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Regional Planning and the Mobilization of 'Regional Identity': From Bounded Spaces to Relational Complexity

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  • Anssi Paasi

Abstract

Paasi A. Regional planning and the mobilization of 'regional identity': from bounded spaces to relational complexity, Regional Studies . Regional identity refers to the uniqueness of regions and/or to the identification of people with them. Having gained currency in planning and policy circles, the concept is increasingly related to regional competitiveness. Yet, it is unclear how regional identity is understood in planning terms. This paper suggests that this discursive ambiguousness derives from the fuzzy boundary between analysis and practice as well as from the context-bound character of identity discourse. A contextual geo-historical analysis is offered of the emergence of regional identity discourse in Finnish provinces. This provides a background for a study of how regional identity discourse is mobilized in strategic regional/provincial plans and how planners understand this term. These analyses show that the historical discourse on regional identity is at variance with the instrumental, visionary discourse of plans. Planners have diverging views on the roles of regional identity which also differ from the visionary views present in the plans.

Suggested Citation

  • Anssi Paasi, 2013. "Regional Planning and the Mobilization of 'Regional Identity': From Bounded Spaces to Relational Complexity," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 47(8), pages 1206-1219, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:regstd:v:47:y:2013:i:8:p:1206-1219
    DOI: 10.1080/00343404.2012.661410
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    1. Michael Keating, 1998. "The New Regionalism in Western Europe," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 1193, December.
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    Cited by:

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    2. Kees Terlouw, 2020. "Towards a Neomedieval Urban Future: Neoliberal or Sustainable?," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(18), pages 1-15, September.
    3. Garrett Dash Nelson, 2021. "Communities, Complexity, and the ‘Conchoration’: Network Analysis and the Ontology of Geographic Units," Tijdschrift voor Economische en Sociale Geografie, Royal Dutch Geographical Society KNAG, vol. 112(4), pages 351-369, September.
    4. Sean Markey & Sarah-Patricia Breen & Kelly Vodden & Jen Daniels, 2015. "Evidence of Place: Becoming a Region in Rural Canada," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 39(5), pages 874-891, September.
    5. Graham Haughton & Philip Allmendinger, 2015. "Fluid Spatial Imaginaries: Evolving Estuarial City-regional Spaces," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 39(5), pages 857-873, September.
    6. Olivier Walther & Denis Retaillé, 2014. "Rethinking borders in a mobile world: An alternative model," Working Papers 3, University of Southern Denmark, Centre for Border Region Studies.
    7. Simon Parker & Michael Harloe, 2015. "What Place For The Region? Reflections on the Regional Question and the International Journal of Urban and Regional Research," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 39(2), pages 361-371, March.
    8. Federico Savini, 2016. "Self-Organization and Urban Development: Disaggregating the City-Region, Deconstructing Urbanity in Amsterdam," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 40(6), pages 1152-1169, November.
    9. Luciane Aguiar Borges, 2017. "Using the Past to Construct Territorial Identities in Regional Planning: The Case of Mälardalen, Sweden," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(4), pages 659-675, July.
    10. David L. Brown & Mark Shucksmith, 2017. "Reconsidering Territorial Governance to Account for Enhanced Rural-Urban Interdependence in America," The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, , vol. 672(1), pages 282-301, July.

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