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Cities in the transformation countries face the double challenge of economic restructuring and of raising their national and international competitiveness. Regional and inter-regional co-operation are important means in the quest for a position in the network of European metropolitan areas. Networking by co-operation occupies a middle ground between markets and hierarchies: Co-operation is a self-binding, voluntary agreement to co-ordinate the actions of at least two partners. It is a bottom up procedure to work towards a common goal. There are often considerable costs involved in the efforts to initiate and establish co-operative structures. Only if all partners profit they will be inclined to continue to work together. Efficiency is a crucial constraint that limits the potential for long term co-operations between cities to certain fields of interaction. Effective city-to-city co-operation may be limited to a small number of fields, namely the exchange of best practices, lobbying activities and the bundling of common resources.
Results:
Leipzig recognises the strategic importance of inter-metropolitan co-operation in order to increase its competitiveness and to improve its position among the cities of European importance. There exists an impressive range of co-operative activities with regional and international partners. All five potential fields of co-operation are realised in some way:
- Exchanges of best practices take place in the framework of Eurocities in the ‘CityRegio’ project and with twin city partners.
- The Eurocities network is also the prime forum for lobbying activities.
- Place marketing is articulated in the ‘Regionalforum Mitteldeutschland’, although Leipzig’s involvement is very limited.
- The candidacy for the big event of the Olympic Games initially involved a co-operative arrangement with the cities of the Saxonian Triangle (plus Riesa).
- The projects of physical infrastructure especially the International Airport Leipzig-Halle involve some partnership with the neighbouring city of Halle.
Publication:
Burdack, Joachim (2005): A place in the sun. Co-operation, competition and Leipzig’s quest for a size of European importance. In: Giffinger, Rudolph (Ed.): Competition between cities in Central Europe: Opportunities and Risks of Cooperation. Bratislava: Spectra, S. 136-147.
Researcher:
Joachim Burdack
Cooperation:
Akademie für Raumforschung und Landesplanung ( ARL)
Duration:
09/2004–05/2005
Project sponsoring:
ARL
Further informations:
 Joachim Burdack
Tel.: +49 (0)341 255-6511
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