We can grasp it better on example which we´ve all experienced in our lives: i.e. on our educational system. Imagine a school classroom: teacher standing by his desk, children sitting in rows. In this educational system there is only relation between the teacher and individual children. There is no interactive feedback between children themselves. Only during the break they exchange their experiences. This might be the reason of our society´s schizoid culture – discrepancies between official and lobbying thinking or ideas. In order to improve the way of our children´s bringing up, we ought to use more partner-based educational approach, e.g. by placing the teacher´s desk as part of all children´s circle. The teacher then would be part of the circle and the education would be carried out in the team creativity.

Let´s take another example, in the planning scheme elaboration : the architect elaborates a ground plan, community approves it or – in a better case – annotates it. This is also a kind of dictatorship, as exept for some details, the philosophy of it has not basically changed. If the architect makes a mistake in his groud plan, whole ground plan can negatively affect the community life, even though there might be lots of comments by the community members before its approval. The partnership-based approach in elaboration of the ground plan would then include a team process by all community members taking part in elaboration of the ground plan, and during the process of „fermentation“, the ground plan would be created, which then would be acceptable by all community memebrs. So partnership is basically an ecosystemic way of thinking, which strenghtens the interactive feedbacks of communication, creation, tolerance and solidarity of all participants.

Established in France in the first half of the 19th century, the regionalism was the political and cultural movement aimed to gain more independence for regions in opposition to the state centralistic power. Its promoters included mostly writers and artists. Region is an organic unit interconnected with the economic and cultural center. During the former communist regime, the keystone of the regional policy were the planning schemes, tailored by the principles of the centralistic control imposed on the society. The urban planning experts elaborated the ground plan, which was then annotated by the involved subjects, and consequently approved by the Government of Slovakia. The ground plan was elaborated by a group of experts, who carried out analyses and submited the proposals for placing specific areas in the design, such as residential areas, industrial or recreation zones, way of the environmental protection, connecting them by infrastructure (power and water mains, gass, sewage, roads etc) and with the resources. The receivers of this ground plan are mere „onlookers“ with no possibility to annotate. Actually, the situation has not changed here to these days. Following the communist directives, such an infrastructure planning approach has still been going on here, giving rise to conflicts among the involved parties. Ironicaly enough, the main object of the planning schemes – inhabitants – are excluded from the plan elaboration. They may only join in the process in the final stage to annotate. It looks like all ground plans are made for certain materialistic needs and properties, not for people. We can say basically that the directive regional development ground plans prefered spiritless material over wisdom, videlicet: they prefered dictatorship over partnership. The people remained only in a position of servants of things, matter or systems, dependent on the created structures, with their own identity supressed.

Modern regional policy aims to strengthen the power of both community and region´ citizens. It is about relations and forms to fulfil the needs of people, communities and the whole region and to launch and motivate people to solve their own problems and needs by themselves. How to reinforce the self-confidence in people to become more free, tolerant, solidar and responsible for their socio-economic, cultural and natural environment.

The integrational ambitions encouraged Slovakia to strengthen its (though only small) chances to elaborate a modern regional policy or the regional development. With no previous experience and neglected by the government, Slovakia starts its first, though tiny, steps in this field. A good regional plan is that one, which also considers and defines relations and feedbacks between the departments and fields of interest. The regional planning is not about how many material resources are needed to meet the needs of people living in a certain region. A good regional plan activates the inner power of the region to solve the social, economic, cultural and environmental needs of its inhabitants.

In principle, good regional policy can be created only if all social groups involved in the region strongly participate in its preparation. The more involved groups participate in the regional policy preparation, the more quality and realistic is the plan, and vice versa. The less involved groups take part in its preparation, the weaker, less realistic and more risky is the plan. Based on the experience gained during preparation of the regional strategy for the Levoca and Sabinov counties, the above incentive principles can substantially help lighten the planning preparation process. Just to note, that what occured during preparation of the regional strategy is entirely pioneering because apart from the basic principle – participation of as wide range of people as possible – we look also how to make the generated proposals more transparent methodically. Over forty participants representing four basic sectors : state administration, local governments, business sector and civil associations (NGOs) with even number of representatives in both counties.

The two teams work independently (the Levoca and Sabinov teams). Every 2 – 3 months the regional teams meet, at which the county teams share their experiences and consult their methods. For specific proposed solutions, the regional teams prepare the time and financial schedules currently.

This method has been developed during the proces of the regional policy preparation, and is aimed to basic orientation and structural transparency also for those who want to participate in addressing the regional development programs and solve their own economic, social, cultural and environmental needs. It is vital to realize that in order to address any global objective it is necessary to tackle all resources. Very often we hear comments as: „Give us money and we can solve the problem.“ Also from the affected counties of Sabinov and Levoca it was confirmed that it is not easy. If we have not defined wider circumstances and feedbacks with the further global objectives, it is not possible to address regional problems effectively. In principle the proposed steps will strengthen feedbacks between sectors, and create full-area conditions for active sustainable development policy in the region. This is part, which we present as an example for future considerations. In the next stage, the sector operation plans will be prepared with objectives to form balanced, simple and transparent regional policy as a basis for the future regional self-government. It is obvious that if we want to create effective regional policy, the essential reform of the regional institutions is inevitable (not only the official public reform. ) In either case, the regions´ responsibilities to solve their own problems will have to be strengthened. As the basic starting premise, it will be vital to strengthen participation of citizens, and to use the tax-payers´ financial resources more effectively, in order to avoid mistakes we did during the communist regime. It will surely be interesting to see if there is any good will and hunger for practical application of effective mechanisms in the regions´ governments at all. The partnership principles might be the right starting point for that.

Partnership as the basis for strengthening the individual´s inner power. The society or community, which does not accept the partnership factors in communication and defining the mutual strategic programs, looses its own dynamics, and finaly declines. Healthy, vital society is the one experiencing the partnership factors in mutual communication, which motivates or forces all participants to think positively, and to accept or listen to each other. This means that the regional development programs elaboration should include ecosystemic (partnership-based) approach. This will ensure all participants´ needs when addressing socio-economic, cultural and environmental needs of an individual, community and region. Partnership enhances the inner power if an individual. This increases responsibility for social, economic, cultural and natural environment. It is vital especially if this holds for society, which often changes its politic rules of games, and seeks its orientation and values, as is Slovakia. It is useful if the regional policy focus on such programs, which could quickly recover the individual´s responsibilities as this is the keystone of the market economy stableness. The public deteriorated by marxist ideology has only little chance to understand the market tools in the regional policy. This is why syndrom of social unability and uselessness is enforced in them.