Complementarities between urban and rural areas in promoting ...
Complementarities between urban and rural areas in promoting ... Complementarities between urban and rural areas in promoting ...
COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSIONPART 1Initial thoughts on a balanced urbanand rural development in promotingemployment and social inclusion1. IntroductionBalanced urban and rural development is animportant element to be considered in tacklingemployment and social inclusion and should betaken into greater account in the EU funded programmespost-2006. While the prevailing socialcontexts differ, urban and rural development donot exist in isolation and the practical measurestaken to address these problems are often thesame. Cooperation and coordination betweenlocal government in cities and rural areas cancontribute to mutually beneficial solutions andcan improve the living conditions of the populationin both areas.Interdependencies between rural and urbanareas vary from region to region and are dependanton the spatial and structural context oftheir respective areas.1.2. TOWARDS A COMPLEMENTARY APPROACHCooperation between urban and rural areasshould create comprehensive social and economicbenefits. These areas can provide a valuablecomplement to each other. Urban and rural areascan benefit and learn from each other in termsof the tools and processes used in order to tacklesocial exclusion and unemployment.1.1. INTERDEPENDENCIES BETWEEN URBANAND RURAL AREASTraditionally, urban and rural areas have oftenbeen seen as exclusive areas. EU structural fundsprojects have, to date, not laid a particularemphasis on integrating the different processesof rural and urban employment and social inclusion.Nevertheless, interdependencies betweenrural and urban areas have always existed andthese have become more complex over recentdecades. The increasingly complex relationshipbetween urban and rural areas is caused bygreater mobility and accessibility between townand country.Cooperation and complementary learning processescan be promoted through networks ofurban and rural areas. These networks can be ofa regional, interregional or trans-national character,and can help to create a more even economicand social development. However, meansof cooperation between urban and rural areasmight differ according to the varying structuraland spatial relationships existing between thesetwo areas.— 6 —Interdependencies between urban and ruralareas can be described in terms of populationflows such as movement of people in search foremployment, education and training, or recreation.It is also evident that these interdependenciescan be described in terms of structures.
COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSION2. Defining urban-rural relationships and developingindicators for further research2.1. THE DIFFICULTY OF ASSESSINGTHE URBAN-RURAL PHENOMENON2.2. INDICATORS FOR ANALYSINGURBAN-RURAL RELATIONSHIPSPrevious academic definitions were consideredsufficient to provide a consistent picture of thedistinctions between urban and rural areas.Nevertheless, today these differences betweenurban and rural areas are less clear-cut and thereare limits to the theories that have beenapplied to date. It would seem that no singleapproach provides an exact definition and thechallenge of defining what is ‘urban’ and what is‘rural’ remains.A new approach to classifying urban and ruralareas was recently presented by the EuropeanSpatial Observation Network in their first interimreport (1) in which they suggest that a distinctionis made between:■ regions dominated by a large city;■ polycentric regions with high urban and ruraldensity;■ polycentric regions with high urban density;■ networks of small towns;■ remote rural areas.In order to be able to analyse urban-rural relationships,it is necessary to develop territorialindicators and typologies capable of identifyingand measuring development trends as well asmonitoring political developments towards amore balanced and polycentric EU policy.To date, the ESPON network has developed acomprehensive list of indicators which serve asa pool for the selection of indicators, accordingto different requirements of the study. Theseindicators have been assigned to three categories.■ Basic indicators for the first tests of the delineationof urban and rural regions.■ Indicators for the quantitative analysis ofurban and rural developments and relationshipsbetween them.■ Indicators for qualitative analysis in case studies.On the one hand, this classification illustratesthe complexity of the different patterns of relationshipbetween urban and rural areas. It has,on the other hand, been pointed out that this isbased on physical agglomeration definition (ie.population density and/or land use) and not on amore functional definition that can potentiallyinclude more complex relationships withinterritories.Further analysis would be necessary in order torefine the quality of indicators that could be used.— 7 —1. The full first interim report of the European Spatial ObservationNetwork can be found at www.espon.lu
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COMPLEMENTARITIES BETWEEN URBAN AND RURAL AREAS IN PROMOTING EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL INCLUSIONPART 1Initial thoughts on a balanced <strong>urban</strong><strong>and</strong> <strong>rural</strong> development <strong>in</strong> promot<strong>in</strong>gemployment <strong>and</strong> social <strong>in</strong>clusion1. IntroductionBalanced <strong>urban</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>rural</strong> development is animportant element to be considered <strong>in</strong> tackl<strong>in</strong>gemployment <strong>and</strong> social <strong>in</strong>clusion <strong>and</strong> should betaken <strong>in</strong>to greater account <strong>in</strong> the EU funded programmespost-2006. While the prevail<strong>in</strong>g socialcontexts differ, <strong>urban</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>rural</strong> development donot exist <strong>in</strong> isolation <strong>and</strong> the practical measurestaken to address these problems are often thesame. Cooperation <strong>and</strong> coord<strong>in</strong>ation <strong>between</strong>local government <strong>in</strong> cities <strong>and</strong> <strong>rural</strong> <strong>areas</strong> cancontribute to mutually beneficial solutions <strong>and</strong>can improve the liv<strong>in</strong>g conditions of the population<strong>in</strong> both <strong>areas</strong>.Interdependencies <strong>between</strong> <strong>rural</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>urban</strong><strong>areas</strong> vary from region to region <strong>and</strong> are dependanton the spatial <strong>and</strong> structural context oftheir respective <strong>areas</strong>.1.2. TOWARDS A COMPLEMENTARY APPROACHCooperation <strong>between</strong> <strong>urban</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>rural</strong> <strong>areas</strong>should create comprehensive social <strong>and</strong> economicbenefits. These <strong>areas</strong> can provide a valuablecomplement to each other. Urban <strong>and</strong> <strong>rural</strong> <strong>areas</strong>can benefit <strong>and</strong> learn from each other <strong>in</strong> termsof the tools <strong>and</strong> processes used <strong>in</strong> order to tacklesocial exclusion <strong>and</strong> unemployment.1.1. INTERDEPENDENCIES BETWEEN URBANAND RURAL AREASTraditionally, <strong>urban</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>rural</strong> <strong>areas</strong> have oftenbeen seen as exclusive <strong>areas</strong>. EU structural fundsprojects have, to date, not laid a particularemphasis on <strong>in</strong>tegrat<strong>in</strong>g the different processesof <strong>rural</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>urban</strong> employment <strong>and</strong> social <strong>in</strong>clusion.Nevertheless, <strong>in</strong>terdependencies <strong>between</strong><strong>rural</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>urban</strong> <strong>areas</strong> have always existed <strong>and</strong>these have become more complex over recentdecades. The <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>gly complex relationship<strong>between</strong> <strong>urban</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>rural</strong> <strong>areas</strong> is caused bygreater mobility <strong>and</strong> accessibility <strong>between</strong> town<strong>and</strong> country.Cooperation <strong>and</strong> complementary learn<strong>in</strong>g processescan be promoted through networks of<strong>urban</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>rural</strong> <strong>areas</strong>. These networks can be ofa regional, <strong>in</strong>terregional or trans-national character,<strong>and</strong> can help to create a more even economic<strong>and</strong> social development. However, meansof cooperation <strong>between</strong> <strong>urban</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>rural</strong> <strong>areas</strong>might differ accord<strong>in</strong>g to the vary<strong>in</strong>g structural<strong>and</strong> spatial relationships exist<strong>in</strong>g <strong>between</strong> thesetwo <strong>areas</strong>.— 6 —Interdependencies <strong>between</strong> <strong>urban</strong> <strong>and</strong> <strong>rural</strong><strong>areas</strong> can be described <strong>in</strong> terms of populationflows such as movement of people <strong>in</strong> search foremployment, education <strong>and</strong> tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g, or recreation.It is also evident that these <strong>in</strong>terdependenciescan be described <strong>in</strong> terms of structures.
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