“France’s administrative regions — Normandy, Alsace, Burgundy, etc. — have long been part of the identity of citizens of this diverse country. Now, merging some of them is seen as a logical way to save money on bureaucracy, and the French support it — as long as it’s someone else’s turf.”

Seth Dixon‘s insight:

This is an interesting concept that shows the divergence between national and regional identities.  68% of French citizens recognize that consolidating regional administration will be economically more efficient at the national level; however 77% don’t want to see the elimination of their own local region.   The formation of place-based identities operate an multiple scales.  How would you feel if your state was absorbed by a neighboring state?  How come? 

Tags: community, place, governance, France.

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