This thesis develops the argument that research on the European Community (EC) could be enriched by studies of how Community policies are implemented. The processes by which EC policies are formulated have been the subject of a great deal of research. However, the way in which these policies are subsequently put into practice and whether or not their objectives are achieved has received very little attention. Yet these processes may be highly complex, involving a large variety of institutions and actors at Community, national and regional levels. The complexity of implementation and of the Community's political system offers scope for a significant "implementation gap" between policy objectives and outcomes. This study is therefore about the implementation of EC regional policy. More specifically, it focus*is- on the operation in the United Kingdom of two Community Funds with regional objectives; namely, the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the European Social Fund (ESF). In particular, the activities of the two Funds in South West England are examined. The research also assesses the roles in implementation of the European Commission and national government departments in the UK. The research shows that the UK government is able to influence many aspects of the implementation process by means of its pivotal role in decision-making and its ability to control many financial aspects of the provision of EC grants. As a result, the objectives of the ERDF and ESF may be overwhelmed by the entirely national objectives of government. On the other hand, this study demonstrates that the European Commission can exert some control in order to pursue the Funds' "Community" objectives. The organisations at regional level which actually apply for EC grants are also shown to be of importance. Their involvement is determined by factors such as government restrictions on expenditure, assisted area status, the availability of information, local iniciative and the efficiency of organisational structurcs. The research, which coincided with a period in which EC regional policy is being reformed, calls for more explicit concern in the future with how the Community's increasingly prominent regional development objectives are put into practice. Moreover, it asserts that studying how Community policies operate can help to shed more light on the nature of the EC's political system.

The spatial implications of Global and Australian national trends in economy, society and environment are diverse. At a sub-national level these combine with local trends and issues to create unique regional milieu through which an integrated approach to sustainability may be negotiated. A change in government process may be required for sustainability to be implemented, and sub-national governance mechanisms are increasingly seen as important in enacting sustainability on the ground. Yet in Western Australia, large land mass and low population density means that neither State nor Local Governments are well equipped for this task. Western Australian regional policy and governance structures, as well as Commonwealth economic and regional policy trends, are important influences on regional sustainability. Both the Draft Western Australian State Sustainability Strategy and the Draft Statement of Regional Policy for Western Australia support a regional approach to sustainability planning. Yet models of regional governance organisation for the implementation of regional sustainability in Western Australia, such as regional associations of Local Governments, and Regional Development Commissions need to be further developed. It is at this regional level where partnerships between community, government and business may emerge to enact regionally appropriate initiatives for sustainability. For this to occur, community participation and government process that enables community participation to influence decision making is necessary. Regional approaches to natural resource management provide insight into the way that a regional approach to sustainability planning and organisation may evolve. Trends that influence regional issues and Commonwealth and Western Australian regional policy and structures provide a broad context for the development of regional sustainability strategies. Analysis of these issues and of the insights that may be gained from ideals for enabling governance mechanisms and regional natural resource management projects to facilitate regional sustainability are presented.

The study has intended to analyze the Europeanization of the institutional structure for regional policy in Bulgaria after the first programming period of the country as a full-fledged member state of the EU. Bulgaria joined the EU in 2007 as part of the so called ‘Eastern Enlargement’ that was characterized by power asymmetry and strong conditionality. The study employs two research methods – document analysis of key policy documents and legislation, as well as qualitative interviews with key respondents with involvement or experience in the field of regional policy and development in Bulgaria. The analysis is underpinned by the concept of Europeanization and historical institutionalism which complement each other in order to explain the changes and the reasons for them. The main findings show that the EU requirements are only ‘accommodated’ in the already existing institutional structure of Bulgaria and real transformation has not occurred. The established regional level still does not have a significant role in the regional policy of the country because it represents neither self-government, nor administrative unit. The research suggests directions for future reform and refinement of the current institutional system with regard to the better formulation and implementation of regional policy in the country.

Yes / Knowledge transfer (KT) has been identified as an essential element of innovation, driving competitive advantage in increasingly knowledge-driven economies and as a result recent UK Government reports have sought to increase awareness of the importance of KT within higher education institutions (HEIs). There is therefore a need for relevant empirical research that examines, from multiple perspectives, how KT policy is translated into practice within HEI contexts. This paper responds to this need by presenting an in-depth qualitative case study based on over 50 semi-structured interviews with university-based academic and non-academic participants and representatives of small firms involved in InfoLab21, a high profile `centre of excellence¿ for research, development and commercialisation of ICT in Northwest England, UK. The study considers what the key practices of KT are and what promotes and/or hinders their development. Four overarching themes are identified: i) motivation and reward mechanisms; ii) process management and evaluation; iii) clustering and brokerage; and iv) trust and bridge building. Each theme is considered from multiple perspectives and areas for further research are suggested.

<p>German regional policy has changed from a strategy of redistribution to a regional growth focused policy- strategies, which are often seen as opposites. Both policies, however, still have to relate to the constitutional objective “to achieve equal living conditions for the country’s citizens.”</p><p>This paper examines what effects a political change may have had on the interpretation of the German constitutional objective. Its aim is to examine German regional policy and its relationship to justice, using John Rawls’ A Theory of Justice. My research is a critcal ideology analysis, made up of a qualitative text analysis of the German government’s last annual report on the German reunification. I will also discuss whether there is any evidence of this change of policy- mentioned above- in the annual report. My conclusion is that there is some evidence of this change of policy in the report, and that the government is still very aware of the constitutional objective, though it interprets it differently today. Today there is a stronger political focus on creating growth and on trying to secure the welfare state. The government is focusing on a policy, which aims to secure a high- though most likely unequal- standard of living, rather than on one that would only be able to guarantee a low, but more equal, standard of living.</p>

Since the regional policy nowadays is an important subject in the European institutions, the involvement of regional and local authorities in the programming, management, evaluation and monitoring of operations is essential for the success of EU level policy. A Regional Problem is defined as a problem that arises in an area of a country where there is dependence on a narrow industrial base often faced with declining manufacturing activity, and lack of general infrastructures. Other challenges include low levels of GDP and a net migration out of a country or region. The EU is trying to overcome these challenges by using the Structural funds financing programs to help firms in these regions. This paper presents a comparative analysis of the innovation policy and the industrial policy at the national and regional levels in Ireland and Finland, over the 1990s. In both countries the period from 1991-99 was marked by expansion, as measured by steady output growth for manufacturing as a whole (albeit at substantially lower levels in Finland than in Ireland). / In general, the evidence presented in this paper suggests a positive relationship between innovation policy as reflected in financial support to firms for R&amp;D and business level investment in R&amp;D and innovation activity. R&amp;D financial assistance to firms has been a significant feature of the industrial development policy in Ireland since the 1980s. At the same time, the proportion of manufacturing firms undertaking R&amp;D, product and process innovations increased steadily throughout the 1990s. In Ireland the construction industry boosted economic development as foreign businesses could find favourable conditions for setting up their businesses. Initially tax and grant incentives were given to firms which were later on complemented by high killed labour that could be utilized in high tech businesses. / zeqavete@gmail.com khanomair82@gmail.com

Marginal regions in discursive space: an examination of socio-economic conditions, development paths and spatial differentiation in the economic systems of the Canadian and Russian North Andrey N Petrov Degree: Doctor of Philosophy Department of Geography University of Toronto 2008 This dissertation is an effort to provide a new insight into the problem of regional development in remote areas under changing global and national political and economic conditions. It undertakes an assessment of shared economic histories, recent changes and future possibilities of socioeconomic prosperity and sustainability in marginal regions of Canada and Russia. The first chapter re-examines the structure of Canada’s and Russia’s space-economies by evoking the concept of regional multichotomies and economic marginality. I consider whether outcomes, geographic patterns and spatial logics of regional differentiation in the two countries are similar and explore the evidence of similarity between the North(s). Finding development outcomes in the Russian and Canadian North strikingly similar, the second chapter uses a combination of discursive analysis and regulation theory to re-interpret the origins of present-day problems and examine the genealogy of northern development. It argues that the Canadian and Russian northern development regimes shared profound commonalities. From these positions, the chapter compares and critiques past and present policies of regional development in the two Norths, and discusses their viability. The third chapter dwells upon a concept of ‘development regimes’ to analyze and compare contemporary regional development policies. It further investigates how recent economic development policies in the two Norths are adapting to changing economic and political realities, and if they were able to deliver desirable results to northern communities. The chapter compares and critiques contemporary policies and discusses possible alternative perspectives that reconcile an emerging postcolonial paradigm of development and realities of post-Fordism. It introduces the notion of the neo-staple development regime and describes its manifestations (Impact and Benefit Agreements). The fourth chapter presents a case for fostering knowledge based development and creative capital in the North. It builds on the innovation systems and institutional geography literatures to argue that the creative capital in the periphery is a pivotal factor of regional development. The chapter provides a conceptualization and empirical analysis of the creative class in remote regions. Contrary to the metropolitan bias, I argue that creative ‘hot spots’ beyond metropolis exist, and could become the centres of regional reinvention, if appropriate policies are introduced in support.

Marginal regions in discursive space: an examination of socio-economic conditions, development paths and spatial differentiation in the economic systems of the Canadian and Russian North Andrey N Petrov Degree: Doctor of Philosophy Department of Geography University of Toronto 2008 This dissertation is an effort to provide a new insight into the problem of regional development in remote areas under changing global and national political and economic conditions. It undertakes an assessment of shared economic histories, recent changes and future possibilities of socioeconomic prosperity and sustainability in marginal regions of Canada and Russia. The first chapter re-examines the structure of Canada’s and Russia’s space-economies by evoking the concept of regional multichotomies and economic marginality. I consider whether outcomes, geographic patterns and spatial logics of regional differentiation in the two countries are similar and explore the evidence of similarity between the North(s). Finding development outcomes in the Russian and Canadian North strikingly similar, the second chapter uses a combination of discursive analysis and regulation theory to re-interpret the origins of present-day problems and examine the genealogy of northern development. It argues that the Canadian and Russian northern development regimes shared profound commonalities. From these positions, the chapter compares and critiques past and present policies of regional development in the two Norths, and discusses their viability. The third chapter dwells upon a concept of ‘development regimes’ to analyze and compare contemporary regional development policies. It further investigates how recent economic development policies in the two Norths are adapting to changing economic and political realities, and if they were able to deliver desirable results to northern communities. The chapter compares and critiques contemporary policies and discusses possible alternative perspectives that reconcile an emerging postcolonial paradigm of development and realities of post-Fordism. It introduces the notion of the neo-staple development regime and describes its manifestations (Impact and Benefit Agreements). The fourth chapter presents a case for fostering knowledge based development and creative capital in the North. It builds on the innovation systems and institutional geography literatures to argue that the creative capital in the periphery is a pivotal factor of regional development. The chapter provides a conceptualization and empirical analysis of the creative class in remote regions. Contrary to the metropolitan bias, I argue that creative ‘hot spots’ beyond metropolis exist, and could become the centres of regional reinvention, if appropriate policies are introduced in support.

The aim of this thesis is to investigate the relationship between regional policy and regional state aid policy in the European Union and to evaluate the implications of this relationship on the transformation of the regional policy approach of both the EU and the member states with specific focus on the implications for Turkish regional policy in the process of EU accession. After providing a critical review of regional policy and regional state aid policy in the EU, this thesis lays out the possible alternatives for regional policy following the enlargement of the Union in 2004. The analysis shows that in the absence of a significant increase in the funding directed to regional policy at the EU level despite an increase in regional disparities and as a result of more strict regulations on regional state aids granted by member states / a trade-off exists, especially for less-prosperous member states, between national growth and reduction of regional disparities. Thus, achieving a proper balance between competitiveness and cohesion in the EU necessitates the coordination of national and EU level funding for regional development. The implications for Turkey is that in order to achieve national convergence with the EU in the short run and to reduce regional disparities in the long run, Turkey needs to revise its regional policy and regional state aid policy as to strategically coordinate national and EU regional policy funding.

The problems of special education and its support through projects from European Social Fund. The contribution of projects is valueed for aim groups but for the South Bohemian Region too.