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NEWSLETTER - JANUARY 2010- ELENI MARIANOU, WELCOME TO CPMR! - WWW.CRPM.ORG |
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Dear readers and friends, First of all, I want to address to each and every one of you my very best wishes for 2010! I hope that for all of you this year has started with as much enthusiasm and dynamism as it has for me! Indeed, a few days ago I had the honour of replacing Xavier Gizard as the Secretary General of the CPMR and I am absolutely thrilled ahead of this new challenge. The reputation of the CPMR is very high, as, I guess, are your expectations. I am delighted to work with you and I do hope to meet your expectations to the best of my ability in this new role. Being a Greek national, having professional experience in European organisations across Europe and until very recently heading the Brussels representation of a peripheral and maritime region such as the South West of England, has enriched me with a deep understanding of the opportunities and challenges linked to Europe’s territories. 2010 will be a very intense year. The European Commission is
in the process of being nominated, the members of the European
Parliament have also quite recently been elected and the President
of the Union has just taken up office. On the other hand, the
discussion on the European Union’s budget has started in
the corridors of the European Institutions...
DANUTA HÜBNER WANTS A COHESION POLICY THAT IS CLOSER TO CITIZENS 
Danuta Hübner, former Commissioner in charge of regional policy, chairs the Committee on Regional Development (REGI) at the European Parliament. Mrs Hübner calls for a cohesion policy for all territories of Europe and believes that involving regions in EU discussions on the future of cohesion policy is a way to bring Europe closer to its citizens. Danuta Hübner chaired the hearing of Johannes Hahn, Commissioner designate for regional policy and has great expectations of her Austrian successor. Enrico Mayrhofer: What are your expectations of the new Commissioner in charge of regional policy? Danuta Hübner: My expectations of European regional policy for the coming years are very high. Indeed, it should play a role to help us emerge from the crisis, to build long-term competitiveness and capacity to grow, and also to generate employment...
WHAT CAN BE DEDUCED FROM COPENHAGEN? 
Once the unrest has blown over, having recovered from the frustrations, and having suppressed the anger, what remains after Copenhagen? In the eyes of global public opinion, at best a failure, at worst a shambles, in all cases a missed opportunity. But in the eyes of the local and regional authorities, and in particular of the regions, what do we make of these two weeks of the Summit? The CPMR deliberately prefers to see grounds for satisfaction even if everyone is well aware of the limits of the agreement obtained. Never before has such a mobilisation been organised between the regions of the world, as that organised for Copenhagen. Since Bali in 2007 and especially since Poznan in 2008, collective awareness has heightened to the extent where it was possible to establish a common platform between federal governments and regions from all five continents. Seeing the regions of the world in a position to speak with a
single voice gives initial grounds for satisfaction. We essentially
owe this to the joint efforts of two major networks: the Climate
Group and nrg4SD (Network of Regional Governments for Sustainable
Development) within which the CPMR plays an active role... A VERY SERIOUS MULTIDIMENSIONAL CRISIS, CREATIVE DESTRUCTION AND TERRITORIES 
Henri Regnault This paper is based on a presentation made on 27 November 2009 at the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur Regional Council in Marseille, during the seminar on “Leading Europe out of the Crisis: Proposals from the Regions” organised by the CPMR What is the nature of the crisis we are going through? It is not merely a recession which can be identified by the yardstick of a fall in GDP over two consecutive quarters. Nor is it a repeat of the Depression of the 1930s: it is very different and much more complicated. We are in a Very Serious Multidimensional Crisis (VSMC) which is unprecedented and is initiating a process of creative destruction of exceptional intensity, of which territories will be a part to differing degrees depending on their ability to implement policies to contain the harmful impact of the destruction and enhance the creative effect...
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