García-Álvarez J. and Trillo-Santamaría J.-M. Between regional spaces and spaces of regionalism: cross-border region building in the Spanish ‘State of the Autonomies’, Regional Studies. The intense development of cross-border cooperation in the European Union in the last two decades offers a privileged laboratory to reflect upon the changing nature of regions and processes of regional construction in the context of globalization. Focusing on Euroregions, this paper aims to establish some bridges between Regional World(s) and Cross-border Regional Worlds. In the first part, this kind of connection is considered under the light of the recent theoretical debates developed within the framework of regional and border studies. The second part focuses on the analysis of cross-border cooperation in the Spanish ‘State of the Autonomies’, and particularly on the cases of the Basque Country, Catalonia and Galicia. 边界研究 跨边界合作 欧洲区域 西班牙 巴斯克 加利西亚-北葡萄牙 García-Álvarez J. and Trillo-Santamaría J.-M. 区域空间与区域主义的空间:西班牙自治区内跨边界区域的建立,区域研究。在过去二十年间,欧盟内部密集的跨区域合作发展充分反映了区域变迁以及区域在全球化背景下建构的过程。着眼于欧盟区域,本文试图在区域世界以及跨边界区域世界间建立一些关联。第一类关联是基于区域以及边界研究的概念框架。第二部分基于对西班牙跨边界合作的分析,尤其关注巴斯克、加泰罗尼亚和加利西亚地区。 Études frontalières Coopération transfrontalière Eurorégions Espagne Pays Basque Galice-Nord du Portugal García-Álvarez J. et Trillo-Santamaría J.-M. Entre des espaces régionaux et des espaces de régionalisme: la construction des régions transfrontalières dans ‘l'Etat des autonomies’ espagnol, Regional Studies. Le développement intense de la coopération transfrontalière au sein de l'Union européenne pendant les deux dernières décennies fournit un laboratoire privilégié de la mutation des régions et des processus de la construction régionale dans le cadre de la mondialisation. Focalisant les Eurorégions, cet article cherche à établir des relations entre des espaces régionaux et des espaces régionaux transfrontaliers. Dans une première partie, on considère ce genre de connexion à la lumière des débats théoriques récents qui se sont développés dans le contexte des études régionales et frontalières. Une deuxième partie porte sur l'analyse de la coopération transfrontalière dans ‘l'Etat des autonomies’ espagnol et, particulièrement, sur le pays Basque, la Catalogne et la Galice. Grenzstudien Grenzüberschreitende Zusammenarbeit Euroregionen Spanien Baskenland Galicien – Nordportugal García-Álvarez J. und Trillo-Santamaría J.-M. Zwischen regionalen Räumen und Räumen des Regionalismus: Aufbau von grenzüberschreitenden Regionen im spanischen ‘Staat der autonomen Gemeinschaften’, Regional Studies. Die intensive Entwicklung einer grenzüberschreitenden Zusammenarbeit innerhalb der Europäischen Union in den letzten 20 Jahren bietet ein privilegiertes Labor zur Untersuchung der wechselnden Merkmale von Regionen und Prozessen der regionalen Konstruktion im Kontext der Globalisierung. In diesem Beitrag werden unter besonderer Berücksichtigung der Euroregionen einige Verbindungen zwischen Regionalwelt(en) und grenzüberschreitenden Regionalwelten geknüpft. Im ersten Teil wird diese Art von Verbindung unter Berücksichtigung der aktuellen theoretischen Debatten im Rahmen der regionalen und Grenzstudien erörtert. Im zweiten Teil konzentriert sich die Analyse auf die grenzüberschreitende Zusammenarbeit im spanischen ‘Staat der autonomen Gemeinschaften’ und insbesondere auf die Fälle des Baskenlandes, Kataloniens und Galiciens. Estudios fronterizos Cooperación transfronteriza Eurorregiones España País Vasco Galicia–Norte de Portugal García-Álvarez J. y Trillo-Santamaría J.-M. Entre espacios regionales y espacios de regionalismo: la construcción de regiones trasfronterizas en la España de las Autonomías, Regional Studies. El intenso desarrollo de la cooperación transfronteriza en la Unión Europea en los últimos veinte años ofrece un laboratorio privilegiado para reflexionar sobre la naturaleza cambiante de las regiones y los procesos de construcción regional en el contexto de la globalización. Centrándonos en las eurorregiones, este artículo trata de establecer algunos puentes entre la esfera regional y la transfronteriza. En la primera parte, se examinan este tipo de conexiones sobre la base de los debates teóricos desarrollados recientemente en el marco de los estudios regionales y fronterizos. En la segunda parte, se aborda el análisis de la cooperación transfronteriza en el Estado español de las Autonomías, y de modo particular, en los casos del País Vasco, Cataluña y Galicia.
In the last 20 years, numerous cross-border regions have been launched across Europe. Many studies have been carried out dealing with the analysis of regional building processes. Most of them focus on the work developed by local elites profiting from economic, political and institutional factors to build up cross-border regions. Studies focusing on people's knowledge of these cross-border projects and regions have also been developed. The gap that might open up between the elite's projects and people's knowledge of them can raise several questions: is cross-border cooperation better understood as a functional or as a democratic and participatory opportunity? Are cross-border regions the desired laboratories for European integration? Are border people engaged in this institutionalized cooperation? First of all, this contribution will discuss these general questions in light of recent theoretical and practical studies on European cross-border cooperation. Secondly, it will exemplify the theory with a case study on the Galicia-North Portugal Euroregion. After briefly presenting the main actors and processes involved in the cross-border region building, this paper shows the results of fieldwork based on a survey conducted by the author in Galicia and North Portugal. The investigation had three objectives: (a) to assess general knowledge of the term Euroregion, the cross-border bodies and the cross-border projects; (b) to assess the degree of relevance of cross-border cooperation to euroregional integration; and (c) to assess the degree of similarities and differences between Galicians and Northern Portuguese. The results of the survey show that the inhabitants of Galicia and North Portugal are mostly unaware of the existence and working methods of the different bodies that sustain the Euroregion, although they express a high level of interest in fostering cross-border cooperation initiatives and a high degree of empathy towards neighbors. This paper concludes by discussing the results of the case study in relation to the theoretical aspects presented in the first part.
The boundary between Spain and Portugal is supposed to be one of the most – if not the most – fixed and stable borders in the world, with some authors stating that it has a history of almost a thousand years. However, this paper demonstrates that this is not the case by arguing that it has a mobile nature. After formulating a theoretical framework on borders and border studies, this contribution focuses on the raia between Galicia and Portugal as a specific section of the international Spanish-Portuguese border; several questions elucidating the mobile nature of the raia are answered, embracing historic, geographic, social, cultural, linguistic and economic issues. The paper finishes by considering the effects of the new period of European integration and by providing some concluding remarks.
18 February 2022 in Journal of Borderlands Studies
The COVID-19 crisis experienced since early 2020 has been the first time in decades that all the boundaries between European Union member-states have been systematically re-set. This paper examines the economic impact derived from re-establishing the boundary on a particular cross-border region located between Galicia (Spain) and Portugal. The paper begins by outlining the theoretical considerations on the interplay between borders and economy. After examining the case-study area and the decisions taken by the Spanish and Portuguese authorities in an attempt to control the spread of the virus in 2020, the article explains the methods used to obtain the results. Two sets of results are presented. Firstly, the direct consequences for cross-border economic activities are considered. Secondly, the fall in Gross Domestic Product is quantified for sectors and municipalities in the cross-border region, distinguishing between, on the one hand, the overall effect caused by the restrictions due to the lockdown situation and, on the other, the precise impact attributed to the re-establishment of the international boundary. This is a worthy addition to previous literature given that this paper details the specific economic effects caused by the COVID-19 crisis in a cross-border region directly affected by the boundary closure.