OPEN DAYS 2012 – 10th European Week of Regions and Cities

The OPEN DAYS 2012 will take place between the 8 and 11 of October, in Brussels. Since 2003, the OPEN DAYS or European Week of Regions and Cities has grown into the key event on EU Regional Policy. It welcomes some 6000 participants in October each year (local, regional, national and European decision-makers and experts) for more than 100 workshops and debates, exhibitions and networking opportunities. In addition to the Brussels-based workshops, some 250 local events are run from September to November all over Europe.

The OPEN DAYS 2012 thematic priorities

Under the heading ‘Europe’s regions and cities: Making a difference‘, the OPEN DAYS 2012 seminars and workshops are structured around three thematic priorities:

• Smart and green growth for all – How does cohesion policy contribute to smart, sustainable and inclusive growth?
  
• Territorial cooperation: an asset for Europe – How can cooperation be used as a tool for regional development and better exploitation of regional potential? What is the added value of co-operation both within cooperation programmes and regional programmes, the European Grouping on Territorial Cooperation (EGTC) and macro-regional strategies? How to make best use of these instruments?
• Delivering results – What are the main achievements of the EU cohesion policy? And how can the intentions of the new regulatory framework proposed by the European Commission for 2014-2020 be best implemented?

A decade of exchange and debate

The OPEN DAYS 2012 will mark the event’s 10th anniversary. Looking back over a decade of debates and exchanges of best practice on European cohesion policy, it will be a time forpositive reflection during the overall discussions on the future European cohesion policy. By October 2012, the Committee of the Regions and the European Parliament will both have adopted their positions on the European Commission’s legislative proposals for cohesion policy 2014-2020. The debate will continue in the Council and with the Member States, driven by the overall discussion on the Multiannual Financial Framework.

Registrations for OPEN DAYS prolonged until 27 September!