The impact of climate change on health and social services
The 12th November
Are we prepared ? Participants of the panel-discussion searched for answers to that important question concerning the impact of climate change for health and social services. In her contribution Gisela Kallenbach, Vice-President of the Urban Intergroup was focussing on the regional approach. Which influence and which opportunities have cities and regions ? What are the barriers of integrating climate change into all areas of local government ? What can the European level do to support the local efforts against the background that the EU has no formal competence for local development ?
Mrs. Kallenbach pointed out that we need political priorities within the budget discussion in particular within the structural funds. Furthermore there is a need of integrating climate change into all areas of local government and involving all local actors. She demanded to implement a climate plan in each of our territories, based on concrete actions.
Conference on the launching of the project "EGTC" URBACT
The vice-presidents of the Intergroup committee, Jan OBLBRYCHT and Gisela KALLENBACH, took part in the launching of the project "Expertising Governance for Transfrontier Conurbations" within the framework of URBACT II Program at the European Parliament in Strasbourg (2007-2013) on Wednesday, the 19. November 2008.
This conference, which was organized by the MOT, the Operational cross border mission - project "EGTC" URBACT’s lead -, aimed to draw cross boarder partners. The Eurodistrict Strasbourg-Ortenau (France/Germany), the Eurocidades Chaves-Verin (Portugal/Spain), the cities Słubice-Frankfurt (Poland/Germany), the GECT Ister-Granum (Hungary/Slovakia) and the Eurodistrict Trinational of Basle (Switzerland/Germany/France) have presented the aims of their partnership and their future projects.
This conference gave the opportunity to the cross border agglomerations to exchange their experiences concerning the cross border cooperation and more especially within a European grouping of territorial cooperation. Moreover, they have expressed their expectations in these collaborations.
The participants had the opportunity to visit two cross border projects of the Eurodistrict Strabourg-Ortenau : The "Jardin des deux rives" between Strasbourg and Kehl, and the "Kompetenzzentrum" on cross border and european issues in Kehl.
The "EGTC" project is one of the six european working groups, which were created on the 26. September by the URBACT II Monitoring Committee (2007-2013) for the second phase in the program implementation.
Conference on territorial cohesion and the future of cohesion policy
At the occasion of the Conference on territorial cohesion and the future of cohesion policy, which took place in Paris on 30 and 31 October, three members of the Bureau of the Urban-Logement Intergroup (President Jean Marie BEAUPUY and two Vice-presidents ie. Jan OLBRYCHT and Lambert van NISTELROOIJU) called for "a greater efficiency in the way we govern."
The conference, organized by the French Presidency of the European Union, was a key moment of debate among national, regional and local member states in this period of global financial crisis.
By publishing its Green Paper earlier this month, the Commission launched a consultation which will last until February 2009. Only problem : everyone wants to pull the cover. "There is a strong lobbying from the islands, coastal or mountain areas to define territorial cohesion according to their particularities", has indeed said the Polish MEP Jan Olbrycht., Vice-Chairman of the ’Intergroup.
Jean Marie Beaupuy chaired, as chairman of the Intergroup Urban Housing in the European Parliament, a workshop on governance and territorial development. Before more than 500 people, Jean Marie Beaupuy intervened to present his vision of the new modes of governance of the territories, based on the complementarity between institutional governance - the legal and administrative skills of a community for example - and the partnership governance - the ability of actors to work together to define a project, a territory of involvement and partners. "Faced with the growing number of players acting on a territory, and the tangle of their skills, we must change our methods of work. In respect of each of the actors, we must be able to offer new ways of governance more effective and based on partnership. This is an obligation we have to our fellow citizens who expect results, "said Jean Marie Beaupuy in the introduction to his presentation.
Voir aussi sur le net :The DIACT website Speech van NISTELROOIJ
Presentation JM BEAUPUY
Tackling climate change in cities : what practical assistance can the EU provide ?
The workshop organised by Veolia Environnement took place on 8th October during the Open Days. It brought together several high level panellists around the central theme of climate change and cities. Participants of the discussion were inter alia Luc van den Brande, President of the Committee of the Regions, the mayors of Dunkerque, Poznan and Bordeaux and Gisela Kallenbach, Vice-President of the Urban Intergroup. In her speech Gisela Kallenbach remarked that Member States fail to take adequately the needs of cities into consideration when developing their strategic programmes for the use of structural and cohesion funds. She added that they also fail to establish a clear link between EU aid and sustainability. European funds should be allocated only if their use strictly complies with EU environmental policies. In their conclusions the participants regretted that cities are not enough heard at EU and Member States levels although they are the main actors in the fight against climate change and first interlocutors with citizens. They underlined that the development of an integrated approach linking Member States, cities, policy-makers on different levels as well as access to financial instruments is necessary to ensure an effective way forward in the fight against climate change.
Intergroup Vice-President Gisela Kallenbach awarded MEP of the year for regional policy
The MEP Awards recognize and celebrate the work MEPs have devoted to a range of policy areas over the past year.
The Urban-Logement Intergroup is proud to announce that Gisela Kallenbach, Vice-President has been award for the regional category
Nominated for her report on the territorial agenda and the Leipzig charter, Gisela Kallenbach has also been praised for her excellent work on regional and cohesion policies and her involvement in green issues. An engineer by profession, she was chief-of-staff for both the commissioner of environment, public order and housing in Leipzig (1990-2000) and the city’s deputy municipal administrator. She also served as international mayor for the UN mission in Kosovo. An MEP since 2004, Gisela Kallenbach is a member of parliament’s regional development committee
Gisela Kallenbach declared : "I’m totally astounded, pleased and honored to receive this award."
European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation – a European innovation
By Jan Olbrycht
The 2007-2013 cohesion policy programming period will be remembered among others for the strengthening of territorial cooperation resulting in a really innovative, legislative proposal : the regulation on European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation (EGTC). Public authorities - and their associations as well, can use EGTC for a variety of common actions exceeding the territory of one country that can be undertaken either with or without EU’s financial support. The existence of one legal personality should facilitate the organisational and financial planning, staff recruitment and last but not least the implementation of planned actions. The new instrument itself is ment to be used only within EU borders though cooperation with partners from one of the EU neighbours is not excluded. It only requires the green light of the government of the third country as no EU legislation can be bounding for non EU countries.
The adoption of the EGTC regulation was not easy : national goverments had reservations about the character of the instrument, its possible competences and the control of it, whereas local and regional governments expressed their concerns lest this new instrument reduce the existing and positive forms of existing cooperation, especially crossborder. These hurdles were overcome by describing precisely the new possibilities EGTC offers in terms of deepening and expanding existing territorial cooperation. The European Parliament played an important role throughout the whole legislative process by stressing that the new instrument opens many new possibilities for Europan actors interested in territorial cooperation and thereby underlying the added value of the new regulation.
The attempt to create a new type of cooperation based on EGTC and its first results are promising. One of these is the cooperation Eurométropole Lille-Kortrijk-Tournai on the French-Belgian border and aims to boost the economic development and innovation, and preserve the natural and water resources. Another example is the application of the EGTC by French and Spanish partners : Cerdagne and Capcir in the preparation of establishing a crossborder hospital.
There are not many truly European and innovative initiatives. The Europan Grouping of Territorial Cooperation is definitely one of them.
An Erasmus programme for local Councillors for better management of community funds
European Parliament adopts JM Beaupuy’s report on "Governance and partnership"
The European Parliament today approved a report promoting an Erasmus -style programme for locally elected representatives. The non-legislative report was proposed by Jean-Marie Beaupuy, President of the Urban-Logeemnt Intergroup during its plenary session in Strasbourg and was supported by a large majority of members. The proposal is for a training programme allowing local project managers to share their experiences and exchange good practice, particularly concerning the use of structural funds.
"At a time when we are aiming to reach the Lisbon objectives,in competitiveness it is vital that locally and regionally elected representatives become the powerhouse of territorial development - and to reach that point they must acquire knowledge essential to manage European projects" underlined Mr Beaupuy. "By creating an Erasmus scheme for locally elected representatives, we aim to create a common culture of good governance of territories" he concluded. Supported by the European Commission, Mr Beaupuy, who is also the ALDE coordinator on the Regional Affairs Committee, has proposed an amendment to the 2009 draft budget which will be adopted this Thursday in first reading, and recommends a budget line for 2 million euros.
This proposal for an Erasmus scheme for local Councillors is one of 37 ideas outlined in the report on governance and partnership.
