European Union News - Regional Policy

The General Affairs Council, under the Swedish chairmanship, at its meeting in Luxemburg, has adopted the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region. Thus, one of the Swedish Presidency's top priorities is brought to a successful conclusion. The ministers also prepared for the summit between the EU heads of state and government on 29–30 October.

The European Commission has presented a Progress Report outlining the achievements of the EU’s Integrated Maritime Policy (IMP) over the past two years and looking out into its future. Alongside this, the Commission has tabled concrete proposals on two major IMP issues – the integration across sectors and countries of maritime surveillance and the international dimension of Europe’s maritime policy.

The Official Journal of the European Union has announced on the 7th October the publication of the Special Report No 11/2009 ‘The sustainability and the Commission’s management of the LIFE- Nature projects’  of the European Court of Auditors.

When the working day is over, networking is not ended yet. Events such as the Concert and Official Reception as well as regional events such as the North East England Office Official Reception which took place at the NEEO, are the occasion for delegates and people coming to Brussels from their regions to interact and exchange views and experiences applied within their areas.

Representatives of the provinces of Cáceres and Badajoz, and of the French regions of La Gironde, Eure and La Moselle discussed about the problems and the specific needs of the responses given to the crisis in the local level in the framework of the workshop "Local Solutions in Times of Crisis" of the Open Days . Although different regions represent a broad types of needs and characteristics (border regions, rural, open ocean regions, interior, etc), they all are facing the same situation: the economic crisis and its social implications .

The workshop on "Innovation awareness in regions", one of the 54 that compose theme A of the Open Days, has done a review of the initiative of the" European Innovation Weeks ", an idea promoted by Pro Inno Europe. These weeks, which have been developed in Riga, Berlin, Milan and the Danish city of Oresund, are an example of how to involve society in the European innovation policy.

Open Days University has focused its attention on one of the most important issues in the European Union and the world: climate change. Experts from different European regions have presented their proposals and concerns on the issue.

Open Days University has started with a conference that has affected the role of regions as engines of growth in times of crisis, and the importance of innovation for this growth.

With the United Nations summit on climate change in Copenhagen just around the corner, local and regional solutions to this environmental problem is one of the priorities of the Open Days 2009. A full track of workshops that make up this great meeting concerns about "Regions and climate change: Europe's way to sustainable regional development"

The Committee of the Regions' plenary session, to be held on 5 and 7 October, in parallel with the OPEN DAYS - European Week of Regions and Cities, will reflect the main themes in current EU institutional and political affairs. The session's main theme will be the battle against the effects of climate change and preparations at regional and municipal level for the Copenhagen summit.