Daseinsvorsorge and spatial development in remote rural areas – the international relevance of a German spatial planning concept

Daseinsvorsorge is an important aspect within German public policy and spatial planning, in particular regarding the constitutional aim of “gleichwertige Lebensverhältnisse” or equal living conditions (Neu, 2009) and related to the spatial development paradigm of decentralised concentration(Kunzmann, 2001). It is however a challenge to translate this term and the thinking behind it into other languages. The most common translation into English is Services of General Interest (used in the recent ESPON project SeGI) or indeed simply Public Services. The aim of this paper therefore is to explore and discuss the extent to which the specific German approach towards Daseinsvorsorge is important and relevant in other European countries, particularly in relation to its relevance within spatial development paradigms and regional policy strategies for remote rural locations. So the paper explores both what planners and policy makers in other countries could learn from the German principles of Daseinsvorsorge and what German planners can learn from approaches and strategies in other European countries and from the pan-European policy level.The paper starts by introducing the German concept of Daseinsvorsorge and its role in spatial development of rural areas using the example of the Spessart region in the border area between Hessen and Bavaria. The empirical evidence for this paper is partly based on work being conducted by a team from the University of Liverpool within the Interreg project Pure Hubs (Supporting Pioneers in Urban-Rural entrepreneurship to create vital new hubs). One of the partners within the project, Spessart Regional, is working in this rural area adjacent to Frankfurt/Main. Part of this region is facing demographic change, out-migration and population decline, so maintaining public and private services is a challenge in this region. Hence it is a good case to discuss the German approach towards Daseinsvorsorge. Furthermore the case illustrates new forms of partnerships between public, private and voluntary sector to protect and develop key services in rural areas.This is followed by a section discussing the extent to which German notions of Daseinsvorsorge and gleichwertige Lebensverhältnisse have influenced European policy fields including spatial planning/ territorial cohesion and the Common Agricultural Policy. A third section will discuss the relevance of Daseinsvorsorge within spatial planning and regional development policy in other European countries using examples from France and the UK. In particular this section will discuss issues such as rural planning and regeneration policy in terms of maintaining/ensuring certain levels of services, supporting and developing new services in market towns/villages, while also considering how these strategies are related to other planning issues such as rural housing policy and polycentric development strategies.ReferencesKUNZMANN, K. R. 2001. State Planning: A German Success Story? International Planning Studies, 6, 153-166.NEU, C. 2009. Daseinsvorsorge–eine Einführung. Daseinsvorsorge. VS Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften.