Attractiveness, branding and governance of regions

​The notions of place and attractiveness have become central to our societies. At an institutional level, places are economically, socially and culturally homogenous entities that transcend political boundaries.

On a more economic level, places are increasingly competing with each other. Not only in terms of tourism and business, but also in terms of residential development. The COVID, for example, has played an important role in terms of residential attractiveness.

The management of these places poses an increasing number of problems to be solved. Firstly, at the political and governance level. New bodies, often involving public and private players, are needed to steer these structures, and public policies must be highly coordinated. For example, issues of mobility and spatial planning (public policies with a spatial impact) must be coordinated to ensure the sustainable development of a region. The same applies to fiscal and energy policies.

Secondly, in terms of strategy, these places must prioritisze the expected developments, whether in terms of maintaining and attracting companies to provide jobs, increasing or controlling tourist activity (overtourism in certain regions) or enhancing residential attractiveness (promoting the place to new residents, strengthening services for the population, etc.).

Finally, depending on the needs and priorities defined by these locations, branding and marketing measures need to be developed and implemented.

Comments from students who took the first edition of the course:

"A strong theoretical foundation, a team of teachers who perfectly cover all theoretical aspects, the presence of many case studies and practitioners, the multicultural environment of the students."

"Among the best parts, I mention the balance between theory and case studies presented by practitioners and even by those who are currently implementing them."

• Attractiveness and competitiveness of place (mainly cities and regions)
  
• Marketing and branding of place
• Local governance and stakeholders’ analysis
• Place attractiveness: successes and failures
• Economic, residential and tourist attractiveness
• Principles and targets of place branding and marketing
• Tools for diagnosing and implementing attractiveness strategies
• Assessing the impact of attractiveness strategie
• Cluster analysis and development
• Sustainable economic development strategies

The theme (place attractiveness, branding and governance) and the multidisciplinary approach make it possible to pursue five types of learning objectives. By the end of this course, the participants will be able to:

Build reflexivity by questioning one's practices and adapting them to a complex territorial environment (city, region)

• Experimenting with a scientific approach by deploying mixed methods to analysze the attractiveness of a territory
• Mobilise a multi-disciplinary approach (political science, economics, management) to analyse the specificities ofterritorial attractiveness approaches.
• Mobilise tools directly linked to what is being done and observed in practice (concrete implementation from across-functional perspective)
• Mobilise a systemic analysis tool for the sustainable development of a region (Climate Fresco)

The physical component of the course is a one-week intensive, hands-on experience held at the University of Lausanne (Switzerland), Campus Dorigny, School of Public Administration (IDHEAP) between 9 - 13 February 2026.

University of Lausanne's classes' schedule:

Monday :

- morning: Place and regional integration strategies

- afternoon: PDO/IGP presentation and analysis / Visit to the Maison du Gruyère

Tuesday:

- morning: The development of place attractiveness strategies

- afternoon: The example of a metropolis: Ghent

Wednesday:

- morning: Place and economic integration strategies (the cluster approach)

- afternoon: Lausanne and sport / Presentation of the Vaud/Lausanne strategy / Visit to an international sports organization (UEFA Nyon)

Thursday:

- morning: Place and residential integration strategies

- afternoon: Presentation of a concrete example: Bretagne

Friday:

- morning: Place and sustainable integration strategies (application of the fresco of the ecological renaissance)

- afternoon: Tour of Lausanne and meeting with Lausanne Tourisme

The virtual sessions will take place on Thursdays in the late afternoon (in principle from 4:15 pm to 7:00 pm, Paris time CET):

Session 1: 09.10.25, Introduction / Public Policy and Place

Session 2: 16.10.25, Place and its characteristics

Session 3: 23.10.25, Types of territorial attractiveness: successes & failures

Session 4: 06.11.25, Local governance and stakeholder analysis

Session 5: 13.11.25, Diagnosis & implementing attractiveness strategies

Session 6: 20.11.25, Attractiveness and competitiveness

Session 7: 27.11.25, Principles, phases and targets of place marketing

Session 8: 04.12.25, Assessing the impact of attractiveness strategies

The theme (place attractiveness, branding and governance) and the multidisciplinary approach make it possible to pursue five types of learning objectives. By the end of this course, the participants will be able to:

Build reflexivity by questioning one's practices and adapting them to a complex territorial environment (city, region)

• Experimenting with a scientific approach by deploying mixed methods to analysze the attractiveness of a territory
• Mobilise a multi-disciplinary approach (political science, economics, management) to analyse the specificities ofterritorial attractiveness approaches.
• Mobilise tools directly linked to what is being done and observed in practice (concrete implementation from across-functional perspective)
• Mobilise a systemic analysis tool for the sustainable development of a region (Climate Fresco)

Motivation Letter

CV

Applications will be evaluated based on: 

• CV
• motivation letter
• level of English (According to CEFR)
• Interest in issues related to the regions and more generally to places
• Initial training (bachelor's degree) in one of the corresponding disciplines
• If possible, an idea of a region (place) that would be analyzed as part of this course

The course is led by a distinguished team of scholars from across Europe, each bringing deep expertise in their fields.

• Alaux Christophe, Professor, Director of the Chair in Attractiveness and New Territorial Marketing, Director IMPGT, Aix-Marseille Université. In charge of the MOOC on attractiveness and territorial marketing.
• Mabillard Vincent, Professor, Solvay Brussels School of Economics & Management, Université Libre de Bruxelles.
• Pasquier Martial, Professor, Swiss Graduate School of Public Administration, University of Lausanne.
• Radulescu Corina, Professor, Faculty of Business and Administration, University of Bucharest