On October 17th, 2023, the MOT network's "Cross-border ecological transition" working group held its 5th meeting. This was an opportunity to investigate issues linked to cross-border management of water resources in the context of climate change.
In 2022, the Metropolitan Pole of the French Genevois, along with several of its partners in the Greater Geneva area, committed to developing a cross-border territorial vision.
This was the wish expressed by the Franco-German Cross-Border Cooperation Committee (CCT) at its second annual meeting on October 23rd, 2023, in Offenburg, chaired by the Secretaries of State for Europe and General Secretaries for Franco-German Cooperation, Anna Lührmann and Laurence Boone.
Stalled for three years in the Council, the legislative proposal for a "mechanism to remove legal and administrative obstacles in a cross-border context", initiated by the European Commission, has now been relaunched. The Parliament asks the Commission to present a revised legislative proposal. The Commission has three months to respond.
Each year, the European Week of Regions and Cities brings together a diverse community of participants for the largest event in Brussels dedicated to cohesion policy. This year's event took place from October 9th to 12th. The MOT organized a workshop on cross-border teleworking and its impact on border regions.
This workshop, organized by the PAMINA Eurodistrict with the participation of the MOT, the Tyrol–South Tyrol–Trentino Euroregion and the Lille-Kortrijk-Tournai Eurometropolis, was held on October 11th as part of the European Week of Regions and Cities.
Note a contribution from the MOT on the "SaarMoselle Trade Study: The importance of cooperation" conducted as part of the MORO project. More information on the MORO project.
Switzerland employs over 180,000 French cross-border commuters. Salaries are among the highest in Europe. This high level of attractiveness is having a major impact on the French side of the border, in areas such as Pays de Gex in Ain and Annemasse in Haute-Savoie, where salaries cannot keep up: high living costs, strong pressure on property prices, job vacancies in the public sector, etc. The consequences - which are not new - are numerous and complicated to resolve.
At the "Salon du Frontalier", organized by the Groupement transfrontalier européen (GTE), a round-table discussion on access to medical care in border areas led to lively exchanges between elected representatives and experts from both sides of the Franco-Swiss border.
The project to recover waste heat from the Badische Stahlwerke (BSW), Kehl's steelworks, is now entering its concrete phase.
The informal transport ministerial meeting held in Barcelona on September 22th, 2023 as part of the Spanish Presidency of the Council of the EU concluded with the signing of the Barcelona Declaration: "a commitment to accessible, affordable and equitable mobility to promote social and territorial cohesion".
With the signing of an agreement between Bas-Rhin and Rhineland-Palatinate on September 27th in Mulhouse, French and German firefighters can now work together throughout the cross-border area along the Rhine, in the event of fire or disaster.
In this collection, 22 authors from a wide range of backgrounds were invited to answer key questions to fuel debate in the run-up to Luxembourg's parliamentary elections in October 2023, and beyond, in order to shed light on the country's major challenges. An entire chapter is devoted to cross-border issues, with a contribution from Aurélien Biscaut, Secretary General of the MOT.
"For over 20 years, the Pas-de-Calais department has maintained strong, friendly bilateral relations with its neighbor across the Channel, the county of Kent.
On September 14th and 15th, 2023, the Regional Cooperation in Maritime Areas (ReCMA) symposium was held, organized by the Territories, Cities, Environment & Society (TVES) laboratory of the University of Lille and the MOT. The operational and academic approaches of the various speakers provided an overview of cooperation in the maritime basins bordering France.
At the "Mediterranean of the Future" event held in Marseille on September 22 th, 2023, Renaud Muselier, President of the South Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Region, announced plans for a Mediterranean-wide macro-region.
This online course, featuring videos, expert interviews, toolboxes, quizzes and more, covers the origins of territorial cooperation, European policies and major themes such as health, regional planning, the environment, culture and mobility.
In border areas, living and employment areas are closely intertwined. Differences between planning tools and the organisation of the relevant authorities can hamper integrated regional development. These issues were at the heart of "MORO," a Franco-German spatial planning pilot project. In order to report on the results of this project, the ANCT and the MOT are organising a webinar on 1 December entitled "How to move forward with spatial planning in border areas".
"At a time when much work is being done on the concept of cross-border living areas, the department of Pyrénées-Orientales, the Generalitat de Catalunya and the Diputació de Girona have agreed on the definition of a space for exchange and collaboration, shaped by a shared history, culture and language.
As the new "functional area" of the Spain-France-Andorra Interreg programme (POCTEFA 2021-2027), the Catalan Cross-Border Area will soon be funding cooperation projects worth over €4 million.
With the joint hosting of the cross-border start of the Tour de France in 2023 and the second edition of the cross-border summer universities, there is a great deal going on in the French-Spanish Basque Country. At a meeting in July, elected representatives from both sides of the border emphasised their desire to take cooperation further.
On September 5th, 2023, the Commission adopted a proposal aimed at facilitating the cross-border activities of non-profit associations in the European Union. The proposal aims to introduce a "legal form of a European cross-border association (ECBA)".
On July 6th, the MOT led the final steering committee of the study conducted with its member, the Maubeuge Val de Sambre conurbation, on a strategy for the cross-border Sambre Avesnois.
At the end of 2022, the European Territorial Authority of Alsace adopted an "Alsace cross-border cooperation plan". In June 2023 it launched a "cross-border cooperation fund" to help finance the projects included in this plan, as well as other projects with a cross-border impact.
