Spatial Foresight Briefs

This Spatial Foresight Brief explores three scenario snapshots which may serve as eye openers to imagining possibilities for the European Union (EU) post COVID-19. Governments across the world have already introduced policies to tackle impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and the EU has started to implement an ambitious recovery plan. With lockdowns being reimposed, assumptions about a ‘new normal’ are back. The next step is to think and plan for the future. Financial support is seen as key to making the world go round again. Drawing on discussions about options for recovery strategies, this brief gives three scenario snapshots of what could shape post COVID-19 normals in the EU and which territories may be affected more, or less.

Spatial Foresight Brief 2020:14  Scenario snapshots of a post-COVID-19 EU: Recovery strategies shaping new normals

This Spatial Foresight working paper displays considerable and territorially diverse implications of COVID-19 policy responses. These may not be overlooked when assessing the impacts of COVID-19 and discussing measures to mitigate impacts and support recovery. The paper provides a quick rationale on why it is important to understand the territorial implications of COVID-19, or rather the policy responses to the pandemic, and why it is important to understand it in a comparative European perspective. Thereafter, the paper briefly outlines the methodological approach on how to get grip on it. This is followed by the presentation of first draft results. Finally, the paper sketches possible next steps to be taken to further develop, nuance and polish the work. Overall the paper shows the territorially diverse implications of COVID-19 policy responses which may inform discussions about ways forward making best use of the territorial diversity of Europe.

Spatial Foresight Brief 2020:13  Understanding the territorially diverse implications of COVID-19 policy responses

This Spatial Foresight brief opens up a new path to overcome the ‘no-funding’ deadlock that puts the EU macro-regional strategies in anguish. Drawing upon their evolution and glimpsing into their future, the brief argues that macro-regional strategies have come to an age where they have the capacity and experience to design their path independently of Interreg funding. The brief combines the experience on macro-regional strategies with the concept of the Integrated Territorial Investments tool and presents a bold and innovative idea on Macro-regional Integrated Territorial Investments, which could give an answer to how macro-regional strategies can break out of Interreg money.

Spatial Foresight Brief 2019:12  Macro-regional Integrated Territorial Investments: How to break out of Interreg

This Spatial Foresight Brief contributes to the debate on the transition to a circular economy in Europe. The brief illustrates the benefits of developing local and regional circular economy strategies in a coordinated way to further a transition to an economic model that brings consumption and production cycles together to create a resource efficient system that reduces waste to a minimum. EU-level initiatives, programmes and regulations can support the development of these local and regional strategies, in particular by providing a framework to coordinate the transition and to ensure that no territories are left behind.

This brief derives from expertise gathered during different Spatial Foresight projects for example for the European Economic and Social Committee, ESPON, German Federlan Environmental Agency and Luxembourg ministry for sustainable development.

Spatial Foresight Brief 2019: 11 Local and regional strategies accelerating the transition to a balanced circular economy

This Spatial Foresight Brief contributes to the debate around the programming of European Territorial Cooperation 2021-2027, by focusing on possible ways to measure impact and to enhance evaluability. The brief presents the challenge of demonstrating value of transnational Interreg programmes. It sheds light on different approaches to measure and evaluate the impact of Interreg, drawing upon two examples of mid-term evaluations carried out by Spatial Foresight to show how challenging this exercise is and how it can be improved in the future.

Spatial Foresight Brief 2019: 10 Evaluating Interreg Programmes. The challenge of demonstrating results and value of European Territorial Cooperation

At European level, the revision of the Territorial Agenda is currently discussed stressing the need for a stronger territorial dimension in policy making and the empowerment of local and regional players to engage in cooperation and visioning processes. At the same time, in the Western Balkans, there is a bottom-up discussion about the need to strengthen territorial governance and empower civil society players at local and regional level, to improve the quality of public decision making and prepare for European integration. This Spatial Foresight Brief brings these two parallel debates together and highlights that including the Western Balkans in the Territorial Agenda post-2020 is an opportunity not to be missed.

Spatial Foresight & Co-PLAN Institute for Habitat Development Brief 2019:9 The Western Balkans in the Territorial Agenda post-2020: An opportunity not to be missed

Spatial Foresight published a policy paper as a response to the EC White Paper on the future of EU 27 by 2025. In a time of an evolving world, the European Union finds itself in the middle of several crises and needs to take a decision on what future to choose. The EC White Paper presents five possible scenarios for the future of EU27 and aims to initiate a debate and discussion about which path to take. It however ignores the territorial effects that these scenarios have on European regions and cities. The Spatial Foresight position paper gives a response to that and points at some possible territorial implications for each of the five scenarios of the White Paper. The aim is to raise awareness and launch another debate, this time highlighting that territory still matters when aiming at designing desirable futures for the EU and its citizens. You download and read the paper here.

Spatial Foresight Brief 2017:7 The future of Europe. And its territories? A response to the EC White Paper on the future of Europe

This Spatial Foresight Brief first seeks to explain the characteristics and added value of macro regional strategies in the European Union. Second, it explores the specific challenges that arise from this kind of new and more complex types of multi-level governance, linking theoretical insights to practical requirements. Based on these assumptions, a new tool to map and monitor governance systems is presented: the Governance Assessment Scorecard (GOA). This tool offers the opportunity to study in a more detailed and comparable manner different multi-level governance arrangements, thus drawing conclusions for future support to macro regional governance structures.

Spatial Foresight Brief 2016:6 The GOA tool: Assessment of macro regional governance systems

This Spatial Foresight Brief derives from the results of the study “Potentials for transnational and cross-border partnerships by using the EGTC instrument” (original title: "Potenziale für transnationale und grenzüberschreitende Partnerschaften durch Nutzung des Instruments der EVTZ") carried out for the Federal Institute for Research on Building, Urban Affairs and Spatial Development (BBSR) and the Federal Ministry for Transport and Digital Infrastructure, former Federal Ministry for Transport, Building and Urban Development (BMVI) of Germany. It was additionally inspired by discussions about further development of the EGTC instrument at the annual conference of the Academy for Spatial Research and Planning (ARL) in Karlsruhe in 2014.

Spatial Foresight Brief 2014:5 Potential & limits of the EGTC instrument for enhancing integration across borders

This Spatial Foresight Brief derives from internal discussions among Spatial Foresight team members and insights from a range of assignments related to the Europe 2020 Strategy. This includes e.g. studies for the European Commission Directorate General Regional and Urban Policy, ESPON, the German Federal Institute for Research on Building, Urban Affairs and Spatial Development (BBSR) and the German Academy for Spatial Research and Planning (ARL).

Throughout these various studies and discussions the lack of a thorough and constructive territorial dimension of the Europe 2020 Strategy has been highlighted as a major concern.

Spatial Foresight Brief 2014:4 EUROPE 2020 STRATEGY - Contribution to European Public Consultation Process

This Spatial Foresight Brief derives from a background paper commissioned by the European Commission - 
Directorate General for Regional and Urban Policy in spring 2013. It served as input for the preparation of the report concerning the added value of macro regional strategies (COM(2013) 468 final). The paper is also available as part of the Commission Staff Working Document accompanying the document concerning the added value of macro regional strategies (SWD(2013) 233 final).

Spatial Foresight Brief 2013:3 Added value of Macro regional strategies: A governance perspective

This Spatial Foresight Brief derives from a background paper based on on-going research within the framework of the research project of the German Federal Institute for Research on Building, Urban Affairs and Spatial Development (BBSR) "The territorial dimension of the future EU cohesion policy", conducted by Spatial Foresight GmbH in cooperation with Taurus Eco Consulting GmbH.

Spatial Foresight Brief 2011:2 Possibilities for an Institutional Anchorage of Territorial Cohesion