The border, the people and the river: development of the cross-border area between southern Spain and Portugal

Gualda, Estrella; Fragoso, António; Lucio-Villegas, Emílio

doi:10.1093/cdj/bsr064

Cited by 13 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…In line with the arguments proposed by Paasi (2001) and Houtum and Strüver (2002), this paper claims that political discourse and CBC initiatives seem to take a direction that differs and diverges from the everyday lives of the local people. One symptom of the discontinuity between political and local discourse in the implementation of cross-border projects is the negative feeling of being on the periphery that is inherent in the border territoriality expressed by local people (Gualda et al, 2011a).…”

Section: The Regional-political Dimension Versus the Local-social Dimensionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reporting a bottom-up political process: Local perceptions of cross-border cooperation in the southern Portugal–Spain region

Gómez

Gualda

2014

European Urban and Regional Studies

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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.

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Section: The Regional-political Dimension Versus the Local-social Dimensionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reporting a bottom-up political process: Local perceptions of cross-border cooperation in the southern Portugal–Spain region

Gómez

Gualda

2014

European Urban and Regional Studies

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“…Other studies attempt to offer a coherent theoretical and empirical approach to understanding the complexity of cross-border relationships and cooperation (Grix 2001, Grix and Houžvička 2002, Grix and Knowles 2002. These studies trace the influence of different factors on people's boundary behaviour and the patterns of frontier-crossing among residents of different border cities and regions (Lundén 2004, Alapuru and Lonkila 2004, Hyvönen 2008, Mirwaldt 2012, Gualda, Fragoso, and Lucio 2013. The main conclusions of these studies stress the notable endogamy of relationships in cross-border regions, where the proximity within national territories determines the general patterns of interpersonal relationships.…”

Section: A Sociological Approach: the Social Capital And Social Netwomentioning

confidence: 99%

Estonia-Southern Finland Cross-Border Region:what Kind of Cross-Border Integration Is Taking Place? An Analysis From Experts in Cross-Border Cooperation

Gómez¹

2018

Trames

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Since the emergence of the first European community initiatives in the form of Interreg (European Territorial Cooperation), cross-border regions have become laboratories of European integration. There is extensive empirical research on the evolution of crossborder cooperation and how cross-border regions are constructed. Also, in the last two decades a more social and day-today approach in the study of these cross-border regions has gained attention, putting forward a more bottom-up focus to complement institutional analysis, since European cross-border cooperation evolves through both formal and informal processes developing interrelatedly. In this paper we adopt a social capital approach to analyse how cross-border integration is constructed among experts involved in institutional cooperation in the border region of Southern Finland and Estonia. Using mixed methodology based on semi-structured interviews and social network analysis, our findings reflect different patterns of border behaviour, all of which have significant value as opportunities for greater European integration.

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“…Today's community is far away from traditional definitions, which used to exist in community as a homogeneous place where a set of persons bounded by common interests and objectives live. More than a space of consensus, community is a space of conflict (Gualda, Fragoso & Lucio-Villegas, 2013) and a space increasingly faced with diversity and cultural differences (Fragoso & Lucio-Villegas, 2014;Wildemeersch & Kurantowicz, 2011).…”

Section: Institutional Care Versus Community?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Reclaiming the community potential to improve the lives of older citizens

Paulos

Fragoso

2017

RASP

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This article reports the results of a case study in southern Portugal, in a community where ageing related processes seem to be speeding in the last decades. In this case study we used non-structured interviews to an extensive set of social actors, but also biographical interviews. Our main aim was to understand the contradictions and challenges posed by the ageing processes, and the way those processes affect the daily lives of people of the community, looking closely to the older adults’ situation. In Portugal, the mainstream social policy is creating the conditions for an increasing institutionalisation of older citizens. Not denying the fact that in later life such social support is fundamental, we point out the disadvantages that such institutionalisation brings to older adults. We also try show the importance of community, especially for the elderly. We argue that today it is crucial to regain the community potential to improve the quality of life of older adults.

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The border, the people and the river: development of the cross-border area between southern Spain and Portugal

Cited by 13 publications

References 3 publications

Reporting a bottom-up political process: Local perceptions of cross-border cooperation in the southern Portugal–Spain region

Reporting a bottom-up political process: Local perceptions of cross-border cooperation in the southern Portugal–Spain region

Estonia-Southern Finland Cross-Border Region:what Kind of Cross-Border Integration Is Taking Place? An Analysis From Experts in Cross-Border Cooperation

Reclaiming the community potential to improve the lives of older citizens

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