Regionalization processes: Past crises and current options

The scientific and technological revolution currently under way makes it necessary for us to devise new forms of regions which get away from the old restrictions of size and contiguity: structural complexity is now the crucial factor. The generation of regional structures at the national and supranational level demands flexibility, in view of the rapid changes taking place in the regional environment, the globalization of the economies, and the need for the regions to be shaped in a democratic manner. This article proposes a new classification which draws a distinction between pivotal regions (corresponding to the sm allest units in the current politico-adm inistrative form of division which have a sufficient level of complexity), associative regions (formed as a result of voluntary political union between one or more pivotal regions and one or more adjoining politico-adm inistrative units), and virtual regions (formed as a result of tacit agreements between pivotal regions or associative regions which are not contiguous).