Challenges of cross-border cooperation in the Greater Region: Interviews with relevant actors

Damm, Gerd-Rainer Book Part Challenges of cross-border cooperation in the Greater Region: Interviews with relevant actors Provided in Cooperation with: ARL – Akademie für Raumentwicklung in der Leibniz-Gemeinschaft Suggested Citation: Damm, Gerd-Rainer (2022) : Challenges of cross-border cooperation in the Greater Region: Interviews with relevant actors, In: Pallagst, Karina Hartz, Andrea Caesar, Beate (Ed.): Border Futures - Zukunft Grenze - Avenir Frontière: The future viability of cross-border cooperation, ISBN 978-3-88838-435-6, Verlag der ARL - Akademie für Raumentwicklung in der Leibniz-Gemeinschaft, Hannover, pp. 62-76, https://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0156-40970565 This Version is available at: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/259409 Standard-Nutzungsbedingungen: Die Dokumente auf EconStor dürfen zu eigenen wissenschaftlichen Zwecken und zum Privatgebrauch gespeichert und kopiert werden. 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If the documents have been made available under an Open Content Licence (especially Creative Commons Licences), you may exercise further usage rights as specified in the indicated licence. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/ Gerd-Rainer Damm Challenges of cross-border cooperation in the Greater Region – interviews with relevant actors URN: https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:0156-40970565 CC license: CC-BY-SA 4.0 International Page 62 to 76 In: Pallagst, Karina; Hartz, Andrea; Caesar, Beate (Eds.) (2022): Border Futures – Zukunft Grenze – Avenir Frontière. The future viability of cross-border cooperation. Hanover. = Arbeitsberichte der ARL 33. This paper is a translated version of the following publication: Damm, Gerd- Rainer (2018): Herausforderungen der grenzüberschreitenden Zusammenarbeit in der Großregion – Interviews mit Handlungsträgern. IIn: Pallagst, Karina; Hartz, Andrea; Caesar, Beate (Hrsg.) (2018): Border Futures – Zukunft Grenze – Avenir Frontière. Zukunftsfähigkeit grenzüberschreitender Zusammenarbeit. Hannover, 56-69. = Arbeitsberichte der ARL 20. The original version can be accessed here: URN: https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:0156-4097056 Typesetting and layout: ProLinguo GmbH Translation and proofreading: ProLinguo GmbH Die ARL ist Mitglied der Leibniz-Gemeinschaft Hendrik Schoen Abwägung URN: urn:nbn:de: 0156‐5599025 CC‐Lizenz: BY‐ND3.0 Deutschland 19 bis 29 Aus: ARL – Akademie für Raumforschung und Landesplanung (Hrsg.): Handwörterbuch der Stadt‐und Raumentwicklung Hannover 2018 ISBN 978‐3‐88838‐559‐9 (PDF‐Version) URN: http://nbn‐resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0156‐55993 62 33 _ BORDER FUTURES – ZUKUNFT GRENZE – AVENIR FRONTIÈRE Gerd-Rainer Damm CHALLENGES OF CROSS-BORDER COOPERATION IN THE GREATER REGION – INTERVIEWS WITH RELEVANT ACTORS Contents 1 Introduction and methodology 2 Evaluation of the interviews 2.1 Importance, constraints and difficulties of cross-border cooperation 2.2 Country-specific perspectives 2.3 Differences in perspectives between administrative levels 3 Summary and conclusions References Abstract This paper presents and analyses interviews held with decision-makers and actors involved in cross-border cooperation in the Greater Region, exploring the difficulties and constraints of the collaboration. In addition to problems caused by the different languages, administrative cultures and variations in the tasks and jurisdictions of the individual partners, the organisation of the Greater Region is also mentioned as a hindrance. Yet many difficulties concerning cooperation are minimised and in some cases overcome by the high level of commitment of the individuals active in crossborder cooperation. The paper concludes with recommendations to improve the working methods of cross-border cooperation. Keywords Importance of cross-border cooperation in the Greater Region – important projects– language skills – administrative cultures – effectiveness of the committees – steps to improve cross-border cooperation 63 CHALLENGES OF CROSS-BORDER COOPERATION IN THE GREATER REGION – INTERVIEWS WITH RELEVANT ACTORS 1 Introduction and methodology Cross-border cooperation in the Greater Region is generally, and often accurately, described as a great success story. Yet in practice, cooperation is characterised not only by its successes but also through difficulties and constraints (see the paper by Caesar and Pallagst in this volume). An outlook on the future viability and further progress of cross-border cooperation would not be complete without determining the obstacles in addition to listing the factors that have contributed to its success. Hence, the following section will shed light not on the familiar legal obstacles but rather on the difficulties of practical, daily cooperation across and beyond the border. The author has sought out and identified these difficulties with the help of decisionmakers and actors in cross-border cooperation at different administrative and action levels based on semi-structured interviews. Unlike standardised questionnaires, semistructured and topic-focused interviews offer the opportunity to place the motives and experiences of the interviewees within an ideas- and argument-based context. The semi-structured interviews were conducted either in the form of face-to-face, one-to-one conversations or by telephone, and lasted 30 to 40 minutes. The interviews were recorded electronically and subsequently transcribed, and then thematically structured and anonymised. As the interviewees from Lorraine had sufficient knowledge of German, the interviews were held in German. The choice of interviewees does not claim to be representative of all parties involved in cross-border cooperation activities. However, the author chose interviewees who are currently or were in the past actively engaged in and responsible for cross-border cooperation within the Greater Region. They moreover represent each partner region and administrative level. For reasons of timing or organisation, interviews were ultimately conducted with only 12 people from the nation states of Luxembourg, France (Lorraine) and Germany (Saarland) instead of the 18 that were originally envisaged. The interviewees represent the administrative levels of ministries (for Lorraine, the prefecture of the region and the Conseil regional de la Moselle [Regional Council of the Moselle]), the intermunicipal level (urban association, European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation [EGTC]) and municipality as well as an independent consulting firm for intercultural communication and development. Their spread across the countries or regions, as well as across the administrative and hierarchical levels, is shown in Tables 1 and 2. 64 33 _ BORDER FUTURES – ZUKUNFT GRENZE – AVENIR FRONTIÈRE In addition to the guided interview questions,1 other insights and information provided by the interviewees were also taken into consideration in the analysis and evaluation of the interviews. Luxembourg Lorraine Saarland Ministries and comparable levels 224 Intermunicipal level 2 Municipal level 2 1 Independent planning firm 1 Table 1: Distribution of interviewees according to national affiliation and administrative level / Source: The author Luxembourg Lorraine Saarland Political leadership 2 2 Management or comparable function 2 Employees in executive roles, head of departments or comparable role 222 Table 2: Distribution of interviewees according to national affiliation and hierarchical level / Source: The authors 2 Evaluation of the interviews 2.1 Importance, constraints and difficulties of cross-border cooperation The evaluation is structured analogously to the guided questions posed in the interviews. Importance of the cross-border cooperation within the interviewee’s own sphere of responsibility and importance for the border region overall As the interviewees without exception are or were actively engaged in cross-border cooperation, it is hardly surprising that almost all of them attach great importance to it. This applies to both their own remits and for the border region as a whole. Merely one interviewee expressed clear frustrations. Even though this person considered the cooperation to be highly necessary for the future development of the Greater Region, he believed that the actual policymakers did not attach great importance to it. 1 The guided questions for the interviews were as follows: • How important is cross-border cooperation in the field within your remit and how important is it for the border region overall? • What important projects and measures have been carried out? • Where do you see difficulties and constraints to successful cross-border cooperation? • Which committees and organisations exist for cross-border cooperation and how do you rate their effectiveness? • How has cross-border cooperation changed over time? • How do you rate the importance of the INTERREG programmes for cross-border cooperation? 65 CHALLENGES OF CROSS-BORDER COOPERATION IN THE GREATER REGION – INTERVIEWS WITH RELEVANT ACTORS Almost all interviewees stated that they were willing to engage in even greater crossborder cooperation within their own remit. However, there were temporal, personal and financial limits to this engagement. Interviewees frequently expressed the opinion that their commitment was not matched by corresponding appreciation from the top tiers of their administration and organisations. Interviewees who were themselves at the helm of an authority often found such appreciation to be lacking at the next higher level within the federal state or comparable tier or in the committees of the Greater Region. The greatest importance is attached to cross-border cooperation at the local level, where it is also assessed to be generally successful. All interviewees referred to the high level of cross-border interactions in the Greater Region and the resulting necessities of cooperation. The following aspects were mentioned most frequently: the joint labour market, youth unemployment, crossborder public transport, the educational system, healthcare, joint management, joint spatial planning for cross-border agglomeration areas and the associated coordination. All interviewees believed that more intensive cross-border cooperation would generate considerable synergy effects. The political significance and economic standing of the Greater Region would be significantly boosted through improved cross-border cooperation, both compared to other regions and at the European level and in relations with the EU. Some interviewees considered that this insight was in principle also shared by those responsible politically but that the actual policymakers would often attach no or very little importance to it. Interviewees were also critical of the fact that while the political decisionmakers in principle appreciated the opportunities associated with the realisation of a cross-border polycentric metropolitan region, they would not use those opportunities – or made only inadequate use of them – as a basis for specific actions, decisions or projects. At the local level, concerns were expressed that the municipal activities of crossborder cooperation did not find sufficient attention, support and recognition from the higher-level tiers. Interviewees occasionally suggested that a sense of competitiveness and egotism between the partners in the Greater Region dominated many individual decisionmaking processes and that the synergy effects of a holistic approach were therefore ignored or neglected. Importance of the cross-border cooperation within the interviewee’s own In their response to this question, the interviewees focused on the most important and current projects and measures in their work environment. Nearly all interviewees stated that the success of cross-border cooperation in the Greater Region depended on specific projects with visible results and noticeable improvements for life in the border region. 66 33 _ BORDER FUTURES – ZUKUNFT GRENZE – AVENIR FRONTIÈRE The ‘Task Force on Cross-border Workers’ and the associated benefits for crossborder commuters in the Greater Region were the most frequently mentioned examples. The responsibility of the Task Force on Cross-border Workers is to elaborate proposals for legal and administrative solutions to general problems experienced by cross-border workers and the companies that employ them. The task force was initially funded through the INTERREG programme. The associated University of the Greater Region was another frequently mentioned example of a successful project. It consists of a network of six universities in the Greater Region. This region comprises the Saarland and Rhineland-Palatinate in Germany, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the French region of Lorraine and Wallonia in Belgium, with the Saarland University, the Université de Lorraine, the University of Luxembourg, the Trier University, the TU Kaiserslautern and the University of Liège. In addition to the INTERREG funding in the starting phase, the fact that the vice-chan- cellors of the universities involved have made this project their top priority was said to be a decisive factor for its success. The cooperation has thus far resulted in joint study programmes and research cooperation, such as the UniGR Center for Border Studies. The joint Summit Secretariat of the Greater Region, newly created in 2014, is considered an important step towards a better organisation of the collaboration at the Summit level. The Secretariat, based in the House of the Greater Region in Luxembourg, is tasked with preparing for the Summit meetings and further advancing cooperation between the Summits. It is organised in the legal form of an EGTC (European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation) and is jointly supported by the Summit partners. The framework agreement on cross-border vocational education and training with the associated projects was mentioned as a further significant measure for the future of the Greater Region. At the time of the interviews, this measure was still in preparation. This initiative is intended to counteract youth unemployment in parts of the Greater Region as well as the looming shortage of a skilled workforce. At the same time, interviewees considered the previous cooperation between Saarland and Lorraine in regard to vocational education and further training to have been deficient. The deficits were said to be caused by the significant discrepancies between the different vocational education systems and responsibilities for vocational training. The improved cooperation between Lorraine and Saarland in regard to healthcare, in particular emergency medical care for heart disease, was also mentioned repeatedly as an important aspect. The sense of relief among the interviewees about the realisation of this project was palpable as the coordination and negotiations had taken more than 20 years. The organisations of the four partners of the Greater Region (tourist information services of Saarland, Lorraine, Luxembourg, Rhineland-Palatinate and of the Eastern Cantons – Tourismus Zentrale Saarland, Comité Régional du Tourisme de Lorraine, Office National de Tourisme du Grand-Duché de Luxembourg, Rheinland-Pfalz Tourismus, Office du Tourisme des Cantons de l‘Est) – have elaborated the first joint tourist marketing concept for the Greater Region with the help of INTERREG 67 CHALLENGES OF CROSS-BORDER COOPERATION IN THE GREATER REGION – INTERVIEWS WITH RELEVANT ACTORS programmes. This collaboration of the organisations responsible for tourism in the Greater Region is mentioned as a positive but long overdue example of cooperation across the borders. The German-Luxembourg Schengen Lyceum is described as an extremely successful project. The Lyceum in Perl in Saarland is a school for students from Luxembourg and Saarland, where they are taught in mixed, multilingual classes. The teaching staff, curricula and school certificates of this secondary school are designed to provide transnational, European education and qualifications. The Schengen Lyceum is highly popular and appreciated on both sides of the German-Luxembourg border. Even parents from Lorraine seek to have their children schooled there, although this is officially not possible. Another exemplary model project in Perl is the shared sewage treatment plant for German and Luxembourg municipalities. However, the establishment of shared water supply services, which would make sense technically and economically and is desired by the affected municipalities in Saarland and Lorraine, failed due to opposition from superordinate institutions in Lorraine. The measures to improve cross-border public transport systems were considered to be only partially successful by the interviewees. Conflicting economic interests and funding problems on both sides of the border between Saarland and Lorraine prevent the further expansion of the Saarbahn railway service into Lorraine. The measures taken so far to improve public transport systems between Saarland and Luxembourg are likewise not judged to be entirely satisfactory. Another failure (so far) is the envisaged cross-border nature park in the trilateral border area. In this case, the different philosophies underlying the nature park policies of the partners of the Greater Region could not be harmonised into a joint project. At the level of planning and strategies, the following projects and measures were deemed successful: > The Greater Region has set the objective of establishing a metropolitan development strategy to position itself at the European level as a ‘cross-border polycentric metropolitan region’ (CBPMR). To strengthen this metropolitan dimension and ensure the coherent, integrative development of the entire Greater Region, the Summit of the Greater Region has decided to elaborate a spatial development strategy for the Greater Region (REKGR).2 The first step is to identify the correlations and existing and potential synergy effects between the sub-regions in the Greater Region in the fields of the economy, settlements, transport, tourism, culture, leisure time and the environment. The Spatial Development Strategy of the Greater Region will not be a formal binding planning document. However, it is to become the basis and framework for decisions on specific measures of the Summit of the Greater Region and is to have the nature of a recommendation for the individual regional planning documents of the partners. Several interviewees had great 2 Resolution of the 12th Summit of the Greater Region of 24 January 2011. 68 33 _ BORDER FUTURES – ZUKUNFT GRENZE – AVENIR FRONTIÈRE expectations for the stimuli that the elaboration of a metropolitan development strategy and the Spatial Development Strategy of the Greater Region would provide for future cooperation. Nevertheless, due to their experiences of the extremely arduous and time-consuming preparation this project required with four national partners and the three French departments involved, not inconsiderable scepticism was expressed about a successful outcome. > To create a shared, comparable database that could be used for both spatial planning requirements as well as for the public relations work and the information provided to residents in the Greater Region, the partners of the Greater Region are busy establishing a common geographic information system for the Greater Region (GIS-GR).3 The GIS-GR is a harmonised, cross-border database for the entire Greater Region. It strives to create a ‘common language’ and approach to the issues and their cartographic visualisation. The GIS-GR aims to facilitate a comparison of the actual geographic conditions in the regions with each other and to improve the understanding of the spatial dynamics observed in the Greater Region. > For joint cross-border spatial development and better planning coordination between Luxembourg, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland, these partners have elaborated and jointly financed the “Oberes Moseltal” (Upper Moselle Valley) development strategy. This development strategy should also revisit the subject of the cross-border nature park, which has failed thus far. The project is designed to initially be binational between the partners in Germany and Luxembourg, because the coordination, consultation and organisation of the financial participation of Lorraine has thus far proven to be too difficult. The binational project is intended to play a pilot role. In the mid-term, the Lorraine partners will have to be involved in the project in order for it to be successful in the border region.4 > As part of the Das Blaue Band der Saar (The Blue Band of the Saar River) INTERREG project,5 seven project partners from Sarralbe to Völklingen are elaborating a shared, cross-border vision for the future of the Saar Valley under the lead of the SaarMoselle Eurodistrict. Several measures, from road links along and to the Saar river, the construction of cycling paths and bridges to the creation of recreational spaces along the water, have already been executed. Difficulties and constraints of successful cross-border cooperation Almost all interviewees devoted considerable space to this question in their responses. It offered an opportunity to provide a general assessment on the work of the crossborder cooperation. All participants addressed the matter of language skills. Successful cooperation across borders requires that the people involved should have at least a passive understanding of the language of the partner region. The use of interpreters makes it 3 Resolution of the 11th Summit of the Greater Region; the current results of the GIS-GR can be viewed and downloaded at www.gis-gr.eu. 4 The preliminary study for the Upper Moselle Valley development strategy was completed in November 2015. The principal study has been awarded and is currently being elaborated. 5 Saarland Ministry for Environment, Energy and Transport, Department for Federal State Spatial Planning (Ed.) (2010). 75 CHALLENGES OF CROSS-BORDER COOPERATION IN THE GREATER REGION – INTERVIEWS WITH RELEVANT ACTORS Viable future cross-border cooperation in the Greater Region requires a critical analysis of its working methods, an identification of the constraints and difficulties as well of the factors for success. The constraints and difficulties described here cannot be completely resolved. Nevertheless, measures can be taken to facilitate the cooperation across the border. Steps in this direction are: > Staffing continuity, as far as possible, among the people engaged in and responsible for cross-border cooperation at the various institutions as well as forwardlooking personnel planning and personnel selection in this field are vital considerations and must be ensured. > A solid relationship of trust between the parties working on cooperation on either side of the border is needed. This can be achieved by taking measures and providing opportunities to this end. > A cross-border exchange of personnel between institutions and organisations would be useful. > Advanced training in the special field of cross-border cooperation must be expanded and intensified. > The responsible organisational units must take the higher personnel expenditure associated with these responsibilities into account. > A regular exchange of information and experience as well as consultations about relevant topics between the responsible organisations and institutions is needed. > Such communication of information and consultation is also needed between the tiers of cooperation (municipality, intermunicipal level, federal state/region) in the individual countries concerned. > Recognition and appreciation of the work at all levels of the hierarchy will further support and incentivise the already very committed people working in this field. The motivation and attitude of the parties engaged in cross-border cooperation is extremely important, in addition to all the formal and organisational improvements and changes. This is exemplified in the comments of one interviewee: ‘Cross-border cooperation requires attentiveness as far as identifying the factual conditions is concerned and the ability to tolerate the idea that there may be several other ways to achieve the overall goal than the ones we have conceived of in our little corner of Saarland or in Germany. We don’t always have to do things the way we’ve done them for the past 100 years, which is – I would say somewhat tongue in cheek – the typical ‘Germanic’ approach. “Avoid change at any cost” – this approach doesn’t work. In cross-border cooperation, I have to accept that I will sometimes work with partners who have quite a different view of the world than I do. And you just have to get together and accept it. If you’re fortunate, you will succeed in creating a third, new perception of the world, which will then function in a cross-border context.’ 76 33 _ BORDER FUTURES – ZUKUNFT GRENZE – AVENIR FRONTIÈRE References Saarland Ministry for Environment, Energy and Transport, Department for Federal State Spatial Planning (Ed.) (2010): Das Blaue Band – Die Saarachse als Impulsgeber für eine Neuorientierung der grenzüberschreitenden Agglomeration. Saarbrücken. Ministry for Economy, Climate Protection, Energy and State Spatial Planning Rhineland-Palatinate; Saarland Ministry for Internal Affairs and Sports; Luxembourgian Ministry of Sustainable Development and Infrastructures (Eds.) (2013): Vorstudie zum Entwicklungskonzept Oberes Moseltal. http://www.dat.public.lu/publications/documents/Entwickungskonzept-Oberes-Moseltal/MORO- Vorstudie-EOM-Endbericht.pdf (16 May 2017). The author Dipl.-Ing. Gerd-Rainer Damm (b. 1949) hails from Darmstadt and served as Head of the Department for State and Urban Development, Construction Supervision and Surveying at the Saarland Ministry of Environment from 1987 to 2012, and in the same function at the Saarland Ministry of the Interior from 2012 to 2014.