Contents: Introduction: An active space approach to regional development, Marina van Geenhuizen and Remigio Ratti;

Regional active space: a regional scientist's paradigmatic answer to the local-global debate, Remigio Ratti;

The importance of being active. A comment on the active space approach from an Austrian perspective, Michael Steiner;

Governance for territorial development: what is it about?, Alberto Bramanti. Reasons For an Active Space Approach: Obstacles to openness of border regions in Europe, Piet Rietveld; Openness: a value in itself? the case of the Dutch-German Ems-Dollart region, Enne de Boer;

The determinants of cross-border economic relations. The case of The Netherlands and Belgium, Henk van Houtum; Cross-border economic dynamics. Threats or opportunities in the Swiss-Italian labour market, Mario A. Maggioni and Alberto Bramanti;

Which role for foreign direct investment? Active space development in Central and Eastern Europe, Marina van Geenhuizen; In search of complementarities. Initiation of interaction with Russian Karelia, Heikki Eskelinen;

Cross-border co-operation in the German-Polish border area, Stefan Krätke. Conditions and Policies in Active Space Development: Managing the openness of border regions in the context of European integration, Zdravko Mlinar;

Active cross-border regions: institutional dynamics and institution building, Joachim Blatter; Knowledge as a crucial resource in policy making for mainport Rotterdam, Marina van Geenhuizen and Peter Nijkamp;

Co-operation between local governments: can a holding company be a solution in public-private partnerships?, Remigio Ratti and Christian Vitta;

New technology-based firms and the activation of the Styrian economy, Michael Steiner and Thomas Jud; In search for the best location of a free zone at the Eastern border of Germany, Arndt Siepmann;

European policies for European border regions: an active space approach?, Fabienne Corvers; Reflections on active space development: emerging issues and new research paths, Marina van Geenhuizen and Remigio Ratti.