On 12 March, at the inauguration of ESPON’s new premises, Commissioner for Regional Policy, Johannes Hahn and the delegated Minister for Sustainable Development and Infrastructure of Luxembourg, Marco Schank responsible as Managing Authority for the ESPON Programme, underlined the importance and usefulness of ESPON, the European Observation Network for Territorial Development and Cohesion. 

As recent ESPON evidence on globalisation shows, to strengthen competitiveness and to enhance Europe’s strategic linkages, it is of great relevance to better understand the territorial development of the EU neighbouring regions.

ESPON’s contribution to the formulation of adequate policy strategies to enhance Europe’s competitiveness in the global context is in focus at the Internal Seminar on 5 and 6 December 2012 “Territorial Development Opportunities in Europe and its Neighbourhood to Foster Global Competitiveness”, organised in cooperation with the Cyprus Presidency of the Council of the European Union. 

Latvijas lauku teritorijas, līdzīgi kā Lielā Mančestera Lielbritānijā, Jitlande Dānijā un Baleāru salas Spānijā, ir guvušas vērtīgu pieredzi, kā attīstīt reģionālo ekonomiku, balstoties uz inovācijām un zināšanām. Šo valstu atšķirīgie risinājumi tika prezentēti 13. un 14. jūnijā Eiropas teritoriālās attīstības un kohēzijas novērošanas tīkla (ESPON) atvērtajā seminārā Olborgā, Dānijā. Seminārs tika organizēts sadarbībā ar Dānijas prezidentūru Eiropas Savienības Padomē. 

The regions of North Jutland, Denmark, Greater Manchester, UK, the Balearic Islands, Spain, and Latvia all have good experiences to share on how to develop the economy of regions based on innovation and knowledge. Their different paths will be showcased to policy makers across the EU at the ESPON Open Seminar on 13-14 June 2012 in Aalborg, organised in collaboration with the Danish Presidency of the Council of the European Union. 

Region Nordjylland i Danmark, Stormanchester i Storbritannien, De Baleariske Øer I Spanien og landdistrikterne i Letland har alle god erfaring med, hvordan man kan udvikle den regionale økonomi gennem innovation og viden. De anvendte metoder præsenteres for beslutningstagere i hele EU på ESPONs åbne seminar den 13-14. juni 2012 i Aalborg. Seminaret er arrangeret i samarbejde med det danske formandskab for Rådet for Den Europæiske Union.