strategies, participatory approaches, and multilevel governance are of major interest in this context. At the same time, international cooperation provides opportunities for mutual learning and knowledge flow. 

A shift towards inclusive growth policies

According to the OECD, the GDP per capita dispersion is now greater within countries than between countries which means that the different national economies have converged but within countries, regions have diverged.

The European Union counters regional disparities in particular through cohesion policy and next to strengthening economic and social cohesion, the European Commission introduced a new dimension which is territorial cohesion. With each new country joining the EU, territorial cohesion received more and more importance focussing on different issues:

  • Ensure having the same quality of life in all the territories.
  • Capitalise on the strengths of each territory to contribute sustainably to the whole of Europe.
  • Manage the positive and negative impacts of cities and regions. An example of positive and negative impacts would be that cities would like to intensify innovation and productivity but, at the same time, cities increase pollution and social exclusion.
  • Develop cooperation over administrative borders between regions and countries, or even between urban and rural territories, to tackle transversal challenges such as climate change or traffic congestion.

A policy shift towards inclusive growth policies constructed through an appropriate governance system could counter the development of diverging regions. Inclusive growth policies would integrate policy packages that address both physical/environmental capital and human/social capital to foster equity and cohesion in cities and regions. Key actors involved in such policies would be partnerships across levels of government, as well as partnerships between public and private spheres, and civil society.

Sharing experiences

The conference will explore the topic of regional development in the face of contrasting regional realities and take the Sustainable Development Goals as a framework, in particular:

  • GOAL 3: Good Health and Well-being
  • GOAL 6: Clean Water and Sanitation
  • GOAL 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure

The following speakers will share their experience:

  • Lilijana Madjar, President, Development council of Cohesion, region Zahodna (West-Slovenia)
  • Ivan Žagar, President, Development council of Cohesion, Host region Vzhodna (East-Slovenia)
  • Luc Paque, Director, European Union External Relations, Wallonia, BE
  • Ronan Mac Con Iomaire, Director of Community Development and Language, Udaras na Gaeltachta, (IE) tbc

Join the conference to learn from our speakers’ experiences and get various insights on the topic of regional development and territorial cohesion.

Photo by Tom Fisk on Pexels.

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Committee 1 Progress Report Autumn 2019

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Twice a year the members of the AER Committee on Regional Development and Economy gather in plenary meeting. This is the opportunity to set goals for cooperation through the development of a joint work programme and to evaluate progress every six months.

During the AER Spring Committee Plenaries 2019 in Örebro (SE), AER members identified joint actions they wanted to implement with fellow regions and came up with a work programme for 2019-2020 which was integrated in the AER Action Plan. Six months later it is time to evaluate progress, celebrate achievements and share experiences!

The progress report below is organised into 3 categories and gives an overview of the current situation and progress of the different activities going on within AER.

Projects
Good practice sharing
Lobbying

Projects

Together for Cohesion: let’s rEUnite! project: ongoing

“Together for Cohesion: let’s rEUnite!” is a project submitted under a call launched by DG REGIO. On the one hand, this project aims at raising awareness on the importance of programmes, projects, and services funded by the cohesion policy funds. On the other hand, the project will encourage the participation of citizens and stakeholders to turn them into active players in the dialogue on cohesion policy. AER coordinates the project and it will collect experiences on cohesion policy together with regions.

Within AER this project was officially launched during the General Assembly in Larnaca (CY) in June 2019. With the project partner mc Group, also six AER member regions have taken up the challenge of becoming core partners: Varazdin (HR), Csongrád (HU), Trentino (IT), Timis and Alba (RO), and Catalonia (ES).

E-health in rural areas: planned

Members discussed the possibility to develop a pan-AER regional e-health rural project based on innovation and digitalisation.

  • Regions interested in developping such a project should share their idea with the Secretariat in order to start developping this initiative.

Project development on farming, rural planning and infrastructure: planned

Members of the AER working group on rural development would like to develop a project to compare and incorporate good practices in farming (cattle, dairy) and infrastructure.

  • Regions interested in developping such a project should share their idea with the Secretariat in order to start developping this initiative.

Project on rural development: planned

Members of the AER working group on rural development would like to develop a project on how to invest and develop basic infrastructure in rural areas. For example, water, waste, gas, roads, education, health care .

  • Regions interested in developping such a project should share their idea with the Secretariat in order to start developping this initiative.

Good Practice Exchange

Breakfast seminar “Sustainable Development Goals and regional growth”: finished

On 15 May 2019, a breakfast seminar was organised by Oppland (NO) on how to integrate the SDGs in regional planning. This event which gathered speakers from the region and from the OECD revolved around the question whether it is possible to reach the SDGs and have economic regional development, or if they are mutually exclusive? The Powerpoint presentations and videos are available on the AER event page.

2019 AER Autumn Committee Plenaries – Podčetrtek (SI): ongoing

The annual Autumn Committee Plenaries of the Assembly of European Regions will take place on September 24-26 2019, in Podčetrtek, Slovenia.

The topic of the thematic event of the plenaries will be Cohesion & Contrasted Regional Realities. The aim is to share experiences especially from regions with considerable disparities within their territories to learn about different strategies and practices as well as enablers and barriers to more cohesive regional development.

Workshop ” connectivity vs sustainability?”: ongoing

On the occasion of the Autumn plenary meeting in Podčetrtek (SI), the working group on transports & mobility chaired by Martin Tollén is organising a workshop on connectivity and sustainability.

Supporting members to use the TAIEX-Environmental Implementation Review: ongoing

The AER Secretariat disseminated information about the TAIEX-EIR peer to peer learning programme and is supporting members to use this programme to gain or provide knowledge on environmental policies on topics as diverse as air quality, waste management, water management, the circular economy. This programme which is relatively easy and quick to access is a good complement to activities carried out within AER and an opportunity to access support from the Commission to carry out exchanges with other regions.

Gelderland (NL) and the European Commission organised a TAIEX-EIR workshop on “Maintaining and Enhancing Ecosystem Services in Urban Regions” on 4 and 5 July 2019. 

In the context of the joint action to protect Romanian forests, the AER Secretariat has been in touch with DG Environment, to identify ways to use the TAIEX-EIR programme. This should help improve legislation and practices for the protection of primary forests and biodiversity in Romania.

Mutual learning event on economy 4.0: ongoing

Each year Brussels Capital proposes a mutual learning event on a current and transversal topic. On 4 December 2019, Brussels Capital will organise a mutual learning event on economy 4.0. Economy 4.0 describes a new era of productive, industrial and economic development characterized by the implementation of big-scale automatization, artificial intelligence (AI) robotic instruments, computational big data analytics software, and high tech infrastructure. It aims to gather experiences from all three AER Committees and regions who will be welcome to share inputs and regional examples.

Creation of a working group on how to attract more workforce: planned

Several regions in AER have expressed the need to exchange experiences on how to attract more workforce to regions which are largely rural.

  • This action could be developped within the contect of the working group on business and SMEs. Regions interested in working on this topic should share their idea with the Secretariat in order to start developping this initiative.

Effective legislative frameworks: planned

Tulcea would like to collaborate with other regions to elaborate good legislative frameworks for tourism, business, industry, research. The goal would be a simplification of administration and the reduction of red tape.

Workshop on sustainable transport and mobility: cancelled

AER member regions Gelderland (NL) and Östergötland (SE) planned a workshop on sustainable transport and mobility during the European Sustainability Energy Week on Clean Energy from 18-20 June in the House of Dutch Provinces in Brussels.

Lowering emissions in transport: planned

AER member region Norboten (SE) would like to organise good practice exchange on identifying how to lower emissions in transports within the Working group on Energy and Climate Change.

Waste collection in rural areas: planned

Within the working group on rural development, members would like to have an exchange of good practices on how to raise awareness on recycling and waste collection in rural areas.

  • This topic could be addressed either in the context of a meeting of the working group on rural development or in separate events, such as Breakfast seminars in Brussels. Regions which would like to develop something aroud this topic should contact the AER Secretariat.

Small hydropower plants: planned

Exchange of good practice on noise reduction with (small) hydro powerplants (finding suitable location also from environmental point of view). Lobbying and advocacy with NGOs and governments about environmental point of view, partnership, and exchange of good practice. National stimulations for developing projects on national tourism strategy on a local and regional level.

Energy efficiency: planned

Good practice sharing on stimulating energy efficiency, for instance, competition between organisations and OECD. Indicators on energy efficiency and EC energy efficiency directive.

New mobility services: ongoing

Good practices exchange on electric cars and infrastructure both at AER meetings and in events of the European Innovation Partnership on Smart Cities and Communities (EIP-SCC), where Östergötland (SE) is representing AER.

European Week of Regions and Cities: ongoing

The European Week of Regions and Cities (EWRC) is an annual four-day event during which cities and regions showcase their capacity to create growth and jobs, implement European Union cohesion policy, and prove the importance of the local and regional level for good European governance. It will take place from 7-10 October 2019 in Brussels.

AER is hosting a workshop during the EWRC with the title REGIONerating Europe on 8 October 2019 from 9.00am in Brussels. More information is available on the AER event page.

AER Delegation at Smart City Expo World Congress: ongoing

AER will again be taking part in the Smart City Expo World Congress (SCEWC) from 19-21 November in Barcelona (ES). This 2019 edition aims to be the meeting point to encourage all stakeholders (from technology industries to policy-makers and entrepreneurs) to engage in dynamic action to enable a sustainable and inclusive future.

  • Members interested in attending should contact Tina Wu. AER has received 10 free Expo passes and a 25% discount on the 3 day congress pass.

Advocacy/Lobbying

Mobility: engagement in the EIP-SCC: ongoing

AER is involved in the European Innovation Partnership on Smart Cities and Communities (EIP-SCC). This framework is an opportunity for strategic intelligence, state of the art information, partnership building and influence.

Protection of Romanian forests: ongoing

Primary forests are rare in Europe and the ones in Romania are threatened by excessive logging. AER members therefore agreed at the Committee 1 Spring plenary meeting in Örebro, to support Romanian regions to protect this invaluable natural heritage. As a first step, a breakfast debate will be organised at the 2019 AER Autumn Committee Plenaries in Podčetrtek (SI), on the topic of European Biodiversity: Protecting Primary Forests. The situation will be presented and different opportunities for concerted action and next steps will be discussed. The goal will be to establish a joint initiative for the protection and preservation of the Romanian forests.

Action for the protection of Romanian forests will also entail a mutual learning dimension (see above in “good practices”)

Joint initiatives for advocacy

Member regions can decide to initiate joint actions and find partners among AER members. Regions can get support from the Secretariat to connect with other regions, get an overview of the existing legal framework and identify relevant actions and target institutions. The AER Secretariat will also organise Breakfast Briefings to help regions organise their advocacy activities.

AER Bureau Task Forces

The Bureau established the creation of Task Forces on dedicated topics. These Task Forces will gather examples, identify and formulate policy messages which will be brought together in position papers which will then be used for advocacy. Members who would like to contribute to one of the below Task Forces should contact AER Coordinator for Advocacy & Institutional Relations Vania Freitas.

-Task Force on Food Security

-Task Force on Cohesion Policy

-Task Force on Digitalisation

-Task Force on Migration

-Task Force on Sustainable Development Goals

The Committees’ work programmes and the AER Action Plan

The development of the Action Plan is a collective process to enable all participants to specify needs and decide to initiate activities that add value to their region. The principle is the following: as long as an action fits with the AER values, is in line with the AER priorities and has support from other regions, it can be included in the Committee’s work programmes. The Committees’ work programmes are developed in spring each year.

The AER action plan is the consolidation of the three Committees’ work programmes with all other activities led by the Bureau and the Executive Board. It is adopted at the General Assembly.

Members can propose new joint initiatives at any time during the year, these are then approved by the Executive Board and included in the Committee’s work programmes and the AER action plan.

Photo by Thomas on Pexels

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Thinking about embarking on an EU project on transport? Attend the infoday on EU funding opportunities for transport projects!

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The Assembly of European Regions and our members must play a role in European transport policy. We are driven by the principle that mobility should meet efficiency and inclusion, being eco-friendly and competitive for the regions and their citizens.

Several examples of good regional practices and their concrete impact and added value in comparison to European and national initiatives have been shared at workshops and meetings organised by AER in the past within the framework of European funding programmes for transport (INTERREG IIIB, PHARE, ISPA…).

In previous years, the AER sub-committee on “Sustainable transport development and the environment” has highlighted that the “Common Transport Policy is an instrument for harmonisation, but the regions must develop their own transport policies”, adding that “the transport network must allow for sustainable economic development and not simply turn the Regions into transit zones”.

With the challenges of climate change, limitation of resources and demographics, models of mobility must be re-thought for a more sustainable and efficient transport.

Interested to learn what transport challenges could be funded by a project? Curious to know how your transport idea could be financed?

The European Commission will organise an information day within the various Horizon2020 calls dedicated to smart, green and integrated transport, with an overall budget of approximately €356 million . The event will take place on Monday, 7 October 2019 from 09:30 to 15:00 CET in the European Commission’s Charlemagne building in Brussels – and will present upcoming funding opportunities under the following budget lines:

•  Mobility for Growth (MG)
• Automated Road Transport (ART)
• Green Vehicles (GV)
• Next Generation Batteries (BAT)

It will also give an overview of the application and evaluation process, and present tips for writing a good proposal, followed by a brokerage session for partners-searching and networking.

Registration is already open, please visit the official website and register. Download the official programme of the event.

For more detailed information related to this information day meeting, please contact directly:

EU Project Manager
Eduardo Nadal

Phone: +32 2 400 10 12
E-mail: e.nadal(at)aer.eu

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New EASI call for proposals on mobility for SMEs, employment and social innovation

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The European Programme for Employment and Social Innovation “EaSI” 2014-2020 is a European-level financing instrument managed directly by the European Commission to contribute to the implementation of the Europe 2020 strategy, by providing financial support for the Union’s objectives in terms of promoting a high level of quality and sustainable employment, guaranteeing adequate and decent social protection, combating social exclusion and poverty and improving working conditions.

Within the main purpose to promoting workers’ geographical mobility and boosting HR and employment opportunities in a SME environment focussing on the reduction of youth unemployment, improvement of working conditions and promoting inclusion and social enterprises as well as entrepreneurship in a business context; a new European call for proposals will support, in particular, the development of the EURES network (on employment services and workers’ mobility).

AER strongly supports the principles of labour mobility and free movement of workers, as this enhances growth, economic development, social innovation and competitiveness of companies and SMEs based in European regions.

AER has extensive experience in developing and disseminating high-quality comparative analytical knowledge; and facilitating effective and inclusive information-sharing, mutual learning and dialogue. Indeed, this call for proposals is in line with AER work on knowledge transfer and policy dissemination and will aim to:

*Provide financial support to test social and labour market policy innovations.
*Provide organisations with financial support to increase their capacity to develop, promote and support the implementation of EU instruments and policies.

This call is particularly relevant for AER member regions and for the Committee 1 on Economic and Regional Development. During the Autumn Plenary in September 2018 which was held in Vojvodina (Serbia), a discussion on the potential creation of an exchange programme for entrepreneurs from different regions took place. This call for proposals can provide a financial framework for the setting up of such a programme for interested regions.

More in detail, the call is intended to finance projects and activities dealing with topics such as:

-Companies’ partnerships

-Exchange of good practices on employability, labour cross-border activities and short term mobility, i.e. migrant workers and “posted” workers.

-Innovative human resources strategies, e.g. on workers’ performance, productivity, traineeship abroad, and recruitment/talent processes

-Entrepreneurship

-Solutions to tackle labour market mismatches

-Corporate social responsibility

-Business development and growth for SMEs and companies

-Improvement of working-conditions, professional training and youth mobility in sending/hosting companies and businesses

-Social dialogue between employees (e.g. trade union organisations) and employers (e.g. governments, public authorities, private companies and other hiring organisations).

What type of actions can be financed?

a)Consultations, surveys and market research to enhance a proper identification of the needs and obstacles on both sides, of the sending and hosting companies;

b)Development of the outreach and matching strategy, through enhancing
mechanisms of co-operation and dissemination, engaging the employer
organisations as facilitators, participating companies and employees.

c)Developing rules and procedures to make secondments beneficial for all
parties involved.

Who can apply for this call?

Organisations from only eligible countries:

-EU Member States
-Iceland and Norway
-Albania, Republic of North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Turkey

Lead applicants must be Associations representing employers’ interests at national, regional or local level or employers’ organisations established at European Union level.

Co-applicant(s) must be private or public organisations, including social partners, at national, regional or local level.

Budget available and project’s conditions:

Duration of 24 months. The call will finance 1 or 2 projects, being the overall budget available of around 2 million of euro, with a co-financing of 5%. Deadline for applications is 17 September 2019.

Would you like to learn more about this call? Please contact:

EDUARDO NADAL
European Projects Manager
e: [email protected]
t: +32 2 400 10 12
m: +32 (0) 483 448 430

         


  • .

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Apply now for the North-South Centre of the Council of Europe’s 20th University on Youth and Development!

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AER – Youth Regional Network (YRN) is very proud to announce its partnership with the North-South Centre of the Council of Europe 20th University on Youth and Development which will take place in Mollina, Málaga (Spain) in September 2019. This will be also the occasion to celebrate the YRN Autumn Committee Plenaries themed around the UYD’S 2019 annual focus “Youth & Justice” in line with the UN SDG 16 – “Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions”.

25 YRN members and youth representatives from all AER member regions can apply to be part of this reference platform for youth participation in Europe!

What is the NSC of the CoE University on Youth and Development?

The University on Youth and Development (UYD) is a partnership between the Spanish Government (INJUVE), the European Youth Forum (YFJ), the Spanish Youth Council (CJE) and other international youth-led organisations and youth-serving organisations aiming to:

  • Foster democratic participation and global citizenship among young people.
  • Uphold the universal principles, values and standards of the Council of Europe.
  • Implement the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

The Network –facilitated and coordinated by the North-South Centre of the Council of Europe– provides a unique space for youth empowerment, offers non-formal education capacity building activities and endorses policies, mechanisms and tools for youth development, in order to increase the recognition of youth as agents for positive change.

Focus 2019: Youth & Justice

In many countries, unequal access to justice and discrimination in the judicial sector create barriers to civic and political participation, especially for traditionally marginalised populations such as young people, women and migrants. Therefore, this year’s focus on “Youth and Justice” provides a unique opportunity to reflect on young people’s access to justice as an integral element for more fair and sustainable development. In fact, to provide youth with legal empowerment is fundamental, not only to meet their basic needs but also an essential step for inclusive growth, enabling young people to tackle social inequalities and hold authorities accountable. 

Within this context, the SDG 16 is particularly relevant: accountable and transparent institutions, fair and accessible juridical systems and a society free from violence and discrimination are among the main elements that could guarantee a greater contribution from youth in translating policies into action towards the achievement of the UN SDGs. 

To that end, it is important that governments, parliaments, local and regional authorities work together with youth organisations and with other sectors of civil society, ensuring more efficient mechanisms of youth participation and more inclusive decision-making processes, following a bottom-up approach.

Come to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the UYD!

Over 200 young activists, youth workers, experts from the field and decision-makers responsible for youth-related policies from all over Europe will meet in Mollina (Málaga) to exchange views and organise activities under the umbrella theme of “the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 16: peace, justice and strong institutions”. The 20th edition of the UYD will take place at the Centro Eurolatinoamericano de Juventud (CEULAJ), a venue awarded with the Council of Europe’s Quality Label for Youth Centres.

From 15 – 19 September, the AER and YRN will participate and contribute to the programme with their own activities (training, workshop, seminars, etc.) within a common pedagogical framework: the Joint Programme. The joint programme of the University explores and develops the annual focus (Youth and Justice), giving the opportunity to all the partner organisations and their participants to reflect and interact around this topic, in view of a joint advocacy effort.

How to apply?

Applications are welcomed from members of the YRN and youth delegates from all AER member regions until the 12th of August. In order to prepare your application, you can check HERE the concept note of the 20th UYD and the call for activities for further information regarding the programme and practicalities.

A screening process will take place and selected candidates will be contacted no later than the end of August to confirm their participation in the UYD. The selected youth delegates will benefit from free meals and accommodation in single, double and triple rooms from 15-19 September. Additionally, the transfers from Málaga Airport and Antequera Railway Station to the venue will be facilitated by the organisation.

Apply Now!

Have a look at UYD 2018!

Photo credits: @Council of Europe

Video credits: @UYD – NSC-Council of Europe

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NEW Internship vacancy open! European Projects Assistant Wanted – Brussels office

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Ready to train with the EU projects team for the largest independent network of regions in Europe?

We are looking for a motivated intern (ONLY STUDENTS) to join the Project Unit at our Brussels Office, supervised by the European Projects & Private Partnerships coordinator. Work-placement would be for around 6 months.

Your main tasks will be:

  • Mapping calls for proposals and collecting information on funding (based on desk research and by attending relevant events and meetings at European level)
  • Writing articles on the results of your mapping as well as on running projects and activities
  • Liaising and networking with regional organisations and actors for project management and reporting purposes.
  • Disseminating information about EU-wide projects and funding opportunities on social media
  • Supporting AER’s projects team in its partner searches and follow-ups with its members
  • Contributing to the implementation of ongoing projects for all concerning activities and finances
  • Providing inputs in terms of drafting documents to join new project proposals
  • Overall assistance in the project management at European level.
  • The intern will also assist the team with general office management tasks.

This is who we are

Here are some things that make working with us great:

  • AER, the Assembly of European Regions, is an international organisation devoted to interregional cooperation and regional cohesion at European level – which has a multi-disciplinary approach in working on varied topics such as education, youth, social inclusion, public health, new technologies, innovation, economic growth, environment, and employment and follows a multi-stakeholder focus (on regional governments and authorities, private companies, Universities, EU institutions and civil society organisations at European level, among others).
  • We are a team where everyone—including interns—is respected and treated equally
  • We are a committed group of professionals, with terrific people on board
  • We have a meaningful mission; helping people across Europe to work together is what drives us
  • We provide a place for personal and professional growth. Working with a diverse group of colleagues and collaborators in an array of different policy areas widens your horizons and gives you the chance to develop valuable skills
  • We use cloud-based team collaboration tools, which allow us to work efficiently, keep in close contact, and strengthen our community despite frequent travel and different locations

 This is the place for you if:

  • You have knowledge of and/or previous experience in European project management and funding.
  • You have excellent knowledge of both oral and written English. Knowledge of any other European languages will be considered an asset for your work here.
  • You are self-motivated and interested in helping people work together to tackle challenges.
  • You are able to perform tasks autonomously and take on responsibilities while organising your work with the rest of the team.
  • You are a creative and problem-solving oriented person.
  • You have a high degree of proactiveness and flexibility.
  • You have an ability to work in multi-cultural and fast-paced working environments.

AER is happy to offer you the opportunity to:

  • Gain practical experience in the field of projects funded by European programmes.
  • Be in contact with high-ranking politicians, project officers and partners across Europe and get inspired by them.
  • Learn about regions and gain a deeper insight into contemporary issues in European politics and interregional cooperation
  • Work in a dynamic, lobbying and multicultural environment
  • Develop personal responsibility and initiative
  • Take part in high-level EU events and project-building activities in Brussels and abroad
  • Gain invaluable experience in an international professional environment

Internship requirements and conditions:

  • You must be currently enrolled in an education programme (e.g. at University or other higher education institution level) or being a fresh graduate able to have an internship experience abroad through your sending organisation (e.g. your University or other higher education institution).
  • An internship contract must be signed by AER, the trainee and a sending University/School/Institute.
  • The internship period will be for 6 months, starting in early-September 2019 and you will be considered a full member of the team from Day One.
  • You will receive a monthly financial contribution of EUR 150 during your internship period. Travel and living costs must be covered by the intern. Candidates are encouraged to seek other financing sources, e.g. by applying for an ERASMUS+ internship scholarship in their national country.
  • If you are a citizen of a non-EU country, you will have to make sure that you meet all the legal requirements (visa, residence permit, etc.) to stay in Brussels as specified by the Belgian Law for foreigners.
  • Health insurance must be ensured throughout your internship stay.

How to apply?

If you are interested in joining us and making AER your next professional experience, please send your CV and cover letter to Eduardo Nadal at his email address [email protected] , by 22 July 2019 by 12:00 CET, with the subject line “AER European Projects Intern”.

Interviews are planned to take place in early-August 2019.

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Together4Cohesion: Knowledge-Sharing – a regional perspective.

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This article was penned by Hrvoje Kovač, Varaždin (HR), the Chair of the AER Subcommittee on Youth. Varaždin is one of the pilot regions of the Together4Cohesion project.

Given that Cohesion Policy is a key EU investment tool to foster the development in Europe, regions could benefit from it in order to improve citizens’ quality life through job creation, business competitiveness, economic growth and sustainable development. That was the key point of a knowledge-sharing workshop in the context of the project “Together for Cohesion: Let’s rEUnite!” that took place during the 2019 General Assembly and Spring Bureau Meeting in Larnaca (CY).

During ‘Knowledge Sharing Workshop’, participants shared their communication campaigns and reflected on concrete examples from the regions that participate in this project: Trento (IT), Brussels (BE), Martinique (FRA), Catalonia (ES), Alba and Timis (RO) and Varazdin (HR). All participants evaluated best practices in communication that showed the beneficiaries of European Cohesion funding in regions. The initial mapping of good regional practices represents a crucial step in developing our communication campaign: giving us the state of art of the already existing and successful campaigns at local level that we are willing to scale up with innovate ways of communication in order for better reach the citizens and stakeholder in the regions.

The Eurobarometer surveys prove that there is a big discrepancy in the way citizens acknowledge the existence and the benefits of Cohesion Policy from one region to another all over Europe. The European Institutions along with different organisations have been constantly developing actions to improve this situation, but apparently, there is still room to work on it.

In this context the Assembly of European Regions designed the project “Together for Cohesion: let’s rEUnite!”, conceived as a communication campaign that aims to raise awareness about the importance of programmes, projects and services funded by the Cohesion Policy funds in terms of benefits on citizens’ life as well as to turn citizens and stakeholders as active players regarding the future debate on Cohesion Policy. At the heart of it, there is a bottom-up approach that leads regions, citizens and stakeholders to become main protagonists of the action. The campaign is based on the stories of locals in each of these countries as focal points to convey the positive impact of Cohesion Policy in people’s everyday life.

As for one region that participates in this project, Varazdin County from Croatia, this project is great opportunity to exchange good practices, experience and knowledge with other participants because of the fact that Varazdin County is the most successful region in Croatia when it comes to projects financed by the EU – in last 2 years it has been implementing EU projects worth almost 100 million euros. With such amount of public’s money comes big responsibility on informing citizens where and for what this money actually goes. Since Varazdin County is one of the most transparent regions (within 5% of all the regions and municipalities in Croatia that has highest index of transparency), the challenge that they are facing is how to ‘explain’ using common peoples language from where and for what this millions of euros are being spend.

And since these are not like some typical infrastructural investment projects such as road or sewers, but more in the context of social infrastructure because half of the money Varazdin County got for energy efficiency of public buildings (schools, hospitals and other public buildings), by which it has been trying to create better or adequate working conditions for teachers, pupils, students, doctors as well as for patients and other beneficiaries, and of course to contribute to environmental protection and energy savings, the challenge is even bigger. The other half of project money is for various projects – in their education system, health care, preservation of the environment, free school meals for pupils at risk of poverty, etc.

The activities of Varazdin County shows how is important to have a good communication campaign and strategy in order to help citizens understand, as main beneficiaries of EU Cohesion Policy what actually ‘that Cohesion Policy’ IS in their daily lives. The project “Together for Cohesion: let’s rEUnite!” is one of the great tools in overcoming these challenges not only for Varazdin County but for all the participating regions in the project, as well as all those regions which would like to join the project in this stage or as multipliers in the next stages of the project.

More about the project “Together for Cohesion: let’s rEUnite!” HERE

Photo by Glen Noble on Unsplash

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Have you got your finger on the pulse? We’re Hiring!

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External Relations Assistant (Trainee Contract – up to 6 months) – for STUDENTS ONLY

We are looking for a motivated student to join the AER Team at our Brussels Office.

Under the supervision of members of the AER Team, your main tasks will be to:

  • contribute to the external relations (communications, member relations…) strategies of AER;
  • assist in the development and management of our main communication channel (our website);
  • assist in the creation of an updated database of contacts for AER (ranging from member regions to institutional actors and other partners);
  • assist in reaching out to AER’s audience via social media and our newsletter;
  • come up with innovative ways of keeping in touch with our members and growing our impact

Here are some things that make working with us great:
We are a team where everyone —including interns— is respected and treated equally
We are a committed group of professionals, with terrific people on board
We have a meaningful mission; helping people across Europe to work together is what drives us
We provide a place for personal and professional growth. Working with a diverse group of colleagues and collaborators in an array of different policy areas widens your horizons and gives you the chance to develop valuable skills
We use cloud-based team collaboration tools, which allow us to work efficiently, keep in close contact, and strengthen our community despite frequent travel and different locations

This is the place for you if:

  • You want to grow your communications experience in a hands-on way in Brussels.
  • You have strong writing and editing skills, as well as great spoken English. Knowledge of other European languages is considered a useful asset for your work here.
  • You are clued in to trends in communications, social media and current affairs.
  • You are self-motivated and interested in helping people work together to tackle challenges.
  • You are able to perform tasks autonomously and take on responsibilities while coordinating your work with the rest of the team.
  • You are a creative and problem-solving oriented person.

AER is happy to offer you the opportunity to:

  • Gain practical experience in both practical and strategic communication in a European environment
  • Be in contact with high-ranking politicians, project officers and partners across Europe and get inspired by them.
  • Learn about regions and gain a deeper insight into contemporary issues in European politics
  • Work in a dynamic, multinational and multicultural environment
  • Develop personal responsibility and initiative
  • Gain invaluable experience in an international professional environment

You will be considered a full member of the team from Day One.

The internship period will be for up to six months, preferably starting over Summer 2019.

Before applying, please keep in mind…

An internship contract must be signed by AER, the trainee and a sending University/School/Institute.

You will receive a monthly financial contribution of EUR 150 during your internship period. Travel and living costs must be covered by the intern.

If you are a citizen of a non-EU country, you will have to make sure that you meet all the legal requirements (visa, residence permit, etc.) to stay in Brussels as specified by the Belgian Law for foreigners. Health insurance must be ensured during your stay.

How to apply?
If you are interested in joining us and making AER your next professional experience, please send your CV and cover letter to [email protected] by 12 July, with the subject line “AER External Relations Assistant”.

Interviews will take place on a rolling basis.

Photo by Luke Chesser on Unsplash

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Committee 1 Annual Report June 2018 – May 2019

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The General Assembly is the highest authority of AER and convenes representatives of all its full members at least once a year. The General Assembly adopts among other things, the annual reports of the Thematic Committees.

This report is the compilation of actions developped and implemented within Committee 1 between the 2018 General Assembly in Lillehammer, Oppland (NO) and the 2019 General in Larnaka (CY).

Activities are organised in 3 categories:

  • Projects
  • Good practice sharing
  • Advocacy/ Lobbying

The AER Action plan, which brings together all the activities carried out within AER, is constantly updated.

Projects

Together for Cohesion: let’s rEUnite! project: ongoing

This project is funded by DG REGIO. It will:

  • raise awareness on the importance of programmes, projects and services funded by Cohesion Policy funds
  • encourage the participation of citizens and stakeholders to ensure they are active players in the dialogue on cohesion policy.

The project officially started on 1st of April 2019 and will last for 12 months. The following regions, which have sent a letter of support for this project will be involved in different actions funded by the project to engage citizens and communicate about Cohesion Policy in their territories:
Trento (IT), Alba (RO), Timis (RO), Catalonia (ES), Varazdin (HR) and potentially Csongrad (HU).
All AER members are invited to share examples of communication campaigns on Cohesion Policy and to participate in the launching event of the project on 5 June 2019 in Larnaka on the occasion of the AER General Assembly.

Silver Economy Awards (SEED): finished

The Silver Economy Awards aimed to catalyse a sustainable European digital Silver Economy movement by promoting and rewarding innovative solutions to improve the quality of life for over 50s. The Awards were an opportunity to raise awareness around the lesser-known notion of the Silver Economy. They illustrate the breadth of the consumer markets and the public spending involved and the size of the opportunities available for entrepreneurs, investors, public authorities and civil society. Last year the Silver Economy Awards replaced the traditional AER Regional Innovation Award. The first Awards Ceremony took place on May 2018 in Brussels. SEED was a two-year project: 10/2016 to 09/2018

ARLEM project – Capacity building for an integrated and sustainable urban development: canceled

This is a joint project of the Committee of the Regions regional and local authorities focused on the Mediterranean. In this context, AER answered to the call of ARLEM – Euro-Mediterranean Regional and Local Assembly in order to provide technical expertise and political support. AER expressed its interest to focus piloting actions in Turkey, Tunisia, and Morocco. This project aims to reinforce the capacities of local and regional authorities from the southern and eastern shores of the Mediterranean both in terms of urban management and integrated urban development. AER will contribute in the capacity building activities as well as the organisation of regional conferences. It is funded by the Finnish Development Agency and activities are planned for 2 years and six months.

REFIT Project – New regulative frameworks to foster innovation in the transport sector: not accepted

The REFIT project, under the Horizon 2020 Programme, will improve the regulatory framework to make it consistent with the development of new forms of mobility, including shared used mobility, having in mind to safeguard the interest of the users and to attend societal goals. The main result will be the creation of a user-friendly governance tool facilitating regulatory processes to support the deployment of innovative transport technologies and services in the EU.

Event: EU funding for Croatian & Albanian regions: finished

The event on EU funding for Croatian regions, hosted by Varaždin (HR) and Committee 3 President Radimir Čačić, and the event on EU funding for Albanian regions, hosted by Korcë (AL) and MEG member Ana Verushi brought together about 70 participants, both members and non members of AER to:
-hear about AER’s activities
-learn more on AER services for projects and services
-obtain information on the areas of cooperation with EU
-get a relevant update on the current and forthcoming EU funding opportunities
-become aware of the successful experiences of project applicants

Good Practice Sharing

Breakfast seminar “The Sustainable Development Goals and regional growth – Is it possible?” finished

On 15 May 2019, AER and Oppland (NO) co-organised a seminar entitled “The Sustainable Development Goals and regional growth – Is it possible?“ in Brussels on integrated regional policymaking with the OECD and regional examples.

The Sustainable Development Goals as a policy framework: ongoing

  1. The Working Group on Energy and Climate Change organised a workshop on using the Sustainable Development Goals as a policy framework on September 26th in Novi Sad, Vojvodina (RS). Many regions are very active in this space. Oppland (NO), Värmland (SE) and the UNDP in Belgrade provided case studies.
  2. On the occasion of the Joint Plenary session in Örebro (SE), the the role of regions with respect to the Sustainable Development Goals were discussed by Ida Texell, Member of the Swedish delegation Agenda 2030
  3. The Working Group on Energy and Climate Change organised a workshop on ambitious regional planning with views to implementing the Sustainable Development Goals on March 27th in Örebro (SE)

Using the SDGs to communicate AER activities: ongoing

Oppland suggested that as many of the AER activities are contributing to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, AER should promote the 2030 Agenda, raising visibility of how AER and its member regions are contributing to reach goals. AER is further developing its collaboration with UCLG and other networks and organisations around this topic and will organise a major event on this topic in 2020 in Grand Est (FR)

Supporting members to use the TAIEX-Environmental Implementation Review: ongoing

  • The AER Secretariat disseminated information about the TAIEX-EIR peer to peer learning programme and supporting members to use this programme to gain or provide knowledge on environmental policies on topics as diverse as air quality, waste management, water management, the circular economy. This programme which is relatively easy and quick to access is a good complement to activities carried out within AER and an opportunity to access support from the Commission to carry out exchanges with other regions.
  • The TAIEX-EIR programme was presented at the Autumn plenaries in the workshop of the AER Working group on rural development.
  • The AER Project Unit will also organise a webinar in May or June 2019 to help members use the programme.
  • The region of Gelderland is organising a TAIEX-EIR workshop on ecosystem services, which is open (and financed by the European Commission) on 4 – 5 July 2019

Workshop on Life Cycle Approaches to Regional Sustainable Development: finished

Following the September 2017 workshop on life cycle approaches for renewable energy, circular economy and regional development, members of the working group on energy and climate change were invited to participate in a workshop in Bordeaux, France in 4 and 5 March 2019.
This workshop was intended as a consultative forum to gather advice, experience and further case studies to facilitate this move. It will help to develop an outreach programme on Life Cycle approaches to sustainable regional development.

Study visit on the energy transition: finished

The main focus of the study visit, was the bottom-up approach for the energy transition, which was implemented in the region. This multi-stakeholder cooperation was materialised by the Gelders’ Energy agreement (GEA). The shared goal is to make the province energy-neutral by 2050. Local and regional industries, governments and NGOs’ in the province of Gelderland, Netherlands, have pledged for the province to become energy-neutral by 2050. It facilitates a co-creative process where initiatives, actors, and energy are integrated into society. Participants shared good practice and experience, and in particular:

-observed Gelders’ Energy agreement working process
-met with Gelders’ Energy agreement regional partners
-carried out visits to observe regional results
-participated in a serious game on energy and the diverging interests of stakeholders to exchange about challenges.

Open data and blockchain in transports, Working group meeting: finished

The AER working group on Transports and Mobility, which is chaired by Martin Tollén, member of the Transport and Urban Planning Committee of Östergötland (SE), met on 28 March 2019, on the occasion of the Spring Committee Plenaries in Örebro.
Members discussed the following topics:

New mobility services: ongoing

Good practice exchange on electric cars (production of batteries) and infrastructure. Participation of the working group in the REFIT H2020 project on policies to support New Mobility Services. Exchnages around the European Innovation Partnership on Smart Cities and Communities.

Seminar “Food for thought action”: finished

AER organised a seminar on the topic of food and innovation on the occasion of the Örebro Spring Plenaries on 27 March 2019. Speakers shared examples from the regions and showed how central food and innovation is to regional development.

Food: short supply chains & quality food: ongoing

The Working Group on rural development organised a side event on the occasion of Smart City Expo World Congress on the topic of food. Findings of this side event aim to feed the work of the Bureau Task Force on food.

Study visit on food production: canceled

The idea was to focus the study visit on the approach to food production in order to see how microfirm became large company, which was implemented in the Norrbotten region. The initiative could potentially have been linked with the TAIEX EIR peer learning opportunity of the European Commission. This idea was not implemented.

Youth entrepeneurship: ongoing

Members expressed the wish to develop youth entrepreneurship actions in link with Committee 3. EMAX, a Swedish organisation, which organises innovation camps presented their work on the occasion of the Autumn Committee 3 plenary meeting. They also organise a Breakfast Debate on youth entrepreneurship on the occasion of the Spring 2019 plenary meetings in Örebro (SE).

International Migrants Day: Promoting Diversity in Regions: finished

The three AER committees and the AER Task Force on Migration worked closely together to develop messaging ahead of the International Migrants Day: Promoting Diversity in Regions event in Barcelona on Tuesday 18 December 2018.
Participants shared their experiences and good practices in diversity management at regional level, including examples of policies, programmes and was implemented inclusion, participation in civic, economic and political life, positive intercultural interaction and the sense of belonging.

Meeting of the Working Group for Equal Opportunities: finished

The AER Group on Equal opportunities has regular phone meetings and met as well in Novi Sad to discuss the development of a Code of Conduct for AER.

Spring Plenary meeting Committee for Economy and Regional Development: finished

Committee 1 gathered on the occasion of the Spring Committee Plenaries in Örebro (SE) to assess progress, define their 2019-2020 work programme and elect new representatives. The results of the elections are the following:

  • Committee President: Kenneth Backgård, Norrbotten (SE)
  • Vice-President for Economic Development and Mobility: Michiel Scheffer, Gelderland (NL)
  • Chair of the Working Group on Investment, Business & SMEs: Maricel Popa, Iași (RO)

Autumn Plenary meeting Committee for Economy and Regional Development: finished

The 2018 Autumn Committee Plenaries were hosted by Vojvodina in Serbia from 25 – 27 September 2018. A detailed recap of all the meetings that took place is available here. The Committee on Economy and Regional Development members decided that the Task Force on Cohesion Policy, which for historic reasons was under the responsibility of this Committee, should be transferred to the Bureau for coherence purposes, as it is the Bureau which is in charge of the identification of policy messages and advocacy activities.

Sustainable Urban Mobility, Working group meeting: finished

The Working Group on Transports and Mobility decided in Spring 2018 to work on sustainable urban mobility. At the Autumn Committees Plenary meetings, Miroslav Tadic, UNDP Climate Change Portfolio Manager shared the experience of UNDP in Serbia.

Waste management in rural areas, Working Group on Rural development meeting: finished

The Working Group on rural development organised a workshop on waste management in rural areas on September 27th in Novi Sad, Vojvodina (RS). Svetlana Marusic presented the situation in Vojvodina (RS) and Olimpia Neagoe, Chair of the Working Group, presented a project which is being implemented in Dolj (RO) and which is substantially supported by EU funding. Sustainable Waste Management involves both considerable investments in infrastructure and a lot of work on behavioural changes.

Webinar on New Mobilities: canceled

The Working Group on Transports & Mobility will organise a webinar on New Mobilities for all AER members. Date & topic tbc.

International event on Biomass: canceled

Organisation of an international event on Biomass in Vojvodina (RS) in collaboration with AER members. It was replaced by an International Business Summit on the occasion of the 2018 Autumn Committee plenaries in Vojvodina.

International Business Summit: finished

The Regional Business Forum co-organised by AER and Vojvodina gathered in one place Regional chambers of commerce and Regional agencies in charge of investments, support for SME and promotion of business and commerce from wider Europe. It wass an opportunity for regions to promote their business potentials and achievements through both dialogue and bilateral meetings. The programme included a one-day conference, a high-level panel debate on Open Data for startups together with all the policymakers from AER member regions, B2B meetings and different study visits.

Panel discussion on Open data for regional development: finished

On the occasion of the Autumn plenaries in Vojvodina, the panel discussion “Open data for regional development: governance, start-ups and innovation” took place.

The discussion focused on how public institutions collect and generate enormous quantities of data in areas as varied as unemployment, air pollution, hospital consultations etc and how this data can best be re-used to create or improve both public and private services. There is a need to change the political perception of Open Data and instead view it as opportunity for policy-making.

Mutual learning event on the Sharing Economy: finished

Each year Brussels Capital proposes a mutual learning event on a current and transversal topic. On December 4th 2018, Brussels Capital organised a mutual learning event on the sharing Economy together with Catalonia, in Brussels, Brussels Capital Region (BE). This event organised upon the invitation of Committee 1 President Jean Luc Vanraes, aimed to gather experiences from all three AER Committees and regions were welcome to share inputs and regional examples.

The event brought together policymakers, entrepreneurs, academics and representatives of the third sector for vivid exchanges. A follow up article with updates on what happened in Brussels was published.

Explore collaboration opportunities on European certification initiative for SMEs

An innovative European certification initiative for regional small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) could represent leverage for growth and improved cross-border economic relations.

It is in this context that Mr Vanraes, met with with a delegation from CAC en mouvement. CAC en mouvement is a think tank representing around 70% of the French statutory auditors. It has initiated a deep reflexion on how to modernise the profession to make it more useful to local businesses in France and around Europe. One possibility which was mentioned during the meeting was to potentially invite CAC en mouvement to present its European platform of certified regional SMEs to the Committee for Economy and Regional development during its autumn working session. The ultimate goal is to develop synergies with the interested in the project. This will be further discussed with the new Committee 1 Presidium after the AER General Assembly in Larnaka.

Advocacy/ Lobbying

Mobility: engagement in the EIP-SCC: ongoing

The AER Working Group on Transports and Mobility is involved in the European Innovation Partnership on Smart Cities and Communities. It shares regular updates on the work of the EIP-SCC with members

Cohesion Policy Activities: ongoing

Members agreed in September 2018 that the Task Force on Cohesion will now be under the responsibility of the Bureau, which is also in charge of the other Task Forces. Joint actions include:
– Convene joint advocacy: Bureau Members adopted an updated position on the European Commission legislative proposals for the future EU cohesion policy, setting out the specific changes European regions propose to make to the new framework.
– Advocate towards the European Union and Member States
– Work in alliance with other relevant stakeholders and European associations
Flevoland (NL) is coordinating the implementation of the action and the cohesion policy task force help implement the action.

Financing climate action: ongoing

AER works alongside R20, Blue Orchard and Leonardo Di Caprio Foundation to set up a 350 million $ Subnational Climate Fund to finance climate projects in European regions. In August AER met the European Investment Bank to pursue negotiations.

AER was present at this year’s UN climate meeting, which took place in Katowice, Poland. The highlight of AER’s involvement was when AER President Magnus Berntsson spoke at the high-level segment 12 December on behalf of all the regions and municipalities of the world.

AER at the OECD Roundtable on Cities and Regions for the SDGs: finished

Eva Hallström from Värmland, chairing the AER working group on energy and climate change, represented AER while speaking at the 1st OECD Roundtable on Cities and Regions for the SDGs, which took place at the OECD Headquarters in Paris.

The Roundtable brought together cities, regions, national governments, international organisations, private sector and other key stakeholders to identify trends and challenges in the localisation of the SDGs, including the experiences and key findings from the pilots of the programme “A Territorial Approach to the SDGs”.

Joint initiatives for advocacy

Member regions can decide to initiate joint actions and find partners among AER members. Regions can get support from the Secretariat to connect with other regions, get an overview of existing legal framework and identify relevant actions, target institutions. The AER Secretariat will also organise Breakfast Briefings to help regions organise their advocacy activities.

AER Bureau Task Forces

The 2018 Spring Bureau established the creation of Task Forces on dedicated topics. These Task Forces will gather examples, identify and formulate policy messages which will be brought together in position papers which will then be used for advocacy. Members who would like to contribute to one of the below Task Forces should contact AER Coordinator for Advocacy & Institutional Relations Vania Freitas

  • Task Force on Food
  • Task force on Digitalisation
  • Task Force on Migration
  • Task Force on Social Innovation
  • Task Force on Cohesion

The Committees’ work programmes and the AER action Plan

The development of the Action Plan is a collective process to enable all participants to specify needs and decide to initiate activities which add value for their region. The principle is the following: as long as an action fits with the AER values, is in line with the AER priorities and has support from other regions, it can be included in the Committees‘ work programmes. The work programmes are developed in Spring each year.

The AER action plan is the consolidation of the three Committees’ work programmes with all other activities led by the Bureau and the Executive Board. It is adopted at the General Assembly.

Members can propose new joint initiatives at any time during the year, these are then approved by the Executive Board and included in the AER Action Plan

Committee 1 Coordination & implementation of the work programme

The new Presidium of the AER Committee on Economy and Regional Development met on 3 May 2019 in Brussels, to discuss the implementation of the Committee’s work programme for 2019-2020. They agreed on a series of actions to support the actions proposed by members on the occasion of the Spring Plenaries. This work is coordinated by Per Erik Andersson, the seconded officer supporting Committee 1 President Kenneth Backgård, Norrbotten (SE).

Photo by Christian Fregnan on Unsplash

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Will you help us to rEUnite Europe?

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Ever heard of European Cohesion Funds?

… said nobody ever…

According to a Eurobarometer survey from June 2017, in some regions, up to 95.3% of the population consider Cohesion Policy useful. This sounds great – but do people actually know about the EU’s investments in regions more generally? 

The study revealed that only 35% of EU citizens are aware of projects funded by EU cohesion policy in their region. The most shocking fact that the survey revealed was that of all people interviewed, only 4% have heard about Cohesion Policy.

Cohesify.eu found similar results: Asking “What do citizens think of Cohesion Policy and does it matter for European identity?” to focus groups in 16 regions across Europe, the participants recognise that Cohesion policy matters for improving the quality of life in their area, but feel they are inadequately informed:

Participants identified the lack of communication – defined as the insufficient publicity of Cohesion policy – as an important problem in the implementation of Cohesion policy. People think they are inadequately informed and expect European, national and regional government authorities to step up their communication about EU policies and fulfil their obligation to inform the public. The effort to communicate Cohesion policy should be reinforced. […] (Pegan, Mendes & Triga, 2018, p. 33)

There are many examples of how European Cohesion Policy Funds support people’s daily lives. Whether it’s transport, healthcare, communication, leisure activities, community life – Cohesion Policy aims to reduce economic and social disparities and to promote sustainable development (read more about Cohesion Funds here). 

That is why AER has partnered up with mc Group to finally spill the secrets of success stories and best practices from European regions!  

Together, we want to ensure that your efforts are visible: through the European funded project ‘Let’s rEUnite‘, we want to tell these stories to all citizens across Europe.

As such, we’re keen on hearing your success stories! Did your region recently design a campaign on beneficial outcomes for your citizens? Are you working on a best-practice which benefitted citizens? (for example, in healthcare, sustainability, etc.) Have you had a push on engagement together with other partners in your region? How do you show your citizens that they benefit from services provided with Cohesion Funds?

Submit your campaign – with Let’s rEUnite it gets heard on a European level!

Let us know about your Cohesion Communication Campaign in this form:

Cohesion Communication Campaign Survey

We also want to hear about your upcoming events!

Whether it’s a local fair, a presentation for entrepreneurs or a two-day food festival: let us know where your locals meet!

Insert your local event for our European Cohesion Calendar in this form:

European Cohesion Calendar

Our aim is to provide all project partners & friends with a comprehensive guide on communication strategies for their policy projects. The main outcome of Let’s rEUnite is a central website hub which will garner attention not only from the EU Institutions but also from the regions and citizens themselves!

Therefore, help us in shaping a campaign that best suits you by replying to the two forms above before 24th May!

Featured image: by Luca Upper on Unsplash

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Regions take holistic and wholehearted approach to SDGs

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On the morning of 15 May 2019, AER and Oppland (NO) co-organised a Breakfast Seminar entitled “The Sustainable Development Goals and regional growth – Is it possible?“, which took place at Oslo Region European Office in Brussels

The sustainable development goals (SGD) call upon governments, businesses and civil society to come together and work towards a sustainable planet, leaving no one behind. Many, if not all regions, are working towards this in one form or another.

The discussion, moderated by Turid Wulff Knutssen from Oppland County, featured input from Oppland County, (NO), Region Värmland (SE), Flanders (BE) and the OECD Centre for Entrepreneurship, SMEs, Regions and Cities.

After some warm words of welcome by Even A. Hagen, County Mayor, Oppland, the discussion turned to the subject of how to build a new region in the light of Sustainable Development Goals? Erik Lagethon, Advisor on Regional Development for Oppland County Authority shared his views on how the SDGs can be framework or roadmap for regional planning and the upcoming merger of the Oppland and Hedmark regions in Norway.

Stina Heikkila, Consultant on Territorial Approaches for the SDGs at the OECD, spoke about the OECD’s work on a Territorial Approach to the Sustainable Development Goals.

AER Working Group on Climate Change and Energy Chairperson, Eva Hallström, took the floor to present her view on “Implementing SDGs in regional planning – more than words?” and to give examples from her region, Värmland (SE) before being joined by Ine Baetens, Expert on Sustainable Development for Flanders (BE), who presented “Vision 2050: a long-term strategy for Flanders” linked to the SDGs.

Is the question really Growth vs Sustainability?

Many of the speakers highlighted that the paradigm needn’t be so black and white. Regions, national governments and international organisations are looking beyond economic growth alone for indicators for progress. Social and environmental factors, as well as happiness indices, can also be used as measures that we are moving in the right direction.

How best should regions approach the SDGs?

Whether undergoing regional restructuring or simply reflecting on how to move forward on the Global Goals the consensus was that regions need to anchor the #SDGs in an interdisciplinary way, taking a whole of government approach, involving all stakeholders and avoiding that the Goals are siloed into the work of the regional department for the environment, for example.

Additionally, when looking at the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, regions need to go ‘all-in’ rather than focusing on one or two goals that suit their current work plans or are likely to lead to successful outcomes.
An integrated approach is fundamental to ensuring progress made has the widest possible impact. As such, comprehensive implementation is therefore essential to ensuring success.

Emphasis needs to be placed on including reporting and evaluation into a regional SDG strategy to avoid ‘greenwashing’.

It may be demanding & time-consuming to implement SDG’s into regional planning but the consensus at this widely-attended event was that the effort is undoubtedly worthwhile.

What can be done? And where do we start?

This event jointly organised by AER and Oppland County is a direct result of the 2019 AER Committee Plenaries in Örebro, Sweden, where sharing best practices and knowledge exchange takes centre stage.

In this spirit, the breakfast seminar afforded the regions present to exchange on concrete actions they have undertaken to inspire others to do the same.

One such example is the Oppland County Bioeconomy Strategy and the integrated approach taken in this work. In a similar vein, Värmland County Council shared its experience as Swedens most sustainable County Council. Citing the award it received for Europe’s first LEED Healthcare Gold-certified hospital, Värmland showed how its active efforts for a sustainable environment have yielded positive results.

The Flanders region in Belgium also shared its experience of how it has grown to change the way we perceive what it means to evolve in the right direction. The wide-ranged efforts untaken have covered everything from Blue Growth (moving from subsidising fossil fuels to subsidising waste removal from the seas) through to Industry 4.0 & the circular and sharing economies.

  • Erik Lagethon, Oppland County
  • Stina Heikkilä, OECD
  • Ine Baetens, Flanders
  • Eva Hallström, Region Värmland
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Together for Cohesion: let’s rEUnite! and…let’s kick-off

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When you say connection, you say cohesion. When you say cohesion policy you say regional policy. When you say regions you say the Assembly of European Regions. That’s the short way to say that one of the core reasons that led to the setting up of our network is to advocate the principles of regional cohesion at European level. This is how the action started and continues, as like in any complex narrative, challenges take the most interesting place.

Background of the project

Given that cohesion policy is a key EU’s investment tool to foster the development in Europe, regions could benefit of it in order to improve citizens’ quality life through job creation, business competitiveness, economic growth and sustainable development. Despite all that, the Eurobarometer surveys prove that there is a big discrepancy in the way citizens acknowledge the existence and the benefits of cohesion policy from one region to another all over Europe. The European Institutions along with different organisations have been constantly developing actions to improve this situation, but apparently there is still room to work on it.

Together for Cohesion: let’s rEUnite!

In this context the Assembly of European Regions designed the ambitious project “Together for Cohesion: let’s rEUnite!”, conceived as a communication campaign that aims to raise awareness about the importance of programmes, projects and services funded by the cohesion policy funds in terms of benefits on citizens’ life as well as to turn citizens and stakeholders in active players regarding the future debate on cohesion policy. At the heart of it, there is a bottom-up approach that leads regions, citizens and stakeholders to become main protagonists of the action. The campaign will mainly focus on 5 European countries: Croatia, Hungary, Romania Italy and Spain, while some projects initiatives will be also open to interested actors outside this geographical scope. The campaign is based on the stories of locals in each of these countries as focal points to convey the positive impact of cohesion policy in people’s everyday life.

Kick-off meeting & mc Group

The project “Together for Cohesion: let’s rEUnite!”, funded by DG REGIO (European Commission-Directorate-General for Regional and Urban Policy), officially started on 1st of April 2019 and will last for 12 months. In line with the European spirt of its consortium, we celebrated the 9th May – Europe Day – in a significant way, by having in Brussels the kick-off meeting of the project with our consortium partner: “media consultant International Holding AG” (mc Group). As a full-service international integrated communication agency network, mc Group is the top-ranked German public relations agency and ranked third among advertising agencies in Germany. With offices in all 28 EU member states and 82 countries globally, mc Group will play a key role in order to successfully reach the project’s objective and to provide professional expertise on communication and dissemination to the actors involved at different levels into the project.

The kick-off meeting has been a fruitful occasion to strengthen the cooperation among the project partners, to agree on the project’s values and objectives and to elaborate the detailed action plan of the forthcoming activities. 

Stay tuned to follow the next initiatives…

The first project activity is the Call for Engagement launched by AER on the 8th May. This call stands as an official invitation for the AER regions within the 5 target countries that sent us letters of support in the preparation phase of the project, thus expressing their interest in being directly involved in the campaign. Therefore, the very first step of our project is “Regions on board!”. The regions that will reply positively to the Call for Engagement will be the direct beneficiaries of a diverse typology of actions to foster the perception of cohesion policy in their territories. Nevertheless, other regions within AER network and beyond will benefit from the events and the outputs of the project.

The next step of the “Regions on board!” is the Call for Action. This is a public invitation for all AER members as well as other organisations not strictly in our network yet, in order to share with us information regarding:

  • communication campaigns developed in the regions related to any kind of activity (projects, programmes, etc) funded by the cohesion policy funds. The best 10 practices will then be selected and included in an on-line catalogue which will be widely disseminated
  • pre-existing local initiatives and events related to cohesion policy that are going to be included in the “European Cohesion Calendar” which could be linked and fostered by the project activities.

The initial mapping of good regional practices represents a crucial step in developing our communication campaign: giving us the state of art of the already existing and successful campaigns at local level which we are willing to scale up with innovate ways of communication in order to better reach the citizens and stakeholder in the regions.

Launching of the communication campaign on cohesion policy

The launching of the “Together for Cohesion: let’s rEUnite” campaign will take place on 5th June 2019 on occasion of the AER General Assembly in Larnaca (Cyprus). Anyone interested in joining us and eager to feel the enthusiasm of the moment, is more than welcome!

Given that this project will last for 12 months, the activities are intense but nice and we are happy to keep you posted very soon on the next steps of this Let’s rEUnite adventure!

See you in Larnaca!

photo by pexels

European Projects

Agnese Pantaloni

Phone: +32 2 400 10 52 E-mail: a.pantaloni(at)aer.eu Skype ID: agnesepanta Languages: it, en, pt Articles by Agnese
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Committee 1 explores collaboration opportunities on European certification initiative for SMEs

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An innovative European certification initiative for regional small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) could represent leverage for growth and improved cross-border economic relations.

Added value for SMEs

On March 6th, Jean-Luc Vanraes the President of the AER Committee for Economy and Regional development met with a delegation from CAC en mouvement. CAC en mouvement is a think tank representing around 70% of the French statutory auditors. It has initiated a deep reflexion on how to modernise the profession to make it more useful to local businesses in France and around Europe.

Olivier Salustro, President of CAC en mouvement and of the Paris Regional Company of Statutory Auditors, and Laurence Versaille, Vice-President of CAC en mouvement and of the Bordeaux Regional Company of Statutory Auditors, explained how the creation of a European platform of certified regional SMEs would be beneficial to SMEs across Europe.

Stimulating exchanges & investments in Europe

With the objective to stimulate cross-border economic and commercial exchanges, CAC en mouvement is developing a platform that aims at centralising information on SMEs from different European regions. The goal is a presentation of the entities, of their economic intentions and the state of their financial accounts. The project initiated after a series of consultations with different actors such as entrepreneurs, decision-makers and researchers.

This initiative would give SMEs the possibility to subscribe on the platform and to undergo statutory audits of their accounts as well as of some specific policies, such as environment and corporate social responsibility. The results would be published to reassure potential investors and partners.

Partnership perspectives

Committee 1 President Jean-Luc Vanraes is convinced by the benefits of this bottom-up initiative for the economic development of the regions. One way possibility which was mentioned during the meeting was to potentially invite CAC en mouvement to present its European platform of certified regional SMEs to the Committee for Economy and Regional development during its autumn working session. The ultimate goal is to develop synergies with the regional authorities interested in the project. This will be further discussed with the new Committee 1 Presidium after the AER General Assembly in Larnaka.

Photo by Stephen Dawson on Unsplash

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Is it possible to combine regional growth with the Sustainable Development Goals?

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AER members have been working continuously and especially last year on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) defined by the United Nations. Their implementation by cities and regions is crucial but how can they ensure economic growth while contributing to these goals?

Commitment of AER to use SDGs as a policy framework

The SDGs are a call addressed to all the nations, businesses and civil society to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that everyone enjoys peace and prosperity. There are 17 goals which are interconnected and often go hand-in-hand. This means to be successful in one SDG also involves taking care of issues connected to another, they must be viewed as a whole. AER is therefore of the opinion to promote an integrated approach to the SDGs.

As a result, the Committees’ Work Programme for 2018-2019 demonstrates a strong commitment towards the SDGs. One of the main topics members decided to work on during the Spring Committee Plenary, was the use of the Sustainable Development Goals as a policy framework.

The importance of SDGs in regional policy

Most policies are a shared responsibility across levels of government. According to the OECD, it is estimated that 65% of the 169 targets underlying the 17 SDGs will not be reached without the engagement of and coordination with local and regional governments. This means that cities and regions have an important role to play in the achievement of the SDGs.

Indeed, regions and cities are key actors for addressing the most urgent societal challenges European economies are facing. In Europe, regions and cities hold competencies in the provision of basic and social services. Examples would be health, education, urban planning and resource, and waste management, among others. However, there is no standard solution when it comes to the mainstreaming process. Each region needs to take into account their own realities and circumstances in implementing the SDGs. ​

Hence, it would be interesting to know how a region could guarantee that they contribute toward the SDGs while at the same time ensuring economic growth? Is this  possible, or are they mutually exclusive? To answer these questions it is important to have tools which analyse and monitor the trends towards the SDGs.

On 15 May 2019 during Green Week, the region of Oppland will be hosting a breakfast debate “SDGs and regional growth – is it possible”. It will take place at the Oslo Regional Office from 9-11am in Brussels. The goal of the seminar is to showcase tools and good practices to help regional governments implement the SDGs.

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