Regional strategy design – addressing transformations in multiple ways

Abstract

Regions in the 21st century are subject to global influences which include climate change, resource scarcities, economic transitions, demographic shifts and ongoing digitalisation. If sustainability is to be achieved within this changing context, new collaborations will be required which shape these transformations more proactively. Alongside this, awareness within planning has been evolving, including the recognition that various regional design approaches can complement established planning procedures. Building on these aspects, this article investigates the option to design long-term strategies for the development of regions which are facing fundamental change. To undertake this, a process is considered which took place within a real life experimental situation over a period of four years. This process involved the testing of a new model for “regional strategy design”, which required the cooperation with stakeholders from diverse institutional backgrounds. The Rhenish Mining Area (RMA) in Germany, which is characterised by rapidly changing circumstances, served as a case study. The discussion of the results reflects on the preconditions (e.g. established regional governance), outcomes (e.g. selective interventions) and the question of transferability. It can be concluded that regional strategy design has the potential to develop further as a field of activity.