Trust Beyond the Borders (Vertrauen über die Grenzen hinaus)

Trust Beyond the Borders (Vertrauen über die Grenzen hinaus)

Overview:

“Trust Beyond Borders” was a Polish-German research project aimed at strengthening cross-border cooperation and integration within the Spree-Neisse-Bóbr Euroregion (Grant No. FMP/516/2012). The project was coordinated by the Institute of Sociology at the University of Zielona Góra, in partnership with the Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg. Funding was provided by the European Regional Development Fund under the Operational Programme for Cross-Border Cooperation Poland–Brandenburg 2007–2013 (Small Projects Fund), and the Polish state budget.

Project Aim:

The main objective was to assess the Spree-Nysa-Bóbr Euroregion as an institution promoting integration of the Polish and German communities in the border area. The research investigated factors contributing to the strengthening of integration and mutual trust through cross-border cooperation and social integration.

Research Activities and Thematic Scope:

• Assessing the role of local leaders in cross-border initiatives
• Examining public awareness and attitudes toward the Euroregion
• Investigating the scope, forms, and success factors of cross-border cooperation
• Evaluating the impact of Euroregion-supported projects on establishing contacts and building trust between communities

Implementation:

The research was conducted by a Polish-German team, covering all project phases: developing theoretical frameworks, designing research methods, conducting fieldwork, analyzing data, and producing a comprehensive report with recommendations.

Research was conducted through surveys and interviews with approximately 900 participants, including local officials, NGO members, entrepreneurs, Euroregion staff, and project beneficiaries on both sides of the border.

Main Activities:

1. Development of the theoretical framework
2. Design of research methods and tools
3. Preparation for fieldwork
4. Field research (interviews, questionnaires)
5. Data analysis and interpretation

Project Duration: 2012-2014.

Project budget: 17,220 EUR

Project Team:

University of Zielona Góra, Institute of Sociology:

• dr hab. Mariusz Kwiatkowski, prof. UZ (Principal Investigator)
• dr Joanna Frątczak-Mueller (Team Coordinator until June 2013)
• dr Dorota Bazuń (Team Coordinator July 2013–Jan 2014)
• dr Anna Mielczarek-Żejmo
• dr Magdalena Pokrzyńska

Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg:

• dr hab. Steffen Groβ
• dr Athanasios Pitsuolis
• dr Kay Mengel

Project Outputs:

• Research report and recommendations for improving cross-border integration
• Publications and conference presentations (see below)

Selected Publications:

1. Dorota Bazuń, Mariusz Kwiatkowski, Zaufanie a współpraca transgraniczna. Przypadek Euroregionu Sprewa-Nysa-Bóbr, 2014, Dorota Bazuń , Mariusz Kwiatkowski , W: Transgraniczność w perspektywie socjologicznej. Pogranicza i centra współczesnej Europy, 2014 / red. nauk. Maria Zielińska, Beata Trzop, Zielona Góra: Lubuskie Towarzystwo Naukowe, (Seria Monograficzna, Tom IX, część 1), s. 319—337.
2. Joanna Fratczak-Müller, Anna Mielczarek-Żejmo Partnerstwa transgraniczne – udział instytucji w inicjowaniu sieci społecznych (na przykładzie Euroregionu Sprewa-Nysa-Bóbr) Opuscula Sociologica nr 4, red. L. Gołdyka, Szczecin 2014.
3. Joanna Fratczak-Müller, Anna Mielczarek-Żejmo Instytucje pogranicza. Funkcjonowanie Euroregionu Sprewa-Nysa-Bóbr w opinii jego mieszkańców [w:] Pogranicza i centra współczesnej Europy. Różnorodność praktyk i teorii, red. D. Szaban, J. Nyćkowiak, T. Kołodziej, Zielona Góra 2015.

4. Joanna Fratczak-Müller, Anna Mielczarek-Żejmo Transborder Partnerships - Institutions in Initiating Social Networks (based on Sprewa-Nysa-Bóbr Euroregion) Innovation: The European Journal of Social Science Research Saša Božić, Londyn 2016.
5. Joanna Fratczak-Müller, Anna Mielczarek-Żejmo Zwischen Sympathie und Gleichgültigkeit. Die Einstellung der Einwohner von Euroregion Spree-Neiße-Bober zu seinen Nachbarn, Drezno 2015.
6. Joanna Fratczak-Müller, Anna Mielczarek-Żejmo Cross-border partnership – the impact of institutions on creating the borderland communities (the case of Spree-Neisse-Bober Euroregion) [w:] Towards a European Society? Boundaries, borders, barriers, red. R. J. Pohoryles, S. Bozic, Routledge, New York 2017.
7. Joanna Fratczak-Müller, Anna Mielczarek-Żejmo Networks of cross-border cooperation in Europe – the interests and values. The case of Spree-Neisse-Bober Euroregion, European Palnning Studies 2019.
8. Joanna Fratczak-Müller, Anna Mielczarek-Żejmo Euroregion, governance, community – Analysis of functional interdependence on the example of the Euroregion Spree-Neisse-Bober, Borders and Memories. Conflicts and Co-operation in European Border Regions, 2019, ed. Katarzyna Stokłos, Zurich: LIT Verlag, s. 117-133.
9. Joanna Fratczak-Müller, Anna Mielczarek-Żejmo Od partnerstwa do sieci współpracy transgranicznej, Dom Wydawniczy Elipsa, Warszawa 2019.

Conference Presentations:

• Dorota Bazuń, Od kontrowersji do normalizacji. Polski dyskurs o euroregionach pogranicza polsko-niemieckiego (From controversy to normalization. Polish discourse on the euroregions of the Polish-German borderland), Conference title: Na Zachodzie bez zmian? Nowa sytuacja geopolityczna Europy Środkowej 25 lat po zjednoczeniu Niemiec, Zielona Góra, University of Zielona Góra 2015.
• Joanna Fratczak-Müller, Anna Mielczarek-Żejmo, Networks of cross-border cooperation in Europe – the interests and values. The Case of Spree-Neisse-Bober Euroregion, Differences and discontinuities in a ‘Europe without borders’, Association for Borderlands Studies 2016, Luksemburg.
• Joanna Fratczak-Müller, Anna Mielczarek-Żejmo, Multilevel governance in the activity of euroregional institutions in Central and Eastern Europe, Association for Borderlands Studies 2nd World Conference 2018, Wiedeń.
• Frątczak-Müller Joanna, Mielczarek-Żejmo Anna, Transborder Partnerships - Significance of Institutions for Creating Social Networks (based on Sprewa-Nysa-Bóbr Euroregion, Towards a European Society? Croatian Sociological Association, 2014, Zagrzeb.
• Bazuń Dorota, Kwiatkowski Mariusz, Cross-border Social Networks: Polish-German Border Case, Towards a European Society? Croatian Sociological Association, 2014, Zagreb.