ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the increased need for metropolitan organising capacity and explores theoretical framework drawn up out of elements that can reveal organising capacity. These elements are administrative structure, strategic networks, vision and strategy, leadership, political support, societal support and spatial-economic conditions. Owing to fundamental developments as the globalisation of the economy, the transition to an information society, and the European integration, metropolitan competition has become a leading principle to determine the future urban system in Europe. Changes of technological, demographical, political and societal nature result in fundamental developments which spell chances for and threats to metropolitan regions. Spatial-economic scale enlargement makes the functional metropolitan region a logical basis for present-day urban policy, intra-metropolitan competition being considered as destructive to the competitive metropolitan position in a European context. Accessibility is a necessary condition for metropolitan economic development. The chapter also presents an overview on the concepts discussed in this book.
