Best Development Conditions in European Metropolises: Paris, Berlin and Warsaw (Best Metropolises) - ESPON 2013

Thematic scope.Metropolitan regions are the primary growth poles for regions and countries and they are seen as key drivers of territorial development both in the national and European context. Metropolisation is a complex process, affecting cities on a social, economic and spatial level. Therefore it is important to understand the logic of metropolitan development in order to determine what potentials should be mobilised. The project focuses on processes of urban development that many cities and regions in the EU currently experience. Emphasis is laid on comparing cities, thus enabling them to identify similarities and common challenges in relation to the project's three main themes: living conditions, mobility and governance in the metropolitan context. The analysis will focus on the metropolitan areas of Berlin, Paris and Warsaw attempting to gather information and knowledge that can be used in the planning, development and management practice of metropolitan cities and areas.

Main areas of analysis

• Analysis of the consequences of metropolisation processes in Berlin, Paris and Warsaw in terms of living conditions, mobility and governance.
• Assessment of the development potential in each of the cities.
• Studying how political, organisational, spatial, and socio-economic contexts influence development policies and their performance.
• Evaluating the efficiency of development policies in terms of achieving goals of sustainable development.

Main results envisaged

• Identifying the main determinants of development processes in the three cities as well as their main development challenges.
• Social, economic, and spatial development processes will be analysed in order to compare development potentials in the three cities.
• Evaluating ways of raising the efficiency of metropolitan and local governance.
• Providing new comparative insight, helping to understand potentials and challenges of metropolisation from a European perspective.
• Developing a practical “toolbox” offering a set of solutions to be used to deal with problems and to help design ways of avoiding conflict and to facilitate development processes in the fields of metropolitan living conditions, mobility and governance.