Tying Territory, Society and Transformation together: A Manifesto with an Integral Approach.

The EU-funded MATILDE Project was launched after the peak of the so-called refugee crisis of 2015. Besides its humanitarian focus, it examines territorial inequality and spatial justice in light of examples of mountainous areas as a kind of laboratory of peripheral living conditions. In European mountain and peripheral areas, the hosting of refugees has not until now been of major public concern. It can be assumed that peripheral areas are not the places that refugees most want to live in, nor is it an easy task for the original local population to host overnight larger number of immigrants. Therefore, the hosting of refugees in mountain areas can be considered a social innovation. In addition, the coincidence of various global crises (climate, pandemic, global value chains) superposed and strongly influenced the project, especially when considering their interdependency and mutual self-reinforcement. In this way, the MATILDE Project links three key themes together: mobility, territorial development and social innovation

Logiques et contradictions du trafic transalpin dans le contexte politique et social européen

Dans les régions alpines, deux intérêts contradictoires coexistent. Une part de la population se plaint du manque d’accessibilité et de mobilité, l’autre part de la population est correctement desservie par les axes routiers internationaux mais en subit des nuisances importantes. Ces régions argumentent qu’une bonne part de ces transports est superflue, voire inutile. Cet article rend compte d’une étude qui s’est intéressée aux points suivants : 1 - Est-ce que des transports superflus ou inutiles pourraient être déplacés sans être remplacés ? 2 - Est-ce que les politiques fondées sur des redistributions modales ou sur le marché, comme la tarification des passages, sont suffisantes pour réduire les transports et leurs impacts ? 3 - Sous quelles conditions le transport peut-il être réduit de la manière la plus complète ? Des réponses sont proposées ici en analysant trois champs pertinents pour comprendre l’augmentation du trafic : la logique politique, la logique économique, et la logique de développement spatial. Ces logiques sont interprétées selon une approche régulationiste. Chacune a son application en terme d’arguments normatifs. Néanmoins, il y a des contradictions entre les différents objectifs sociétaux et/ou politiques et les objectifs économiques, et plus particulièrement entre la recherche de compétitivité et le respect de conditions de vie équitables entre les différentes régions. De telles contradictions peuvent être expliquées par les processus d’unification européenne, par les intérêts divergents entre les acteurs majeurs et par les changements de valeur des trente dernières années, qui peuvent être caractérisés comme un changement de régime. Les trois logiques sont le fruit de rapports sociaux et sont donc sujettes à des changements sur le long terme par les acteurs. Selon les principes du développement durable, à un niveau global, et dans l’intérêt des régions concernées, des solutions plus radicales en terme de régime accumulatif revisité ou de régime régulateur, doivent être considérées et validées sur le long terme.In the Alpine regions, two conflicting interests exist: One part complains about a lack of accessibility. The other part is connected to international roads and is mainly affected by the impacts of transalpine traffic. These regions frequently argue that a great deal of such transports are superfluous or needless. This article is based on a study which discusses the following questions: 1 - Is there any needless transport that could be removed without substitution? 2 - Are strategies of changing modal split or market solutions as road pricing sufficient to reduce transport and its impact? 3 - Under what conditions may transport be reduced in a more comprehensive manner? Answers are given by analysing three fields relevant for traffic growth in their internal coherence: the political logic, the economic logic, and the logic of spatial development. They are interpreted within a regulationist approach. But there are contradictions within different primary societal/political goals as well as between these goals and economic ones, especially the contradiction between competitiveness and equal living conditions in different regions. Such contradictions can be explained by the process of European unification, by the different interests of the most important stakeholders, and by the change of values in the last 30 years that may be characterised as a regime change. The three logics are man-made rapports and therefore subject to change by the stakeholders in the long run. According to the concept of sustainable development on a global level and in the interest of the regions concerned, more radical solutions within the meaning of a revisited regime of accumulation and regulation respectively, should be considered, which may be valid in the long run

Neue Formen der Freizeitmultilokalität

Lange war Freizeit durch Arbeitszeit, Wochenenden, geregelten und bezahlbaren Urlaub charakterisiert. Nun verändern der vermehrte Besitz von Zweitwohnungen und die Verbilligung des Reisens das Freizeitverhalten vom touristischen Hotelaufenthalt zur Multilokalität im eigenen Feriendomizil. Dies hat Auswirkungen auf die gesellschaftliche Stellung der Einwohner und die lokale Wirtschaftsstruktur in den Ferienorten. Auch verschwimmen die Grenzen zwischen Arbeit und Freizeit. Dies verändert auch die Funktion der Freizeitwohnungen, die nunmehr in gleicher Weise wie die Stadtwohnungen genutzt werden. Die digitale Plattform-Wirtschaft greift diese Tendenz auf und verstärkt sie. In der Summe resultiert eine Ausweitung der Siedlungsfläche.For a long time, leisure was characterised by working hours, weekends, regular and affordable holidays. Now the increased ownership of second homes and a reduction in travel costs are changing leisure practices from a tourist hotel stay to multilocality in one's own second home. This has an impact on the social position of the inhabitants and local economic structure in the holiday areas. Secondly, the boundaries between work and leisure are blurring. This also changes the function of leisure housing, which is now used in the same way as city housing. The digital platform economy picks up on this trend and reinforces it. All in all, this results in an expansion of the settlement area

Regionalökonomische Konzepte zur Erklärung von Multilokalität

Multilokalität wird in diesem Beitrag unter dem Aspekt räumlicher und regionaler Entwicklung entlang neuerer regionalökonomischer und soziologischer Konzepte betrachtet, die aufgrund der Erfahrungen des sozioökonomischen Paradigmenwechsels der 1980er-Jahre entstanden sind. Zugrunde liegt die Beobachtung veränderter Regimes der Wertschöpfung und Verteilung auf regionaler, nationaler und globaler Ebene, die sich in verstärktem territorialem und individuellem Wettbewerb ausdrücken. Eine Konsequenz davon ist die massiv angestiegene Mobilität von Individuen, Gütern und Kapital und die daraus folgenden Praktiken der Multilokalität, die ihrerseits Rückwirkungen auf Raumentwicklung und Raumnutzung hat. Verschiedene, als kompatibel erachtete, regionalökonomische Konzepte werden gruppiert und grob auf ihre Erklärungskraft bezüglich relevanter Akteure der Multilokalität geprüft. In der Synthese wird die Argumentationskette an fünf Kernelementen des Paradigmenwechsels ausformuliert.This contribution examines multilocality from the perspective of spatial and regional development using recent regional economic and sociological concepts developed following the experience of the socio-economic paradigm shift of the 1980s. It is based on the observation of changing regimes of value adding and distribution at the regional, national and global levels, expressed in increased territorial and individual competition. One consequence of this is a massive increase in the mobility of individuals, goods and capital and the resulting practices of multilocality, which in turn has repercussions on spatial development and use. Various regional economic concepts that may be considered compatible are grouped together and their explanatory power with regard to relevant multilocal actors is coarsely assessed. This allows the formulation of a chain of arguments based on five core elements of the paradigm shift

Migration by Necessity and by Force to Mountain Areas: an Opportunity for Social Innovation

This article discusses current European migration flows, their impacts on the European Alps, and future options for addressing issues of migration. It explores these issues from the perspective of regional development, taking into account the currently prevailing goals of economic competitiveness and local self-interest. It focuses on the Alps, a region in which rural areas are losing economic, demographic, and decision-making power due to outmigration. An end to outmigration in the Alps is currently unlikely, but there may be other ways to stem the resulting losses. Based on a review of migration literature and 3 case studies, the article explores ways in which programs for hosting and integrating migrants can also benefit long-time residents by contributing in many different ways to the development of mountain areas. From this perspective, efforts to integrate migrants can be seen as a form of social innovation that can contribute to the future of the entire Alpine economic space. Rather than focusing on drivers of migration or its humanitarian or constitutional aspects, the paper explores the potential benefits to all parties of a better integration of migrants into the host regions, and the possibility that this could become a model of social innovation. It suggests an agenda for research on how to reach this potential and agenda points for policy regarding measures to fulfill the potential

Drivers of Change to Mountain Sustainability in the Hindu Kush Himalaya

Key Findings 1. Looming challenges characterize the HKH as environmental, sociocultural, and economic changes are dynamically impacting livelihoods, environmental conditions, and ultimately sustainability. Many challenges for sustainability are related to weak governance, natural resource overexploitation, environmental degradation, certain aspects of unregulated or rapid urbanization, and loss of traditional culture. Addressing these problems will require policy and action at local, national, and international levels, including common action among HKH states. 2. However, for mountain societies of the HKH, some changes may also bring novel opportunities for sustainable development. A range of opportunities lie in improved connectivity including transportation and communication, which increases access to information, partnerships, and markets. Enhanced access to social services may be enabled and strengthened by economic growth and the advancement of science and technology. Additionally, a growing network of local urban centres may support the transmission of new prosperity to rural populations, as the development of mountain towns and cities often can help — besides their mere economic power — to enhance the political influence of these regions within the national states. 3. The drivers of change to environmental, socio-cultural, and economic sustainability in the HKH are interactive, inextricably linked, and increasingly influenced by regional and global developments. Among the most important drivers in this intricate network of causes and effects are demographic changes and current governance systems, as well as land use and land cover change, over-exploitation of natural resources, economic growth and differentiation, and climate change

Szenarien für die nachhaltige Siedlungs- und Infrastrukturentwicklung in der Schweiz (2005-2030)

Spatial development patterns in Switzerland and future development trends and infrastructure requirements are not only the result of decisions at Swiss federal or cantonal levels, but also considerably influenced by developments in the EU. In the collaboration between two institutions at ETH Zurich and EPF Lausanne with the European Observatory Network ESPON, four spatial scenarios have been developed in this project. Two scenarios are affected by an individual, two scenarios by a cohesive value and distribution system. One scenario on each group takes place in a more dynamic economy and the other in a rather stagnating one. The project has used the methodology adopted by ESPON 3.2 by drawing up spatial scenarios based on an analysis of driving forces and trend projections. Furthermore, agent-based simulations have been used in an innovative way. Thematic scenarios have been designed around the broad topics of demography, economy and tourism, energy, socio cultural issues, transportation and mobility, and environment. These specific scenarios have been transformed into integrated scenarios and visualized by a sophisticated cartography