ABSTRACT
In this final chapter, pulling together the arguments and empirical evidence developed by the contributions to this volume, we would like to present some ‘stylised facts’ regarding the relations between restructuring processes in filières, territorial development and the role of regional institutions. After this introduction, the chapter is in two parts. The first of these provides an overview of a central theme within this volume, namely, the tension between the contradictory processes of territorialisation and deterritorialisation resulting from the restructuring of filières within Europe’s regions. These processes are set within the perspective of the interplay of territorial development and change at the level of specific filières. An important aspect associated with this interplay is the locus of control and command within the filières and the functional roles and status of individual localities in the less-favoured regions in Europe within the spatial division of labour. The overview affords the opportunity to propose some critical reflections on the notion of territorial integrity and external economies of localisation. More specifically, the question will be raised whether territorial integrity still can be considered as an appropriate concept for sustaining regional development, given the rapidly changing and uncertain conditions in markets, technologies and organisations. If so, the main issue is how, given these dynamics, such integrity can be regenerated over time (Varaldo and Ferruci 1997: 27).
