Good planning needs foresight. How can foresight mindsets and practices be incorporated into urban planning? This was the topic of yesterday's roundtable on future foresight and scenario planning at #WPC61 in Riyadh #ISOCARP. I had the pleasure to participate with Bronwyn Williams and Sunil Dubey.

Europe enters the next round of #MFF negotiations with a familiar dilemma: adjustments to an increasingly overstretched system, or a strategic leap towards transformative investment? Kaisa Lähteenmaki-Smith and I explore this tension through a forward-looking scenario 👉 steady.page/en/spatialfo...

How can security and cohesion reinforce each other? Jean Claude Zeimet and I explore scenarios for EU’s north-eastern border regions: steady.page/en/spatialfo.... They were developed within @esponprogramme.bsky.social CHANEBO to stimulate reflection on strategic choices & territorial consequences.

Small-scale projects are meant to bring territorial cooperation closer to citizens. Our latest blog post takes a look 👉 steady.page/en/spatialfo... It explores how Small-Scale Projects (SSPs) and Small Project Funds (SPFs) can becoming drivers of inclusion, trust and cross-border engagement.

'Important Projects of Common European Interest' (IPCEIs) offer collaborative leap into strategic risk, designed to build EU capacity. Although they are cross-border, they hardly feature in debates about territorial cohesion. Read our new blog post steady.page/en/spatialfo...

As Europe debates the shape of post-2027 policies, one question looms large: how can we reconcile competitiveness with cohesion in an age of transition? Time to revisit place-based policymaking! Read our new blog post 👉 steady.page/en/spatialfo...

Emerging technologies and geopolitical shocks are reshaping Europe’s territorial futures. Yet our governance systems remain stubbornly reactive. It is time to shift to anticipatory governance. Read our blog post 👉 steady.page/en/spatialfo... The blog post is inspired by a publication by @vtt.fi

How can Europe move to circular economy? Experience of the Interreg Alpine Space Programme illustrates how circularity can be scaled through cooperation, innovation, and local action. 👉 Read the new blog post steady.page/en/spatialfo...

Bio-solutions are moving from the lab to Europe’s regions. Advances in technology mean that biology and technology can be combined to create green industrial solutions, or bio-solutions. More in the new blog post: steady.page/en/spatialfo...

The EU post-2027 budget proposes a radical shift: National and Regional Partnership (NRP) Plans. The idea: strategic integration & simplified funding. At what cost? What is needed to make them work for cohesion? Read our new blog post steady.page/en/spatialfo...

Shifting perspectives for the future of cohesion policy. Getting ready for today’s roleplay on possible future cohesion policy. While everyone is waiting for the Commission’s proposal on the post-2027 EU budget and cohesion priorities, to spark fresh thinking and challenge established assumptions.

In a few weeks, the European Commission will present its proposals for the future of Cohesion Policy. But before the official documents ground us in reality, why not allow ourselves to think completely outside the box? steady.page/en/spatialfo...

As we celebrate the 40th anniversary of the #Schengen Agreement, we must ask ourselves: can Europe uphold one of its greatest achievements, or are we witnessing the quiet erosion of a shared dream? Read more in my latest blog post steady.page/en/spatialfo...

Is the EU becoming a patchwork of cherry-pickers, or can it still offer a shared vision for its citizens? Our latest blog post reflects on two distinct paths the EU may now be heading toward 👉 steadyhq.com/en/spatialfo... #EU #FutureOfEurope #EuropeanUnion #Cohesion #EuropeQuoVadis

In our latest blog post, we explore the powerful yet under-the-radar concept of trans-regional circularity hubs 👉 steadyhq.com/en/spatialfo... The goal? A greener, more resilient Europe – built on cooperation, not competition. Why do we need hubs that go beyond national borders?

🔍 Europe’s Talent Challenge: is a Union of Skills the answer? How can Europe ensure that everyone and every place has a future? Read 👉https://steadyhq.com/en/spatialforesight/posts/28230d42-66fd-4c78-ba1d-678946cbab1d The Union of Skills, and its implications for regional development and cohesion.

🇪🇺 Happy Europe Day! 🎉 As we do every year, we fly the flag at our house on 9 May to celebrate peace, unity and solidarity in Europe. On this day in 1950, Robert Schuman presented his declaration, which laid the foundation for the EU. #EuropeDay #EU #UnityInDiversity #Cohesion #Solidarity #09May

What does the future hold for EU cohesion policy after 2027? As debates on the next EU budget begin, several bifurcation points could radically reshape how the EU supports its regions 👉 steadyhq.com/en/spatialfo...

🌍 Is the green transition fair for all? As EU races towards climate neutrality, not all regions and workers are starting from the same line. That’s where the 🇪🇺 European Fair Transition Observatory may come in. Read more in our latest blog post 👉 steadyhq.com/en/spatialfo...

Today, I had the pleasure of address the joint DGTC & DGUM meeting in Warsaw #Poland25eu , and present my ideas on why to join forces to strengthen the territorial #cohesion dimension in the European Semester. It draws on steadyhq.com/en/spatialfo... @esponprogramme.bsky.social #TerritorialAgenda

How fair is the green transition in spatial, social and sectoral terms? There is talk about a European Fair Transition Observatory. The blog post discusses whether it can help a more evidence-based and territorially sensitive green transition. steadyhq.com/en/spatialfo...

How can territorial hashtag#scenarios help us move from being informed to being able to change the future through our actions? A blog post by Maria Toptsidou steadyhq.com/en/spatialfo...

#Cohesion is important for the future of Europe. EU policies should reflect this. Read our latest blog post on criteria for a future-wise cohesion policy 👉 steadyhq.com/en/spatialfo...

Gleich in den Kalender eintragen: Europa braucht Dich. Am Sonntag, 6. April, 14:00 Uhr: #PulseofEurope #EuropaDemo in Frankfurt a. M., Darmstadt, Marburg, Karlsruhe, Baden-Baden, Göttingen, Hildesheim, Kassel, Köln, Aachen, Kiel, Würzburg, Goslar, … #LastExitEurope pulseofeurope.eu/blog/projekt...

Should the European Semester address territorial cohesion? steadyhq.com/en/spatialfo... Integrating territorial #cohesion into the #EuropeanSemester could improve policy coordination & address regional disparities, some ideas based on a #TerritorialAgenda review for @esponprogramme.bsky.social

#Deutschlandfunk just reported that Russia is manipulating Western chatbots for its propaganda. This may underline the need to think along the lines of the European Factfulness AI proposed above: steadyhq.com/en/spatialfo... #Deutschlandfunk news: www.deutschlandfunk.de/forscher-rus...

What role should and can #cohesion play in addressing the major challenges facing Europe today? 👉 the latest blog from the Territorial Thinkers steadyhq.com/en/spatialfo...

Cooperation is essential to manage the transformation processes ahead. It must go beyond the logic of cooperation programmes as we know them today. This was the message of my keynote speech at the network meeting of Austrian territorial cooperation actors in Linz: www.oerok.gv.at/kooperatione...

EU policy that enhances long-term convergence has had broadly positive effects. The EU is doing better than the US at aiding its distressed regions, from Peter R. Berkowitz, Michael Storper, and Max Herbertson https://www.nber.org/papers/w33513

Could an AI-powered equivalent of the national encyclopaedias help counter post-truth narratives in social and political debates? 👉 steadyhq.com/en/spatialfo... Our new blog post sketches the idea of a European factfulness AI, which could also be a niche for positioning the EU in the AI context.

Escape the populist pied piper by rediscovering the importance of sound. Our latest positive future narrative looks beyond current "post-truth" trends: steadyhq.com/en/spatialfo...

What are cross-border energy communities? And, what are their benefits? Read more in our latest blog post 👉 steadyhq.com/en/spatialfo...

What is your story of a desirable future? In a new blog post, we explore a future focused on rediscovering details, local action and personal responsibility in a complex world. 👉 steadyhq.com/en/spatialfo...

Yesterday, I was invited to the European Parliament REGI Committee to present our study on the future of EU cohesion: Scenarios and their impacts on regional inequalities. The report is available: www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etud...

What would a future look like in which EU policies give priority to efficiency & performance and pay little attention to regional & social disparities? Read a scenario on a sectoral policy approach to cohesion and #cohesionpolicy in our blog 👉 steadyhq.com/en/spatialfo...

How could different EU and national policies be coordinated to achieve common goals, and reduce regional disparities? Read more about the scenario on an integrated policy approach to cohesion and #cohesionpolicy in our latest blog post: steadyhq.com/en/spatialfo...

As discussions on the future of #CohesionPolicy continue, the idea of focusing on 27 national plans has emerged. In their latest blog post, the #TerritorialThinkers explore the potential benefits of this idea and argue for strong territorial dimension: steadyhq.com/en/spatialfo...

We do we stand with a future for all place and people? Our Stocktaking Review of the #TerritorialAgenda 2030 has been published territorialagenda.eu/wp-content/u... An interesting ESPON study, thanks to my co-authors Maria Toptsidou, Martijn de Bruijn, Jacek Zaucha and Paola Marinović

Happy to announce the European Parliamentary Research Service report “The future of EU cohesion: Scenarios and their impacts on regional inequalities” has been published: www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etud...

Here comes our second post on We Imagine Desirable Futures. This time, we're focusing on a democratic spring in Europe, which is firmly rooted in shared values of democracy and diversity. steadyhq.com/en/spatialfo...

New blog post by Sverker Lindblad about the need for the Western world to redefine its role in a multipolar world and implications for territorial cohesion steadyhq.com/en/spatialfo...

The term 'left-behind' conceals more than it reveals. #Europe’s vulnerable #regions differ: some bear scars of deindustrialisation, others face demographic collapse, while rural areas grapple with isolation. @sanne_velthuis et al. show that policy must grasp this complexity. doi.org/10.1080/0034...

We start a new series of blog posts on desirable futures. First out: European island of happiness, with a focus on well-being 👉 steadyhq.com/en/spatialfo... What ideas or perspectives do you have on positive futures narratives?