Association of European Border Regions

Yearly co-operation agreements since 2002, covering e.g. regional policy and cohesion, Community Initiatives, institutional issues, transport, research and innovation etc.

As early as in the end of the 1970s, AEBR co-operated with the predecessor organization of the CoR, the Comité Consultatif ("advisory committee"). Together with other regional organizations, AEBR was actively involved in the establishment of the Conseil Consultatif ("advisory council") which finally became the CoR, an official organ at European level.

Since 2002, AEBR has been co-operating with the CoR under an explicit agreement, which provides for a structured co-operation and a long-term programme. It has thus become possible to jointly tackle cross-border issues such as spatial development, trans-European networks, labour market, research and innovation, a legal framework for transnational co-operation, the EGTC, the European Cohesion Policy, particularly the Territorial Cohesion, as well as fundamental aspects of the European Convention and the Treaty of Lisbon.

Particularly worth mentioning is the study "The Status Quo of Trans-European Co-operation between Territorial Authorities and Future Steps that Contribute to Realise a New Model of European Governance" (Stumm/Gabbe 2001), which AEBR worked out on behalf of the CoR. This study contains practical proposals on how to improve the legal instruments by which projects are governed (European Economic Interest Groupings), and cross-border co-operation in general by creating European associations or groupings. Based upon this study, the CoR developed its "Strategies for Promoting Cross-border and Inter-regional Co-operation in an Enlarged EU".

The AEBR has also produced studies for the CoR on the legal instrument for Territorial Cooperation, and takes regularly part in different hearings and consultations on different territorial topics of interest for European border and cross-border regions.

Top-News

• 16.05.2012
  ECOWAS, EU and AEBR at the University of Edinburgh, 9-10 May 2012
• 26.04.2012
  Cross-border labour market mobility
• 24.04.2012
  AEBR Seminar "INTERREG Management Cases", hosted by the Committee of the Regions, took place in Brussels on 20 April 2012
• 23.04.2012
  AEBR implements project “EU-Latin America collaboration on Cross-border Co-operation in the framework of Regional Policy”
• 02.04.2012
  Meeting with the new Director General of the DG Regio
• 13.03.2012
  A European Budget for Territorial Cohesion - up-dated
• 03.01.2012
  The future of the Eurozone / The future of Kyoto

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