Working in harmony with our European partners 07/12/05 Featuring RLN NE
Working together is the name of the game for Europe's regions, this is increasingly important because of changes to the way European funding is used to help disadvantaged areas.
At the same time, we in North-East England know well that exporting is the very lifeblood of our industry - we are, per capita, the highest exporter among all UK regions.
The oil that will help the wheels of this process turn smoothly is our ability to communicate effectively and efficiently with our European partners.
This was the context in which the region's European Strategy Group launched its framework document, North-East England in Europe, at the start of November.
Margaret Fay, Chair of One NorthEast, says in an introduction to the document: "As a region within Europe, the North- East will continue to drive and develop its position as a mature and influential EU region.
"It is only by exploring the opportunities and overcoming the challenges that we will reap the rewards of playing our full role in Europe as a competitive, outward-looking and inclusive region."
Effective international communication will be crucial to the delivery of both better inter-regional co-operation and stronger, more effective trading relationships.
This means that there are strong harmonies between the European Strategy Group's agenda and that of One NorthEast's Regional Language Network.
The aim of the Strategy Group is to provide a framework within which people in the region are encouraged to engage with colleagues and partners across Europe.
The idea is that we can all learn from each other, and the group has highlighted four priorities for the region's engagement with Europe:
* People.
* Prosperity.
* Culture.
* Environment.
There are a number of action points, among them "using our cultural assets, strengthening cultural exchange and supporting cultural innovation and business".
Many organisations across the region are already engaged in activities that reflect this agenda.
For example, on the cultural side, the recent Womex (World Music Expo) event in Newcastle and Gateshead. The German organisers of that event are already talking in terms of coming back to the region after 2,000 delegates from 90 countries across the world came to see the world's best new bands showcased.
On the "prosperity" side, another action point is "promoting the importance of language skills for business and increasing participation in EU education and training programmes".
One NorthEast's Regional Language Network has been working hard with businesses across a wide range of sectors on raising awareness of the importance of international communication skills - and helping (with ERDF support) to ensure that those skills are indeed acquired.
The Network's Manager, Zélie Guérin, explains: "An audit five years ago showed that one in five of our exporters knew they were losing business because they didn't have adequate international communication skills.
"Since then, our Network has made real and tangible progress, with a growing number of companies taking a variety of steps to ensure they can communicate effectively with partners in Europe and the rest of the world."
These steps range from translating sales material, to localising their websites for key markets and language tuition for key staff.
"Part of our work with these businesses involves assessing any positive impact such work has on their performance in overseas markets and the great news is that our initial findings indicate a strong correlation between a company's engagement in developing international communication skills and growth in export sales," adds Zélie.
By working with companies in this way, One NorthEast's Regional Language Network is making a very real contribution to the region's prosperity.
As the focus of the EU's structural funding support begins increasingly to reflect the needs of the former Communist accession states in Central Europe, so projects that involve cooperation between European regions are coming increasingly to the fore.
One NorthEast's Regional Language Network has taken the lead in one such "Interreg" project that is focused on small and medium-sized enterprises and tourism and concerns the development of new information frameworks for accessible tourism between North East England and Valencia, in Spain. The project is due to continue until December 2006.
Good communication skills are essential to projects like this, particularly as the use of English may not be as developed in smaller businesses as it is in multi-national companies.
By helping smaller companies to plan for a life after the loss of a key owner or manager, this project will help to underwrite the future prosperity of European regions in which smaller businesses have a growing role to play.
Once again, One NorthEast's Regional Language Network is contributing to this process.
Ged Fitzgerald, chief executive of Sunderland City Council and chair of the European Strategy Group, adds: "North-East England in Europe sets out a framework within which individuals, groups and organisations from the public, private, and voluntary and community sectors can all play a part in maximising the benefits of working closely with partners in other European countries.
"The Regional Language Network will play a pivotal role in the framework, which highlights the importance of language and cultural skills in helping people and businesses to compete. I look forward to working with the Network as it continues to develop and grow."
* You can contact the Regional Language Network North-East on (0191) 2296347 or visit its website, which also features the various BLIS services, at www.rln-northeast.com.
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