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It has been 216 years since the huge disaster in the island of Madeira occurred. Because of huge flood almost 1000 people died. Very similar situation also occurred in 2010 on the island. However, the citizens of Madeira did not had the support of the European Union 216 years ago that they had in 2010. Natercia Xavier, citizen of Madeira and a participant of EU Regions Week, said that this support is extremely important, though creating a resilient region is not only about building...

One of EU’s main goals is to break down borders and enhance territorial cohesion. However, the borders are still very much there and still constitute a great stumbling block for people who want to work with common challenges, such as clean energy transition in cross-border areas. During the session “No country is an island: Cross-border strategies for a clean energy transition” this issue became extra clear. With rising concern about climate change and a growing demand for clean energy, cross...

2007 was a big year in both Romanian and Bulgarian history. On the 1st of January the two Eastern-European countries joined the rows of the European Union which marked the beginning of the transition from post-communism era to a democracy-liberal one. Now, 12 years later, Romania and Bulgaria have changed significantly, but are still considered the worst two among their bigger brothers and sisters in Europe. Problematic and slow-developing economy, lowest wages in the EU, demographic crisis and...

The 8 finalists of the Interreg Project Slam 2019 appeared on stage at EURegionsWeek on 8 October. They were competing for the prizes at this years’ Project Slam, which challenges projects to present the results of their work in an innovative way. The first innovative element was a video competition on social media, where the 8 video’s contestants could better explain the results and benefits of Interreg projects on the ground. This year again, the Interreg Project Slam was a huge success that...

How do we measure which regions are doing well? And what do we mean by “doing well”? Cohesion policy, which aims to ensure investment in less fortunate communities and reduce disparities between rich and poor, uses GDP per capita to decide where to throw its considerable financial weight. Although useful and straightforward, this measure only considers wealth, ignoring attractiveness and inequality. The Regional Competitive Index (RCI) aims to capture in data the ability of a region to offer an...

How do we foster a European identity among young people? This was the question posed by Tina Hocevar, Vice President of the European Youth Forum at the EU Regions Week 2019. On Tuesday, Tina introduced the assembled attendees to the European Youth Capital (EYC) initiative that has shown a positive impact in achieving this aim. With Tina on the panel were representatives of the current award-winning EYC city and two upcoming winners. The EYC title, awarded annually by the European Youth Forum, is...

In recent years, governments at all levels have involved citizens more frequently in participatory processes: in a number of EU countries, regions and cities, various approaches towards participatory democracy have even become a matter of routine, complementing the work of representative parliaments, assemblies and councils. At EU level, citizens’ dialogues on Europe and its future have also become a tool used by EU institutions to listen to citizens' ideas. After the European elections, and...

On Tuesday 8 October, at SQUARE, the Megalizzi-Niedzielski prize for aspiring journalists was awarded to Karolína Šimková from Czechia and Tea Mihanović from Croatia. The two were selected from among the participants in the #Youth4Regions programme for aspiring journalists based on their commitment and potential as journalists. The Megalizzi –Niedzielski prize honours the memory of Antonio Megalizzi and Barto Pedro Orent-Niedzielski, young European journalists with a strong attachment to the EU...

A surge in global population and a sense of imminent environmental confrontation have spurred a search for the ultimate techno-eco-utopia, a city fit to face the challenges of the 21st century. The need for a new metropolitan model is clear. The United Nations predicts that by 2020, 2.5 billion more people will live in urban areas. This rapid urbanization is putting pressure on cities’ energy systems, transportation, housing and infrastructure. Along with the impending challenges of climate...

In a time when nationalistic policies have been thriving, the value to be a Union may appear antiquated. The session “Let’s unite! Reconciling Europe with its citizens to build a more democratic and closer Europe”, that took place on 8th October from 11.30 to 13.30, proves this belief to be wrong. During this session, stakeholders from the academia and civil society explained the beneficial impact of the creation of new synergies within the European Union; these connections involved universities...