Daniela Antonescu

Identifying Regional Disparities in Romania: A Convergence Process Perspective in Relation to European Union's Territorial Structures

This article aims to use the appropriate models based on dispersion method, variance, to identify the dynamics and amplitude differences in the level of regional development in European Union and Romania, expressed by the GDP, per capita and total. In the present paper, we limit the approach area to two important aspects: identifying the main convergence trends at regional level within EU-27 with the help of GDP/capita, and the analysis of the trends registered at the level of regional disparities in Romania.

Empirical Analysis of Foreign Direct Investments at NUTS 2 Region, in European Union and Romania

Abstract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) plays an important role in the development of national and regional economies and it has been considered a force for European Union integration, especially for developing regions. More, the FDI represent a key-tool for sustain development and economic growth at regional/local level. Foreign firms bring new technologies, knowledge and management skills, and local firms can learn from this. Therefore, the presence of foreign firms can improve regions competitiveness, but fears can also be raised that foreign competitors crowd out local firms, and a net positive effect on the regional economy cannot be taken for granted. The understanding FDI determinants for development regions represent a field of interest both policy makers and investors because they are a particularly driven to market globalization. This study provides an empirical analysis of FDI at regional level (NUTS 2 regions) in European Union and Romania.

Regional development policy in context of Europe 2020 Strategy

Abstract The regional development promotes the balanced development of the European Union and, similarly, in all member state is treated as an integral factor of the state economic and social policy. Also, it promotes the growth model proposed by the future Europe 2020 Strategy, including the necessity of meeting the societal challenges, and those related to employment in the regions and in the Member-States. The appraisal of the implementation of the regional policy, whose goals and priorities were defined in the national and European strategic documents, calls for a general and specific objectives and financial instruments of that policy. This article contains informations and elements about the next programming period and future regional policy of the European Union, in context of economic and social cohesion and convergence. From the perspective of the Europe 2020 Strategy, the regions shall continue to attract differentiated support depending on their economic development level (GDP/per capita), as a clear distinction is made between “less developed” and “most developed” regions.

Importance and Perspectives of Protected Areas in Romania

Currently, the human impact exerted on the taxonomic diversity of vegetation and wildlife is very high. Human activities erode biological resources and reduce biodiversity. Biodiversity loss is the effect of agricultural and forestry intensive activities, industrialization, advanced fragmentation of natural habitats by infrastructure and urbanization, water, air pollution and tourism development. After accession to the European Union (EU), one of Romania’s priorities was to increase protection of its natural areas. In these circumstances, the Romanian Academy initiated a project entitled “Natural resources—strategic reserves, what we use and what we let to the future generations,” which aimed to realize the primary aspects regarding conservation of biodiversity and protection of natural areas in Romania. This chapter aims to present the main findings of this research project.