RT Journal Article
T1 Reporting a bottom-up political process : local perceptions of cross- border cooperation in the southern Portugal–Spain region
A1 González Gómez, Teresa
A1 Gualda, Estrella
AB Beyond the national political-territorial borders in Europe, the cross-regional dimensionmaintains an experimental democratic character. Entities developed to foster cross-border cooperation, such as working communities and Euroregions, are conceived asmechanisms of democratisation through the decentralisation of regional or/and localgovernmental bodies. However, scholarly debate suggests that the top-down policy-making process that is characteristic of cross-border programmes seems to cast doubt onthe fulfilment of a European participatory democracy. In this respect, the cross-bordercooperation process seems to contribute to an added value to the dilemma of theEuropean democratic deficit. The objective of this paper is to present a regionalcontribution to this debate through a study of local experts’ perspectives on theimplementation and impact of cross-border cooperation policies in the southernPortugal-Spain border region and the possibilities for local and social participation. Thispaper utilises data from two related investigations in the southern cross-border areabetween Portugal and Spain, including qualitative interviews, focus groups, and contentanalysis of secondary data. The results reveal a positive attitude towards the recentregional top-down initiatives of European integration, although local experts questionthe potential for the inclusion of local perspectives in cross-border initiatives.Additionally, during this period of economic crisis, political contradictions may beobserved, and political initiatives related to the Spanish-Portugal border may hamperthe existing cross-border flows and dynamics of progressive integration. In this sense,local authorities play an important role as the nexus between transnational institutionsof cross-border cooperation and the inhabitants of border regions.
PB SAGE Journals
SN 0969-7764
YR 2016
FD 2016
LK http://hdl.handle.net/10272/15253
UL http://hdl.handle.net/10272/15253
LA eng
NO González Gómez, T., Gualda, E. (2016): “Reporting a bottom-up political process : local perceptions of cross- border cooperation in the southern Portugal–Spain region”. European Urban and Regional Studies, Vol. 23(3) 468–480. https://doi.org/10.1177/0969776413518781
DS Repositorio Institucional de la Universidad de Huelva
RD 31 may 2026