A strategic and operational view of competitiveness and cohesion in the European context

The persistence of spatial developmental disparities suggests that the strategic directions of any initiative targeting regional competitiveness should follow the lines of (1) maximizing its competitive impact and (2) matching the territorial specificity. According to this perspective, the paper discusses an original theoretical construct and points to graphical representations of operational forms that may configure a policy of territorial development along four co-existent levels: (1) urban fields, (2) clusters, (3) development areas, and (4) disadvantaged areas. The main implication for public policy initiatives resides in facilitating the progress towards building up such a potential for growth.agglomeration, competitiveness, development, spatial network, territorial planning

Empirical Evidence On The Correlation Between The Exchange Rate And Romanian Exports

Few subjects of international economics are so much exposed to heated debates as the exchange rate problem. From monetary crises and balance-of-payments adjustments to monetary zones, dealing with currency swings seems to embody any economist's worries about the rightfulness of economic models and the relevance of empirical analyses he or she has to choose. Is appreciation or depreciation good for a country's welfare? Would that answer still be valid in the long run? The unsettled character of the problem largely resides in the manifest contradiction between the firm theoretical predictions and their unconvincing empirical testing. One of the least uncontroversial tenets refers to the positive correlation between currency depreciation or devaluation (although of different origins, their effects are generally the same) and a country's current account. This paper attempts to test this prediction on the case of Romanian economy and to conclude on possible explanations of the theoretical-empirical conflict.exports, exchange rate, elasticity

The value of sacrifice in (post-)growth scenarios

This is a conceptual paper, which contributes to the debate on the measure of intergenerational sacrifice and advances a postgrowth theoretical framework that becomes intelligible within a wider space of deliberation, at once economic, social, and moral. We explore the three-pronged argument in two parts. First, we examine the implications of the socio-economic mechanism of the transition of the production mode from extractive to generative, which is envisaged to replace the market automatic response by allocative efficiency. A second part tackles the moral reason underlying decision-making. Drawing on the lessons of the postgrowth debate, we propose and defend a working definition of the moral reason of intergenerational justice that should also underpin our rationalizing about other issues of similar importance regarding the obligations we owe to future people, such as passing on languages or containing epidemics

Competitive Areas of Integration: The Case of Romania in South-East Europe

The paper attempts to substantiate the conjecture of an optimum competitive area, tentatively referred to as a certain pattern of spatially-defined areas conducive to competitive development for industries or firms in such a way that benefits from competition are maximized. Following a documentary economic analysis, as well as a statistical investigation, both centered on the particular case of Romania, it could be expected to reconsider the region of South-East Europe (SEE) as such a homogeneous area with in-built potential for competitive advance in the larger European space of economic integration. The work presents a factual exposition of the regional sources of Romania’s competitive advantages and shows that there are economic tendencies which point out a rather more stable and economically self-supporting space of competitive advantages than analyses of European integration would conventionally consider. It also adds to the evidence of competitive development by emphasizing distinctively homogeneous regions of trade and development and, in particular, the case of SEE

Homo Localis. Interpreting Cultural Identity as Spirit of Place

AbstractIn this study I will try to analyze the physical, logical and phenomenological relations existing between the place where people actually live and the specificity of their culture. The biggest challenge comes from the nomadic cultures where this is not at all obvious. I am interested in showing to what extent the spirit of place governs any cultural synthesis, any acculturation and impose its stylistic mark on both sedentary and nomadic cultures. I will emphasize the importance of some spatial elements that shape the cultural specificity: the geographic placement and proximity, elements which are sometimes more important than heredity or tradition in configuring the cultural identity

COMPETITIVENESS THROUGH KNOWLEDGE – ASSESSMENT OF THE EUROPEAN UNION MEMBER STATES BASED ON THE KNOWLEDGE ASSESSMENT METHODOLOGY (KAM) DEVELOPED BY THE WORLD BANK

The present study attempts to make a diagnosis of the progress of European Union member states in the transition towards the knowledge economy. We used the World Bank KAM Methodology developed in the programme Knowledge for Development and the database available on the web page of the World Bank. KAM Methodology was described and the European progress towards the knowledge economy was assessed according to this methodology, with the focus on the Romanian situation, from a comparative perspective.knowledge economy; competitiveness through knowledge