Bordering on the Impossible: Optimistic Planning of Border Regions

“Bordering on the impossible” has a dual meaning: the phrase means to evoke the border as a bridge rather than a separation, in order to treat even a closed border region as a joint planning unit, and to see future options beyond the current situations. At the same time, the idiomatic meaning of the phrase acknowledges the difficulty in this task. Is it possible to plan today so that in the future we will enjoy cross-border collaboration? Will “optimistic planning” facilitate future collaboration? This article presents cases in which “cross-border” thinking was carried out in planning, even when the border was a closed one and between countries where there is still no treaty, let alone a peace treaty. In the research, such planning has been called “optimistic planning” since it sees a future of open borders and understands the importance of the planning today for its fulfillment in the future. A model for cross-border planning may allow planners and decision-makers of border regions to take into account both sides of the border. This model includes the region’s citizens and NGOs to take part in the planning process. The model includes two types of processes: one, when there is a possibility of cross-border collaboration, as has been learned from the European experience. The second part of the model is when, at this time, there is no possibility of cross-border cooperation, as has been learned from the study of the planning of Israel borders.