The issue of cohesion and the policies associated with it are concerns not only for supranational entities such as the EU, but also for nation states and regions alike. Traditional instruments for promoting cohesion include symbolic, economic and social policies. However, given the contemporary tensions at both the international and domestic levels, attempts to create or maintain ›cohesion‹ are so important that innovative approaches must be pursued. This book asks to what extent spatial a...

In the context of the debate on the future of Europe, this book makes the case for a new approach to structural transformation, growth and cohesion in the EU. It explores both the opportunities and challenges from globalisation and technological change, the widening differences in productivity between leading and lagging regions, and the need for a new policy framework capable of delivering inclusive growth.The Regional Studies Association’s Policy Impact Books form a series of pun...

This title was first published in 2000. One of the most comprehensive overviews of regional development and policy emergence in the Central and East European countries to date, this book focuses on economic and social cohesion, bringing together a wide range of empirical research and discussion material.

EU Cohesion policy, along with support for agriculture and rural development, is one of the main items of EU spending. As such, the performance of the policy has come under increasing scrutiny. Perhaps surprisingly, however, past attempts to assess the effectiveness of the EU’s have proved to be highly ambivalent.This book examines the long-term achievements of Cohesion policy from 1989 to 2012 and draws out the main policy implications. Originally undertaken for the European Commi...

EU Cohesion policy accounts for a major share of the EU budget and is central to economic and social development in many European countries. This book provides a comprehensive and theoretically-informed analysis of how Cohesion policy has evolved over time, in particular the budgetary and policy dynamics of the 2007-13 reform. In the context of the budgetary politics of the EU, the book examines the process by which the reform of Cohesion policy has been shaped; it identifies the key facto...

This book provides an up-to-date assessment of the main processes and dilemmas of regional development and regional policy in the newer European Union Member States in Central and Eastern Europe and neighbouring countries. It highlights the difficulties of balancing the demands within the new Member States for rapid regional growth and development with, firstly, the demands of the European Union overall that restructuring and development should conform to the aims and principles of EU comm...

This book brings together a rich selection of up-to-date practical experience of EU regional policy from across Europe. It provides different perspectives on the design and operation of regional development strategies under the Structural Funds, from people closely involved in studying, managing or advising on the process at EU, national and regional levels. It therefore offers a more comprehensive and detailed understanding of the structural policies than has been available hitherto. This...

The Open Access version of this book, available at http://www.tandfebooks.com/doi/view/10.4324/9781315401867, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives 3.0 license.This book brings together academics, members of European institutions, and regional and national level policymakers in order to assess the performance and direction of EU Cohesion policy against the background of the most significant reforms to the policy in a generation. ...

'A wonderfully international and up-to-date perspective on strategic environmental assessment of land use plans by leading experts in the field. Strategic Environmental Assessment and Land Use Planning covers not only how much such SEAs are carried out and in what context, but whether they are effective and why. It provides invaluable insights for practitioners and researchers in this rapidy evolving field'Riki Therivel, author of Strategic Environmental Assessment in Action...

How is policy made in higher education, particularly in the wake of recent economic turbulence? Has policy development converged internationally, and if so, what impact has this had on academic life and institutions? What role does policy-oriented research play in shaping the direction of higher education? Are universities grappling in common ways with issues of access and equity?Making Policy in Turbulent Times provides a historically informed and nuanced response to thes...

The last decade has given rise to a strong public discourse in most highly industrialized economies about the importance of a skilled workforce as a key response to the competitive dynamic fostered by economic globalisation.The challenge for different training regimes is twofold: attracting young people into the vocational training system while continuing to train workers already in employment. Yet, on the whole, most countries and their training systems have failed to reach those ...

Civil society - comprising the activities of non-state organizations, institutions and movements - has in recent years emerged as the major force for change in the realms of politics, public policy and society both globally and locally. Yet, despite the crucial importance of this political phenomenon to the principle and practice of democracy, it eludes definition and systematic understanding.This book provides a comprehensive and flexible framework for the definition, measurement,...