%0 Journal Article
%T Strategies for preventing the decline of peripheral areas
%A Martin Boesch
%A Erich Renner
%A Dominik Siegrist
%J Revue de G¨¦ographie Alpine
%D 2012
%I Association pour la Diffusion de la Recherche Alpine
%R 10.4000/rga.1396
%X The gap between urban centres and peripheral areas is widening and the depopulation of remote regions is increasing. In the less appealing areas, infrastructures and production plants are being wound up or, at east, not developed at the same rhythm as in urban agglomerations. Switzerland¡¯s New Regional Policy (NRP) focuses more intensely on the economy than the previous policies did. It no longer targets regional balance, or maintenance of regional occupation in decentralized areas thus preventing depopulation of mountain regions, but is focusing on promoting economic centres. Although a sustainable regional policy must be implemented, it is also fundamental to define clear objectives and a range of conclusive measures for the peripheral areas. At the same time, the obstacles of the sectoral policy still in effect today, must be overcome. It remains to be seen what is likely to happen in regions that have been substantially and structurally weakened by decades of depopulation; regions where investors prefer not to venture to develop resources that are still available. Regional policy must discuss this issue openly, and also determine how a desired and structured decline may be implemented in certain regional areas. It would be considered highly ineffective to avoid such a subject, as this decline has been progressing for a long time, silently, quite invisibly, and in a totally disorganized manner until now. L¡¯¨¦cart entre les centres et les p¨¦riph¨¦ries se creuse et l¡¯exode des r¨¦gions excentr¨¦es augmente. Dans les zones moins attractives, on dissout les infrastructures et les sites de production, ou, pour le moins, on ne les d¨¦veloppe pas au m¨ºme rythme que dans les m¨¦tropoles. La Nouvelle politique r¨¦gionale de la Suisse poursuit une direction orient¨¦e plus fortement vers l¡¯¨¦conomie que la politique de ses pr¨¦d¨¦cesseurs. Son objet n¡¯est plus la conciliation entre les r¨¦gions, le maintien de l¡¯occupation d¨¦centralis¨¦e du territoire et donc l¡¯emp¨ºchement de l¡¯exode des r¨¦gions de montagne, mais plut t la promotion des centres ¨¦conomiques. Si une politique r¨¦gionale durable doit ¨ºtre mise en  uvre, il est aussi n¨¦cessaire de d¨¦finir des objectifs clairs ainsi qu¡¯une s¨¦rie de mesures probantes pour les r¨¦gions p¨¦riph¨¦riques. Parall¨¨lement les obstacles de la politique sectorielle toujours en vigueur doivent ¨ºtre surmont¨¦s. Il reste ¨¤ savoir ce qui devrait se passer dans les r¨¦gions substantiellement et structurellement affaiblies ¨¤ cause de d¨¦cennies d¡¯exode, l¨¤ ou aucun investisseur ne veut se rendre pour valoriser les ressources encore disponibles. La pol
%K sustainability
%K regional policy
%K urban agglomerations
%K peripheral areas
%K decline
%K durabilit¨¦
%K politique r¨¦gionale
%K m¨¦tropoles
%K zone p¨¦riph¨¦riques
%K d¨¦clin
%U http://rga.revues.org/1396