The Multi-scale Approach of Territorial Cohesion: an Analysis from the European Periphery

The territorial dimension has been gaining greater prominence on the EU agenda. Traditionally underestimated, despite the fact that the implementation of EU funds is referenced to specific territorial units, the construction of a systemized knowledge on European territorial reality was intensified in the first decade of this century and became official with the approval of the Treaty of Lisbon (EU, 2007), where Territorial Cohesion is included as an objective of the European Union, alongside economic and social cohesion. Although it is not an innovation, much less a break with the past, the concept of territorial cohesion has emerged as the unifying element of the trends in territorial planning that have been developed within the European Union, essentially at an informal level, since the adoption of the ESDP (CEC, 1999). The concept has gained increasing interest, and is currently a relevant debate subject in the reformulation of European cohesion policy. A central aspect of the discussion on territorial cohesion relates to the dichotomy between centre and periphery, evident in the dynamics of the European Union, and how to mitigate the inequalities of development between these two "territories". The article will focus on the European periphery, choosing Portugal as the case study, intents on demonstrating the potential gains that the operationalization of the concept (giving particular emphasis to the issues of Polycentrism and Territorial Networks, Cooperation and Governance) could have in reducing the imbalances within Europe and for the better integration of the periphery in the global dynamics. A multi-scalar approach will be adopted to demonstrate how the European strategic guidelines were included in national planning systems and the adaptability of the concept in different scales. The article begins with the theoretical framework of the concept of territorial cohesion, its main components, and its increasing integration into the EU agenda. It then sets out to demonstrate the importance of the operationalization of the concept may have on the mitigation of development inequalities between the European periphery and the centre, while contributing to balance its internal territory. The multi-scale approach to the case study (Portugal) aims to explain the influence that the European documents (mostly the ESDP) had in the preparation of the national land management instruments, thereby showing possible paths of assimilation of the European guidelines and territorial cohesion concept in the strategies of the European periphery countries and its added value in narrowing the development disparities. Finally, the discussion of Territorial Cohesion within the context of the current restructuring process of European cohesion policy will be analysed, seeking to reflect on its position and level of priority on the European agenda, in the current context of uncertainty and the new challenges that the European Union faces.