Eurodistrict
Encyclopedia
A eurodistrict is a Europe
an administrative entity that contains urban agglomerations
which lie across the border between two or more states. A eurodistrict offers a program for cooperation and integration of the towns or communes which it comprises: for example, improving transport links for people who live and work on different sides of the border. Furthermore, it confers a trans-national regional identity and represents European integration.
The first Eurodistricts created or currently undergoing creation are:
They may be established:
Note that transfrontier cooperation methods between regions known as euroregion
s exist in parallel to eurodistricts, which are generally urban. Furthermore, a eurodistrict can be located within a euroregion and even have certain connections with it.
The term eurodistrict is quite new and has not been defined by organisations like the Council of Europe
or the European Union
.
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an administrative entity that contains urban agglomerations
Agglomeration
In the study of human settlements, an urban agglomeration is an extended city or town area comprising the built-up area of a central place and any suburbs linked by continuous urban area. In France, INSEE the French Statistical Institute, translate it as "Unité urbaine" which means continuous...
which lie across the border between two or more states. A eurodistrict offers a program for cooperation and integration of the towns or communes which it comprises: for example, improving transport links for people who live and work on different sides of the border. Furthermore, it confers a trans-national regional identity and represents European integration.
The first Eurodistricts created or currently undergoing creation are:
- Strasbourg-OrtenauStrasbourg-OrtenauStrasbourg-Ortenau is a Franco-German eurodistrict, a cross-border administrative entity sharing common institutions, established on 17 October 2005 and definitely functional since 4 February 2010...
- Freiburg im Breisgau-Centre et Sud Alsace (i.e. Haut-RhinHaut-RhinHaut-Rhin is a département of the Alsace region of France, named after the Rhine river. Its name means Upper Rhine. Haut-Rhin is the smaller and less populated of the two departements of Alsace, although is still densely populated compared to the rest of France.-Subdivisions:The department...
) - LilleLilleLille is a city in northern France . It is the principal city of the Lille Métropole, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the country behind those of Paris, Lyon and Marseille. Lille is situated on the Deûle River, near France's border with Belgium...
-KortrijkKortrijkKortrijk ; , ; ) is a Belgian city and municipality located in the Flemish province West Flanders... - SaarSaarlandSaarland is one of the sixteen states of Germany. The capital is Saarbrücken. It has an area of 2570 km² and 1,045,000 inhabitants. In both area and population, it is the smallest state in Germany other than the city-states...
-MoselleMoselleMoselle is a department in the east of France named after the river Moselle.- History :Moselle is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790... - BaselBaselBasel or Basle In the national languages of Switzerland the city is also known as Bâle , Basilea and Basilea is Switzerland's third most populous city with about 166,000 inhabitants. Located where the Swiss, French and German borders meet, Basel also has suburbs in France and Germany...
-LörrachLörrachLörrach is a city in southwest Germany, in the valley of the Wiese, close to the French and the Swiss border. It is the capital of the district of Lörrach in Baden-Württemberg. The biggest industry is the chocolate factory Milka...
-St. LouisSaint-Louis, Haut-RhinSaint-Louis is a commune in the Haut-Rhin department in Alsace in north-eastern France.The inhabitants are called Ludoviciens.-Geography:...
-Weil am RheinWeil am RheinWeil am Rhein is a German town and commune which is a suburb of the city of Basel in Switzerland. It is situated on the east bank of the River Rhine, and close to the point at which the Swiss, French and German borders meet. It is the most southwesterly town in Germany.-Geography:Weil am Rhein is...
They may be established:
- by a simple agreement about common projects in the area;
- in a more institutionalised manner by a local association for transfrontier or cross-border cooperation (in French: groupement local de coopération transfrontalière or GLCT), which can draw up plans for transfrontier cooperation between towns or communes; or
- with an even greater degree of institutionalisation, perhaps including structures allowing a transfer of power and elected by all district citizens. This has constitutionConstitutionA constitution is a set of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is governed. These rules together make up, i.e. constitute, what the entity is...
al implications for the individual countries involved, which have to be taken into account when drawing up agreements.
Note that transfrontier cooperation methods between regions known as euroregion
Euroregion
In European politics, the term Euroregion usually refers to a transnational co-operation structure between two contiguous territories located in different European countries. Euroregions represent a specific type of cross-border region.-Scope:...
s exist in parallel to eurodistricts, which are generally urban. Furthermore, a eurodistrict can be located within a euroregion and even have certain connections with it.
The term eurodistrict is quite new and has not been defined by organisations like the Council of Europe
Council of Europe
The Council of Europe is an international organisation promoting co-operation between all countries of Europe in the areas of legal standards, human rights, democratic development, the rule of law and cultural co-operation...
or the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
.
External links
- Council of Europe document on Transfrontier Cooperation (October 2005)
- Eurodistrict Region Freiburg/ Centre et Sud Alsace
- FC EURODISTRICT e.V.