EXPLORING SUSTAINABLE STRATEGIES TO COUNTERACT TERRITORIAL INEQUALITIES FROM AN INTERSECTIONAL APPROACH

Project Information

EXIT

Grant agreement ID: 101061122

DOI

10.3030/101061122

Project closed

EC signature date 8 June 2022

Start date 1 November 2022

End date 31 March 2026

Funded under

• Culture, creativity and inclusive society

Total cost

€ 2 664 796,25

EU contribution

€ 2 664 796,25

Coordinated by

UNIVERSITAT DE BARCELONA
Spain

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - EXIT (EXPLORING SUSTAINABLE STRATEGIES TO COUNTERACT TERRITORIAL INEQUALITIES FROM AN INTERSECTIONAL APPROACH)

Reporting period: 2022-11-01 to 2024-01-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

To grasp the intricacies of inequality dynamics and devise effective policies, the territorial dimension is essential. Beyond income and wealth disparities, inequality encompasses access to crucial services, education, and infrastructure. Spatial inequalities, rooted in historical and current decisions, result in uneven resource distribution. Understanding the intersection of different inequalities is crucial for addressing perceptions and experiences of being "left behind" and bridging the gap between policy development and on-the-ground impact.

The EXIT research analyses manifestations, root causes, and implications of socioeconomic inequalities in areas often labeled as "left behind" through a mixed-methods approach. With a place-based focus that incorporates local perspectives and experiences from 17 case-studies in 8 countries, the research employs qualitative and quantitative methods to explore territorial disparities. Through an intersectional, interdisciplinary, and participatory approach, it analyses how inhabitants, institutions and civil society actors perceive, experience, and counteract inequalities, whilst identifying existing needs and strategies. This examination is articulated through several key areas, including Social services and health, Formal and informal education, Work and professional life, Community and social life, Housing, environment, and regeneration, Mobility and immobility, and Digital inclusiveness.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

The initial phase of the research established a conceptual framework by examining "left-behind areas" and the concept of “left-behindness”, scrutinising its theoretical foundations, application in policymaking, and translation into indicators across eight participant countries and at the EU level. This included analysing related notions like territorial cohesion and spatial justice. Subsequently, criteria for selecting areas for ethnographic research were defined.

The next phase aimed to understand the policy context surrounding territorial inequalities at various levels. This involved reviewing research findings, analysing existing policies, conducting an online survey with 409 respondents, organising focus groups with 103 stakeholders across seven countries, and facilitating a joint cross-country analysis. These tasks aimed to aiming to deepen understanding of policymakers' and other stakeholders' perceptions of the efficacy and innovative potential of policies that address territorial inequalities.

Simultaneously, quantitative data collection and analysis are underway to provide a detailed overview of territorial inequalities across Europe. This involves compiling regional data from EUROSTAT databases, moving towards smaller spatial units to address policy intervention effectively. Entropy techniques are being used to estimate local income and poverty figures from NUTS2 regional aggregates for specific countries.

The next phase, including ethnographic fieldwork with residents and stakeholders across 17 case-studies, including rural, urban, and postindustrial areas, is currently being planned.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

The results of the project are at this stage preliminary. These include a theorisation of territorial inequalities through a multi-level dispositif analysis of the concept “left-behind places”. Based on this, a heuristic model and working definition of “left-behindness” was conceptualised, contributing to the definition of criteria of whether an area is impacted by territorial inequalities. This is beyond merely economic indicators, but also as a peripheral experience in concrete locations in relation to political discourses as well as the place-specific employment of indicators and policy instruments. The tangible outputs in this regard include a State-of-the-Art paper and two reports describing respectively the heuristic model and the criteria for selection of areas where the ethnographic research will be conducted. Stemming from this, 17 case-studies across 8 countries have been selected, to implement the place-based research approach. Guidelines on uses and misconceptions of the concept “left-behind” have been produced and disseminated to stakeholders.

Further results are founded on the policy analysis conducted, including a mapping and analysis of existing policies addressing territorial inequalities, as well as an analysis of policy drivers of territorial inequalities. The direct involvement of policymakers and other stakeholders at different levels through the survey and focus groups, has allowed for an exploratory analysis of gaps between measurable factors of inequality and perceptions. While policy analysis suggests that territorial disparities are a significant concern and an important topic in national political discourse in most countries, findings from focus groups and online surveys involving various stakeholders in these eight countries reveal a prevailing belief that territorial inequality is not adequately discussed or prioritised in policy and public discourse. Discussions with stakeholders at both the national and local levels reveal limited use of the term "left-behindness" in political or academic discourse. Participants across various countries instead favour expressions such as "marginality", "remoteness", "disadvantage", "underdeveloped areas", and "rural areas". Direct outputs from these tasks include a report on the analysis of key policies, as well as a report that reflects the exploratory analysis of gaps between factors of inequality and perception.

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