Cross-border Spatial Planning in the Alpenrheintal: Legacy, Challenges, and Future Perspectives
Project Description
This research investigates cross-border spatial planning as a hybrid governance framework in the Alpenrheintal (Alpine Rhine Valley), a polycentric, mid-density urbanised region spanning Switzerland, Austria, and Liechtenstein. Despite growing functional integration through commuter flows, economic interdependence, and shared infrastructure, significant challenges persist in translating strategic spatial visions into coherent policy instruments and built form acrossdivergent legal, cultural, and administrative systems. The study focuses on the institutional dynamics of key cross-border actors, particularly the ‘agglomeration associations’ Agglomeration Werdenberg-Liechtenstein and Agglomeration Rheintal, which have emerged as central platforms for cooperative planning through Switzerland's Agglomerationsprogramme. At a critical moment when these two Agglovereine have committed to developing a joint 'future vision' (Zukunftsbild) for 2029, this research examines how the concept of 'functional spaces' is implemented in practice and evaluates the ability of institutions to integrate rapid transformations in the urban cultural landscape as opportunities for sustainable spatial planning.
Using a mixed-methods approach combining institutional analysis, policy assessment, fieldwork, cartographic mapping, and expert interviews, the research addresses two primary questions: (1) How is the notion of 'functional spaces' operationalised through cross-border cooperation, and what are the successes, promises, and limitations of this approach in the Alpenrheintal region? (2) To what extent can current institutions, policy instruments and cross-sectoral initiatives integrate emergent forms of urbanisation processes into sustainable spatial planning frameworks?
The project is structured around three interlinked investigations: analysis of the Agglovereine as key cooperative actors, investigation of alternate stakeholders operating outside of these associations, and comparative synthesis situating the Alpenrheintal within broader European cross-border planning contexts. Through detailed case studies of both successful projects and failed initiatives, the research traces how strategic visions are negotiated, contested, and implemented across national borders and contributes to understanding cooperative spatial planning processes in complex, multi-jurisdictional contexts. The findings will advance discourse on sustainable territorial planning in hybrid governance environments and offer transferable insights for other European cross-border regions facing similar integration challenges. Through stakeholder engagement via working group roundtables and a closing symposium, the research establishes a knowledge exchange platform between academia and practice, positioning the Alpenrheintal as a laboratory for cross-border spatial planning innovation.
Using a mixed-methods approach combining institutional analysis, policy assessment, fieldwork, cartographic mapping, and expert interviews, the research addresses two primary questions: (1) How is the notion of 'functional spaces' operationalised through cross-border cooperation, and what are the successes, promises, and limitations of this approach in the Alpenrheintal region? (2) To what extent can current institutions, policy instruments and cross-sectoral initiatives integrate emergent forms of urbanisation processes into sustainable spatial planning frameworks?
The project is structured around three interlinked investigations: analysis of the Agglovereine as key cooperative actors, investigation of alternate stakeholders operating outside of these associations, and comparative synthesis situating the Alpenrheintal within broader European cross-border planning contexts. Through detailed case studies of both successful projects and failed initiatives, the research traces how strategic visions are negotiated, contested, and implemented across national borders and contributes to understanding cooperative spatial planning processes in complex, multi-jurisdictional contexts. The findings will advance discourse on sustainable territorial planning in hybrid governance environments and offer transferable insights for other European cross-border regions facing similar integration challenges. Through stakeholder engagement via working group roundtables and a closing symposium, the research establishes a knowledge exchange platform between academia and practice, positioning the Alpenrheintal as a laboratory for cross-border spatial planning innovation.
