Zur Bedeutung endogener Potenziale in klein- und mittelstädtisch geprägten Regionen – Überlegungen vor dem Hintergrund der Territorialen Agenda 2020

Abstract

Small and medium-sized towns are often the losers in times of economic crisis, as their internal innovation and growth potentials are low. Such places are especially reliant on external investment and public funding, a fact which aggravates the economic, social and demographic repercussions of the current crisis. Against this background this paper discusses the role that endogenous growth potentials—also highlighted in the EU’s Territorial Agenda 2020—might play in stabilizing such regions. The argument rests on two case-studies in old industrial regions, where the strategic utilization of such potentials by local actors is analysed and their overall influence on regional development discussed. By linking these examples to discussions from the 1980s and 1990s on endogenous potentials, the paper points out that today the primary consideration is not the direct economic impact of potentials. Instead the focus is on the role of endogenous potentials in triggering regional development processes (catalyzing function), highlighting regional uniqueness (identification function) and strengthening regional self-confidence (symbolic function).