De l’égalité à la cohésion des territoires. Le modèle français à l’épreuve de la métropolisation

The goal of territorial equality is, in France, over the long term, at the heart of the organization of local authorities and the conception of territorial policies. By observing how the process of metropolisation is questioning this model, on the national level, around the principle of equilibrium, at an intermediate level between the territories, around the principle of redistribution and within the metropolitan areas, around the principle of upgrading here we formulate a general hypothesis. Metropolisation would speed up the process of changeover from the referential of territorial equality to that of territorial cohesion. Thus, territorial policies in France are gradually coming closer to those put forward at European level.