On 10 June 2026, the BorderLabs CE project will hold its final event, “Towards a Central European Territorial Agenda?”, in Brussels as a side event of the European Cross-Border Platform (ECBP) Annual Meeting 2026. Organised at the European Committee of the Regions, the conference will bring together experts, policymakers and cross-border practitioners to reflect on how territorial integration can be strengthened in Central Europe through more strategic, participatory and coordinated approaches.
The event marks an important milestone for BorderLabs CE, a project dedicated to improving public capacities for participatory cross-border cooperation and to developing practical solutions for better governance in Central European border regions.
The conference programme will revolve around three key themes that have been central to the project’s work. The first round table will address the need for a new spatial vision for Central Europe through strategic cross-border planning, highlighting how cross-border territories can be approached in a more integrated and forward-looking way. The second discussion will focus on reconciliation and cross-border participatory governance, exploring how dialogue, citizen involvement and cooperation between institutions can contribute to stronger and more resilient border regions. The third round table will examine the elimination of cross-border legal and administrative obstacles, with particular attention to practical tools and experiences that can support smoother integration across borders.
A central moment of the event will be the presentation of the Charter for a more integrated Central Europe, followed by the launch of the Charter and a network for a more integrated Central Europe. In this way, the conference is designed not only as a moment of reflection on BorderLabs CE’s achievements, but also as a forward-looking platform for future cooperation.
By bringing together representatives of European institutions, territorial cooperation organisations, research bodies and practitioners from across the region, the event aims to contribute to a broader debate on the future of cross-border governance in Central Europe.
Below, you can find the detailed programme of the event.
Draft agenda
Venue: Committee of the Regions (CoR), Building Jacques Delors, JDE 51, Rue Belliard 99-101, B-1040 Brussels
9:00 Registration of the participants
9:30 Welcome addresses
- Mr Pavel Branda, Chair of the European Cross-Border Platform
- Mr Oliver Schenk, Member of the European Parliament
- Mr Martin Hutter, Deputy Head of the Managing Authority of the Interreg Central Europe Programme
- Mr Andreas Faludi, Professor Emeritus at the Technical University of Delft (video message)
9:50 Introduction of the Charter for a more integrated Central Europe: Mr Martin Reents (Infrastruktur & Umwelt)
10:00 Round-table_1: A new spatial vision for Central Europe through strategic cross-border planning
Moderator: Mr Martin Reents (Infrastruktur & Umwelt)
Participants:
- Ms Sabine Zillmer (Spatial Foresight)
- Mr Maciej Zathey (IRT)
- Ms Kitti Dubniczki (CESCI)
- Mr Wiktor Szydarowski (ESPON EGTC)
10:45 Coffee break
11:00 Round-table_2: Reconciliation in Central Europe through cross-border participatory governance
Moderator: Ms Melinda Istenes-Benczi (CESCI)
Participants:
- Ms Estelle Evrard (University of Luxemburg)
- Mr Sören Bollmann (City of Frankfurt/Oder)
- Ms Anne Thevenet (Euro-Institut of Kehl)
- Mr Dirk Peters (Member of the Advisory Board of the Common Grounds programme (of the Robert-Bosch Foundation))
11:45 Round-table_3: Enhanced integration through the elimination of cross-border legal and administrative obstacles
Moderator: Mr Gyula Ocskay (CESCI)
Participants:
- Ms Caitriona Mullan (AEBR)
- Ms Katja Rosner (Government of Upper Austria)
- Ms Micaela Passon (EGTC GO)
- Mr Péter Nagy (Ister-Granum EGTC)
12:30 Launch of the Charter and a network for a more integrated Central Europe: Mr Gyula Ocskay (CESCI)
12:45 Lunch
This project is supported by the Interreg CENTRAL EUROPE Programme with co-financing from the European Regional Development Fund.
For more information visit https://www.interreg-central.eu/projects/borderlabs-ce/.
