Regions and regionalism in Europe

Abstract:
This work presents a collection of twenty seven essays which together seek to dispel the confusion surrounding the various perspectives of regions and regionalism.

The first paper begins with an exploration of European states, the nature of their construction and their maintenance of historic territorial cleavages into modern times, that theme being continued in the second essay with specific reference to Germany. Chapter three explores the nation state, which was seen by many historians as an ultimate destiny. Regional considerations came more to the fore in post-war Europe and the various forms of regional planning are examined in chapter four. Regional collaboration and self assertion has strengthened since the 1970s bringing regions into conflict with national governments. This aspect is studied in chapter five, while the response of national governments to this movement is the focus of chapter seven - following an argument proposed in chapter six which challenges the natural geographical features which have created regions in the past. The emergence of productive regions inspired by economic sociology and collaborative networks giving rise to international competition by regions is explored in chapter eight. The potential for regions of this nature to prosper alongside the nation state is examined in chapter nine, while the impact of globalisation upon regional economies is considered in chapter ten. The development of regional government is seen by many as offering opportunities for a more economically beneficent and socially more just society, as argued in chapter eleven. Chapter twelve offers the opposite viewpoint, arguing that these new regions are little more than an abdication of responsibility by national governments. The balancing viewpoint seeking a way forward is proposed in chapter thirteen.

Chapters fourteen and fifteen are devoted to studies of regionalism as it has occurred in Italy. Regionalism presents problems not only for the nation state but also for the region and for European integration since the legislative and representative institutions are currently structured on a nation state basis; chapter sixteen looks at the territorial dimension of European integration. Whether or not we can see a nascent ‘Europe of Regions’ emerging is explored in chapter seventeen. The extent to which regions have been able to ‘play the European game’ is dealt with in chapters eighteen and nineteen. Chapter twenty looks at the increasing protagonism of regions in international relations and chapter twenty-one explores one facet of this, cross-border co-operation. Regionalisation has given rise to new levels of government which is examined in chapter twenty-two, and in twenty-three the variable aspects of this are considered. Regional levels of government in European states is the focus of chapter twenty-four, while in chapter twenty-five the different interpretations adopted among the accession countries is explored. The phenomenon of networks and policy learning are examined in chapter twenty-six. The transforming impact of regionalisation upon states is examined in the final paper.

The work will interest scholars and students engaged in government studies, regional policies, European integration and enlargement.

Contents:
1. Territories, Centres, and Peripheries: Toward a Geoethnic-Geoeconomic-Geopolitical Model of Differentiation within Western Europe - Stein Rokkan (1980)
2. Germany: From Geographical Expression to Regional Accommodation - Derek W. Urwin (1982)
3. A Europe of Regions: Reflections on the Historiography of Sub-National Places in Modern Times - Celia Applegate (1999)
4. Regional Planning and Urban Governance in Europe and the USA - Urlan Wannop (1997)
5. Regionalism in Western Europe: Conceptual Problems of a New Political Perspective - Thomas O. Hueglin (1986)
6. Place and Region: Regional Worlds and Words - Anssi Paasi (2002)
7. Modern Democratic Experiences of Territorial Management: Single Houses, But Many Mansions - Derek W. Urwin (1998)
8. The Rise of the Region State - Kenichi Ohmae (1993)
9. The Resurgence of Regional Economies, Ten Years Later: The Region as a Nexus of Untraded Interdependencies - Michael Storper (1995)
10. Regional Motors of the Global Economy - Allen J. Scott (1996)
11. An Institutionalist Perspective on Regional Economic Development - Ash Amin (1999)
12. Theory Led by Policy: The Inadequacies of the "New Regionalism" (Illustrated from the Case of Wales) - John Lovering (1999)
13. "The Learning Economy, the Learning Firm and the Learning Region": A Sympathetic Critique of the Limits to Learning - Ray Hudson (1999)
14. The Dramaturgy of Horizons: Geographical Scale in the "Reconstruction of Italy" by the New Italian Political Parties, 1992–95 - John Agnew (1997)
15. Italian Regionalism or "Padanian" Nationalism - the Political Project of the Lega Nord in Italian Politics - Benito Giordano (2000)
16. Winners and Losers: The New Map of Economic Inequality in the European Union - Mick Dunford (1994)
17. The Regional Dilemma in a Neo-Liberal Europe - Ash Amin and John Tomaney (1995)
18. Sub-National Mobilization and European Integration: Does It Make Any Difference? - Charlie Jeffery (2000)
19. The Politics of European Union Regional Policy - Liesbet Hooghe and Michael Keating (1994)
20. Patrolling the "Frontier": Globalization, Localization and the "Actorness" of Non-Central Governments - Brian Hocking (1999)
21. European and North American Contexts for Cross-border Regionalism - James Wesley Scott (1999)
22. The European Meso: An Appraisal - L.J. Sharpe (1993)
23. Is there a Regional Level of Government in Europe? - Michael Keating (1998)
24. The Paradox of the Region: Economic Regulation and the Representation of Interests - Carlo Trigilia (1991)
25. Between EU Requirements, Competitive Politics, and National Traditions: Re-creating Regions in the Accession Countries of Central and Eastern Europe - Martin Brusis (2002)
26. Policy Learning in Regional Networks - Arthur Benz and Dietrich Fürst (2002)
27. Regional Autonomy and State Paradigm Shifts in Western Europe - John Loughlin (2000)