Regional Development in a PostAgrarian Age

1
Regional Development in a Post-Agrarian Age

• Placemaking as Cultural Strategy

Kinsale, Cork May 19, 2005 Hans Mommaas
2
Agenda

• the post-agrarian age
• from regulation to development
• integrative innovation through culture
• the Heuvelland new markets case
• some development principles

3
the post-agrarian age

• agri-food complex (10 GDP, 4 LF) less and less
  the dominant entity in the formation of the
  rural (econ., soc., cult. and spatial)
• result is a restructuring of the relation between
  agriculture, spatial relations and the landscape
• the rural
• from a space of production to a space of
  consumption
• from a natural to a cultural entity
  (isomorphic)
• from global (vertical) to regional (horizontal)
  value chains
• as part of a wider rural-urban field.

4
from regulation to development

• the rural less the self-evident result of
  agricultural production
• the need for new economic structures to sustain
  rural qualities
• implies a de- en reconnection of sectoral value
  chains
• based on the potential value of ecological,
  landscape and agrarian qualities within a wider
  consumer economy
• hence from landscape as just an object of
  spatial regulation to the landscape as the source
  of a new, integrative development
• and the need for cultural labour / cultural
  governance

5
challenges

• more than a simple transformation of goals and
  perspectives
• implies a change in e.g.
• sectoral interests and structures
• types of public-private coalitions
• urban-rural relationships
• types of developmental logics
• definition and management of spatial
  entities/boundaries.

6
integrative innovation through culturethe
Heuvelland New Markets case

• ingredients
• decreasing market share tourism (18 ? 10)
• decreasing importance of agriculture (in 10 years
  -75)
• ongoing importance of tourism (in core areas 70
  labour market)
• ongoing importance of agriculture (as landscape
  supporter)
• insufficient investment power of agriculture and
  tourism
• necessity additional investment support to
  strengthen value chains
• necessity of new 'horizontal' alliances
• search for a provocation strategy
• TouriSME (Valencia, Saksen-Anhalt, NE England
  Interreg IIIc)
• Provincial Investment Development Found

7
The Netherlands
Heuvelland
8
the actor approach

• goal find and develop potential alliances i.o.t.
  strengthen a sustainable development of the
  region
• step one identification
• which are the core qualities of the region and
  which existing reference cases can be related to
  that?
• step two provocation
• which economic actors can be stimulated to join
  in to invest in those qualities and references?
• step three programming
• how can we translate the investment interests
  into a coherent regional development programme?

9
sustainable development
10
step one identification

• interviews with regional key-figures in order to
  identify core natural, cultural and economic
  qualities (hills, castles, cloisters, churches
  and chapels, farms, orchards, vineyards, local
  produce, arts crafts, design, etc.)
• identification of references and potential
  alliances
• regional food Bourgogne
• health care Baden-Baden
• multimedia Nice
• brands Billund (Lego)
• top rd Poitiers
• production of images, maps, presentations

11
step two provocation

• round table dialogues in tempting environments
  with regional and outside businesses
• tourism, agriculture, care, gardening,
  automotive, ict, ...
• building commitment, provoking investment
  interests
• identification of pushers and pullers
• development of concepts
• Riche Tastes scaling up of regional food chain
• Healing Hills care hotels
• Wellness in Luxury preventive lifestyle
  trajectories
• Glorious Life apartments with care guarantees
• Linked Fields wireless broadband ict system

12
Rich Tastes
13
Coalitions between agriculture, hotel and
catering, retail and recreation
14
Healing Hills
15
Coalitions between hospitals, insurance companies
and regional hotel catering
16
step three programming

• creation of project groups (6)
• facilitation of project groups
• development of businessplans
• additional acquisition
• creation of knowledge infrastructure
• creation of European Investment Fund
• creation of more permanent public-private support
  and development structures

17
10 development principles

• the natural/cultural landscape as an integrative
  mobilising device
• major contribution of visual elements images,
  maps and design
• integrative approach of value chains, horizontal
  vertical
• alliances between different (urban rural)
  businesses
• beyond planning (maps as integral part of actor
  approach)
• policy at a distance, economic actors as driving
  forces
• PIDF as initial regional process-director (ppp)
• linking local and outside investment power
• learning by doing
• shared responsibilities.