CROSSBORDER Regional partnership Karavanke/Karawanken

Region

Kaernten (at), Gorenjska, Koroška, Savinjska (si)

Term 2002-10-28

Short description: Regional managements and regional development agencies in part of the Austrian-Slovenian cross-border co-operation area have set up a working community with the aim to foster co-operation of actors from the area. They have a joint working programme and make use of various methods to reach objectives set in the co-operation contract. Five priority thematic fields have been defined: economic co-operation, development of a cross-border tourism destination, human resource development, protection and development of the environment, nature and culture, improvements to infrastructure.

Project executive: Coordination of regional managements for the Austrian side is performed by Carnica Region Rosental, Sponheimer Platz 1, A-9170 Borovlje/Ferlach, Austria. In Slovenia, co-ordination of the regional development agencies is performed by BSC Kranj d.o.o., Cesta Staneta Žagarja 37, SI-4000 Kranj, Slovenia.

Participants: The partnership consists of the seven founding members - Regionalkooperationen Unterkaernten, Oberkaernten and Villach-Gailtal, ARGE Mittelkaernten, and regional development agencies Gorenjska, Koroška and Celje, two external members and several observes. Activities of the working community are addressed to local and regional development actors with a (potential) interest in cross-border co-operation, such as municipalities, development agencies, media, research intitutions, NGOs, government agencies, various institutions dealing with economic activities, environment protection, transportation and public transport, students and young researchers etc.

Objectives: Objectives and tasks of the working community for the period 2005-2007 have been defined in the following way: (1) identification of cross-border development interests; (2) conceiving joint cross-border projects; (3) aiding cross-border partner search; (4) lobbying for the common interests of the cross-border area.

Activities: Activities are geared toward promotion and co-ordination of strategic cross-border projects, upgrading the cross-border structure of regional development agencies/managements, search of partners for cross-border co-operation (CBC), establishing and operating thematic CBC working groups, formation of thematic networks, participation in development of cross-border strategies, lobbying and public relations.

Process: There are several types of activities/processes pursued by the working community or groups of members. One type are regular (thematic) meetings or workshops of partners, to which also other actors from the cross-border area are invited. Other important areas include preparation and running joint projects in various thematic fields, mostly financed through INTERREG III A Austria-Slovenia Programme; setting up and operating networks. There are, thus, several types of processes running simultaneously, which apparently follow an "open method of co-ordination".

Results: The working community currently offers, through info-points in Austria and Slovenia, information, counselling and aid as well as training (free of charge) to actors searching partners and developing INTERREG projects in the cross-border area. There are joint projects running in the fields of innovative development network formation, business location development, employment opportunities for special groups.

Financial backer: Partners of the working community cover part of the costs for activities by themselves, additional funding is sought from the INTERREG III A Programme Austria-Slovenia, as well as from the national and land level sources.

Source of information

Homepage: http://www.carnica-rosental.at/eu_projekte.htm http://www.bsc-kranj.si/index.php?cat=7&subpage=43

Comments

Impact on nature and environment: Protection and development of the environment, nature and culture is one of the priority thematic fields identified by the working community. Activities aimed at preservation of the mountain landscapes and of identity of the region's rural areas, as well as at promotion of innovative environment protection and cultural projects are envisaged.

Economic value added: Activities within the thematic field "economic co-operation" are aimed at aiding in creation and offer of attractive business locations. Innovative enterprises from the cross-border area should form a network or cluster, the functioning of which would be aided by the working community.

Socio-cultural value added: Positive impacts may be expected at several levels, first of all due to the fact that activities run or are envisaged in such fields as human resource development, regional identity or culture projects. Of major importance are also activities aimed at fostering co-operation between actors from the Austrian and Slovenian part of the cross-border region.

Innovative content: Establishing and activities of the working community aim to fill in a real and grave gap in the culture of cross-border co-operation by various tools, such as information and training provision, preparation and execution of joint cross-border projects, formation of networks and joint structures. Regional development agencies/managements are very convenient actors for this kind of activities, since they also perform inportant tasks regarding local and regional development in the respective countries.

Good governance: A platform has been established which enables communication and exchange of information between actors at various territorial and governance levels in the cross-border area.

PR impact: Meetings, workshops, trainings etc. organized and run by the working community members are publicised on the web pages of partners, there is a practice of preparing information for the media in connection with single events, information on contact points is available which may provide additional information.

Transferability: It is well thinkable that the types of activities pursued by the working community and its members, such as provision of information, trainings, establishing various structures, f. ex. networks, could be used in situations requiring intensification of co-operation between territorial units within a state or in cross-border areas.