In the shift towards the Big Society, it is widely proclaimed that citizen participation and citizens’ initiatives are indispensable to maintaining services that used to be run by local or regional governments. Despite the increased interest in citizens’ initiatives, research has scarcely debated what …

The European Union Solidarity Fund is a financial support instrument, which supports member states of the European Union and countries applying for accession with recovery costs after they were affected by a natural disaster. The Regulation (EC) No 2012/2002 established the Fund in November 2002; it …

Smart city-policy makers and technology vendors are increasingly stating they want to bring about citizen-centered smart cities. Yet, it often remains unclear what exactly that means, and how citizens are envisaged as actors in smart cities. This article wants to contribute to this discussion by exploring …

In the last decades, citizen initiatives have become more important for neighbourhood development. This applies as well to sustaining urban green and the (temporary) development of urban food gardening and small parks. Development through citizen initiatives is not a straight-forward task for planners …

Ever since the recognition of the causality between earthquakes in the Region Groningen, gas production and the ensuing damage to houses and buildings in that area, government faces big challenges in policy-making. On the one hand liability for damages must result in fast and effective repair of houses …

http://dx.doi.org/10.14261/postit/0C6A2C6A-5687-474F-99F06AAA881D88D4Conference paper of the Regional Innovation and Entrepreneurship Conference (RIEC) at Saxion University of Applied Sciences  (2015/2016)Abstract: Since 2014 the EU and Russia have put in place a set of sanctions which limit trade between …

This research examines the effectiveness of the EU as a regional crisis management actor in the post-Lisbon era. In doing so, an assessment is made of the capability-expectations gap applied to the crisis in Ukraine, thereby building upon the work of Hill (1993) and that of Ginsberg (1999). This research …

The number of displaced persons in the world has reached an exceedingly high amount. Due to conflicts and war in Syria, the number of displaced persons has increased. The European Union was not prepared for a refugee influx on this scale. Applications in The Netherlands are being delayed and the pressure …

Preventing working shortages: a regional pilot in the province of Groningen In 2013 the Centre of Applied Labour Market Research (Kenniscentrum Arbeid, KCA) has developed a method for data collection to get an insight in employer’s future demand for staff. The method is developed to contribute to solve …

Both connectivity and accessibility are important for regional development. Places and communities need to be connected in order to be part of the wider economy, and people need to have access to places, other communities and labour markets to fully participate in society. In contemporary society, not …