Metropolitan areas are vital engines of growth, innovation, and competitiveness within the European Union. As the EU faces global challenges and seeks to strengthen its position in an increasingly interconnected world, metropolitan areas play an ever more important role — not only as hubs of economic activity, but also as key arenas where policies, solutions, and partnerships are shaped.
This seminar will feature a key presentation showing the importance of metropolitan areas followed by a high-level panel discussion with experts and representatives of metropolitan areas. The debate will explore how metropolitan areas can drive prosperity and tackle social or environmental challenges, how the upcoming Multiannual Financial Framework can provide the tools and resources needed to unlock their full contribution to Europe’s future, and how cohesion policy can better reflect their potential.
Organised in the framework of the MECOG-CE project, the event is designed for all those interested in the strategic role of metropolitan areas for the EU’s competitiveness and cohesion.
Please, register by following this link.
Agenda:
- 14.00: Opening remarks
Ondřej Krutílek, Hanna Gronkiewicz-Waltz, members of the European Parliament
Juraj Droba, member of the European Committee of the Regions, chairman of the Bratislava self-governing Region - 14.20: Keynote presentation: From Local Engines to European Impact: Why Metropolitan Areas Matter
Iván Tosics, Metropolitan Research Institute - 14.35: Panel discussion: Metropolitan areas as drivers of Europe’s future
A moderated discussion providing policy-oriented insights into how metropolitan areas can strengthen the European Union’s overall competitiveness, contribute to achieving key policy objectives, and how the forthcoming Multiannual Financial Framework and cohesion policy can better reflect and support their strategic role.Pietro Reviglio (Eurocities), Łukasz Medeksza (METREX – The Network of European Metropolitan Regions and Areas), Martin Příborský (representative of Brno Metropolitan Area, deputy member of European Committee of the Regions), Thomas Kiwitt (representative of Verband Region Stuttgart), Maciej Fijałkowski (representative of Warsaw Metropolis Association), Iván Tosics (Metropolitan Research Institute) - 15.05: Interactive Q&A with the audience
- 15.20: Strengthening Metropolitan Cooperation and Governance in Central Europe
František Kubeš (City of Brno), an overview of the MECOG-CE project activities highlighting how the project contributes to better governance and cooperation across Central Europe’s metropolitan areas. - 15.30: Closing remarks
Seminar moderated by: Peter Austin, Oslo Metropolitan Area, Chair of WG Metropolitan Areas (Eurocities)
