The 19 July 2010, Claude Wiseler, Minister of Sustainable Development and Infrastructures of Luxembourg, visited the ESPON Coordination Unit to get information on the latest development of the ESPON 2013 Programme.
At the meeting, the ESPON Programme and results from the applied research and analyses that ESPON process have been presented.
Peter Mehlbye, Director of the ESPON Coordination Unit, informed the minister in particular about new evidence related to transport and accessibility, territorial impacts related to climate change and environmental hazards. In addition, ongoing targeted analyses with stakeholders were addressed, like the analyses on a Crossborder Polycentric Metropolitan Area involving Luxembourg.
“I am delighted to visit the ESPON Coordination Unit and to confirm the commitment of Luxembourg Government with the ESPON Programme", Minister Wiseler stated.
“The understanding of Europe and the ongoing dynamics affecting the development of regions and cities are necessary for forward looking and modern policy making that takes possible contributions from relevant sector policies into account.
By making the territorial potentials clearer, ESPON can play an important role for policy development at European level as well as for regions and cities that today are competing in a more global market place. In addition, I believe that even private enterprises working on locating new activities and creating jobs could have interesting support from the ESPON facts and maps", he added.
Interested in ESPON?
ESPON, with its network of researchers all over Europe, and monitored by policy makers from 31 countries, is contributing to the policy discussions on the territorial diversity and territorial impact of policies. It feeds the requests of regions, cities as well as Europe to develop facts and evidence on potentials and coordinated support from sector policies in the framework of a smart, sustainable and inclusive growth.
The ESPON 2013 Programme is part-financed by the European Regional Development Fund, the EU Member States and the Partner States Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland.
It shall support policy development in relation to the aim of territorial cohesion and a harmonious development of the European territory. ESPON shall support EU Cohesion Policy development with European wide, comparable information, evidence, analyses and scenarios on framework conditions for the development of regions, cities and larger territories. In doing so, it shall facilitate the mobilisation of territorial capital and development opportunities, contributing to improving European competitiveness, to the widening and deepening of European territorial cooperation and to a sustainable and balanced development.
The Managing Authority responsible for the ESPON 2013 Programme is the Ministry of Sustainable Development and Infrastructures, Department of Spatial Planning and Development of Luxembourg.
