b-solutions: Online info session

The Association of European Border Regions (AEBR) will host an online info session on Wednesday 28 June (11:30-12:15, CEST) to present the b-solutions initiative addressing border regions.

It will be the opportunity to learn about the b-solutions project, which has successfully enabled to identify and find solutions to more than 140 cases of legal and administrative obstacles along EU borders. The first 90 cases are accessible in the online library.

With the objective of providing support to local actors to improve cooperation across borders, b-solutions addresses difficulties encountered in EU internal, EU-EFTA and EU-IPA border regions in various thematic areas (institutional cooperation, public services, labour market and education and European Green Deal). Through a call for proposals, the initiative offers experts’ technical support with three objectives:

• understand the concrete obstacles;
• identify solutions to solve them in a case report;
• collect information about such hindrances to improve European policies.

The difficulties encountered are obstacles of legal or administrative nature which limit cross-border cooperation. These obstacles can affect many aspects of life in border regions such as commuting, managing a common nature protected area and resources, working or visiting a doctor on the other side of the border.

Public bodies (municipalities, regions, universities, hospitals,…) and cross-border structures such as Euroregions and EGTCs which face such difficulties on their territories are invited to submit their proposals through a call for proposals.

Selected cases receive technical support from legal experts in charge of analysing the obstacle and suggesting solutions in a case report for the participant. Participation also helps raise awareness on cross-border cooperation among policy makers at all levels of governance.

Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis with immediate implementation, and can be submitted via a simple online form, in any European language.