The Mission Opérationnelle Transfrontalière (MOT) and the University of Gerona by the Generalitat de Catalunya (Catalan autonomous government) and the Conseil Général des Pyrénées-Orientales (Governing Council) were requested to carry out this project which was conducted between October
2007 and July 2008.
As part of the structuring of the Eurodistrict of the Catalan Cross-border Region, the purpose of this study is to help define and develop a cross-border territory project based on the reality of a shared living area between the Oriental Pyrenees territory and the comarques (counties) of the Province of Gerona.
This project is an unprecedented appraisal of the cross-border area that should ensure the future Eurodistrict of a general and mutual perspective of the territory.
The information and findings in the first stage of this project will permit in the second stage, to address the issues facing the cross-border territory, from which stem a certain number of themes – keys to cross-border cooperation. From each theme derives a certain number of concrete cross-border projects (in the form of project sheets) that will constitute a basis for concrete actions to be instigated and that deal with the different issues identified within the territory.
The final part of the project concentrates on considering the cross-border organisation of the Eurodistrict's Portage on a political, technical and legal basis.
This project included numerous telephone conversations and more than 60 interviews with the major players of differing levels of expertise on either side of the border (a list of these participants figures in the annex of this document). A great many thanks to all those who participated.
This report was coordinated by the Mission Opérationnelle Transfrontalière (MOT) and drawn up in two languages (French and Catalan). It is the work of Olivier DENERT, MOT Head of Project, Jean RUBIO and Ludivine SALAMBO; MOT project managers, Margarida CASTANER VIVAS; Chief Executive of Chaire and the Territorial and Environmental Analysis and Planning Study Group at The University of Gerona (UdG) and Obdulia GUTIERREZ I JARAMILLO and Jaume FELIU I TORRENT; UdG researchers.
