- Cross-Border Environmental Planning Offers Perspectives for Shrinking Regions    315 kb by    Vloebergh, Guy | guy.vloebergh@omgeving.be    Short Outline This innovative and strategic multi-track planning affects a creative dialogue and tries to find the right balance between growth ambitions and shrinking measures. The paper presents lessons from this cross-border environmental planning approach Abstract Title: Cross-Border Environmental Planning Offers Perspectives for Shrinking Regions The population growth facing Belgium and the Netherlands over the next decade is occurring primarily in centrally located regions as well as in regions which are easy to reach such as the ‘Vlaamse Ruit’ (Flemish Diamond) and the ‘Randstad’ (conurbation of Western Holland). The peripheral provinces of Limburg (in the East of Flanders and the South-east of the Netherlands) have very diverse dynamics, both economically and in terms of population evolution. To prevent possible polarisation, a cross-border dialogue and collaboration, dubbed the ‘Limburg Charter’, was initiated at the provincial level in both countries. On the initiative of the local governments (the Flemish municipality of Lanaken and the Dutch city of Maastricht, as well as the two provinces of Limburg), backed by the Flemish government, a strategic cross-border planning process has been taking shape in this border region since 2009. A border manager was appointed to devise and coordinate a strategic project. The environmental policy plans (dubbed structure plans and structure visions) of these 4 local partners are critically examined and continually geared to one another. As well as creating a long-term vision, concrete projects are being worked on such as the development of a cross-border industrial estate named ALBERTKNOOP, a new fast tram line between the cities of Hasselt and Maastricht, the creation of a joint green structure etc. In addition, the highly divergent housing market in the Flemish border region and the Dutch region of South Limburg is jointly monitored, and cross-border moving trends are tracked. Using a detailed survey, people who move are asked about their housing standards and the real reasons for their living pattern. By means this type of innovative and strategic multi-track planning, a creative dialogue is initiated to find the right balance between growth ambitions and shrinking measures. The paper presents lessons from this planning approach. Guy Vloebergh (Belgium) is since 1998 CEO of OMGEVING cvba, a design company with a passion for the living environment (guy.vloebergh@omgeving.be), since 2004 professor urban planning at ARTESIS University College of Urbanism and Spatial Planning in Antwerp, since 2009 Border Manager of the Cross-Border Project ALBERTKNOOP and since 2012 president of the National Delegation of Belgium planners in ISOCARP. Keywords strategic multi-track planning, Cross-Border Environmental Planning Case Study presented on the ISOCARP Congress 2012: Fast Forward: Planning in a (hyper) dynamic urban context   Click to open the full paper as pdf document   Click to send an email to the author(s) of this paper