Europejskie Ugrupowanie Współpracy Terytorialnej
Project partners:
miasto Nowy Targ miasto Kezmarok

International conference "From the "Tatra" Euroregion to a European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation

On 14-15 of September 2011, an international conference From the "Tatra" Euroregion to a European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation have been organized by the "Tatra" Euroregion Assosiation and by the Town of Nowy Targ. The Conference is co-funded by the European Union under the Polish-Slovak Cross-border Co-operation Operational Programme 2007-2013 and with the funds of Malopolskie Voivodship. It was granted the Patronage of the Polish Presidency in the Council of the European Union. The event brought together many participants, including experts from the Committee of the Regions, the Assosiation of European Border Regions, the existing European Groupings of Territorial Cooperation, representatives of Polish and Slovak local governments of the borderland as well as the regional and national authorities.

The Conference was of consultative nature and it became a forum for the exchange of views on the results to date of the activities of the European Groupings of Territorial Cooperation, the problems encountered, as well as the prospects for the development of the EGTC as an effective European legal tool enabling territorial authorities to effect cross-border, inter-regional and transnational co-operation upon new principles. The experience and the good practices developed in the EGTC will be extremely important in the context of the Conference’s objectives and the “Tatra” Euroregion’s work on the establishment of a European Grouping of Territorial Co-operation on the Polish-Slovak borderland.

During the first part of the conference: A European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation - an innovative instrument for European Union's cohesion policy, papers were delivered by:

  • Kazimierz Jóskowiak, dr. hab., Professor, Chodkowska University in Warsaw
  • Alfonso Alcolea Martinez, Committee of the Regions
  • Martín Guillermo Ramírez, Secretary General, Association of European Border Regions
  • Przemysław Gembiak, Department of Strategy and Foreign Policy Planning,
  • Zuzana Hofericová, Department of Regional Policy, Ministry of Transport, Construction and Regional Development of the Slovak Republic
  • Jakub Szymański, Director, Department of Regional Policy, Marshall Office of the Małopolska Region

During the second part of the Conference, regarding the practical aspects of setting-up and running a European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation, the speeches were delivered by:

  • Milan Nevlazla, Director, Office of the Slovak “Tatra” Region
  • Grażyna Zduńczuk-Studnicka, Vicedirector, Department of Economy, Marshall Office of the Silesian Region
  • Gyula Ocskay, Director, EGTC Ister-Granum
  • Andrzej Jankowski, Director, Office of the Association of Polish Municipalities of the “Nysa” Euroregion

The participants of the Conference took part in a study visit to the Polish-Slovak border, combined with the presentation of selected results of  cross-border cooperation and investments, including bike path Szczawnica - Lesnica, pedestrian promenade in Szczawnica, footbridge over the River Dunajec between Sromowce Niżne and Czerwony Klasztor, the House of Meetings for Euroregion "Tatry" in Kežmarok, renovated courtyard of the castle in Kežmarok and bike path in Spiska Bela - Tatrzanska Kotlina.

The musical spectacle "The Tatras bring us together" was a promotional event accompanying the Conference. It was directed by Jerzy Zon of KTO Experimental Theatre from Krakow. The concert took place on 14 September at the Market Square in Nowy Targ. More about the concert can be read here. See the gallery of photographs.

Project co-financed by the European Union from the European Regional Development
Fund under the Republic of Poland - Slovak Republic Cross-border Co-operation Operational
Programme 2007-2013 and from the funds of the Malopolskie Voivodship