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Beyond the national political-territorial borders in Europe, the cross-regional dimension maintains an experimental democratic character. Entities developed to foster cross-border cooperation, such as working communities and Euroregions, are conceived as mechanisms of democratisation through the decentralisation of regional or/and local governmental bodies. However, scholarly debate suggests that the top-down policy-making process that is characteristic of cross-border programmes seems to cast doubt on the fulfilment of a European participatory democracy. In this respect, the cross-border cooperation process seems to contribute an added value to the dilemma of the European democratic deficit. The objective of this paper is to present a regional contribution to this debate through a study of local experts' perspectives on the implementation and impact of cross-border cooperation policies in the southern Portugal-Spain border region and the possibilities for local and social participation. This paper utilises data from two related investigations in the southern cross-border area between Portugal and Spain, including qualitative interviews, focus groups and content analysis of secondary data. The results reveal a positive attitude towards the recent regional top-down initiatives of European integration, although local experts question the potential for the inclusion of local perspectives in cross-border initiatives. In addition, during this period of economic crisis, political contradictions may be observed, and political initiatives related to the Spanish-Portuguese border may hamper the existing cross-border flows and dynamics of progressive integration. In this sense, local authorities play an important role as the nexus between transnational institutions of cross-border cooperation and the inhabitants of border regions.

Abstract:Cross-border cooperation (CBC) has evolved as a crucial objective of the European Union and an object of extensive research. As an intrinsically relational process wherein networks, and cooperation are integral to understanding the CBC, social capital and social network analysis offer a complementary perspective. Data were gathered through in-depth interviews with experts and secondary sources. This paper contributes using social network analysis to examine and describe the network structure of institutional CBC and Interreg programmes in two different cross-border regions. The results address the importance of the visualization of less and more integrated areas and the identification of key institutional actors in CBC.

Fostering border relations among the people in border regions seems a precondition for the future envisagement and success of cross-border regions and European Integration. Related studies to border relations observe the weakness of these informal border contacts and relations. However, weak ties represent an opportunity for interaction, and little has been said about how they might play in the construction and performance of institutional crossborder cooperation. In this work, we examine the nature of personal border networks of professionals working in cross-border cooperation and how they are interconnected with the institutional cross-border cooperation. This paper is based on a qualitative research of two different border regions: Andalusia, Algarve and Alentejo (AAA), and South Finland and Estonia (SFE). The methodology is multimethod, using semi-structured interviews, with specific questions for applying social network analysis (SNA). A total of 43 interviews were conducted with experts who worked in different institutions involved in cross-border projects. 34 out of 43 also completed a section in the questionnaire to apply SNA. Conclusions point out different patterns of border relations in both border regions. In AAA, most of the cross-border relations are weak and related to their involvement in institutional cross-border cooperation. In SFE, border relations also rely on personal reasons. Nevertheless, they all imply a significant value as opportunities for greater interaction.

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