Abstract

This report conveys a number of guidelines to support an effective communication of Cohesion Policy. The guidelines that we present in this document are grounded on a research process that is articulated in a number of interconnected activities. First, we conducted focus groups with field practitioners; second, we conducted an online survey with policy communicators; third, we designed and managed workshops with local management authorities; fourth, we organized a small conference with policymakers and implementers. These four activities were conducted in a sequence. In addition, we developed a number of statistical analyses to explore how structural fund allocation and communication budget are associated to citizens’ awareness and appreciation of Cohesion Policy. Finally, we conducted an automatic text analysis of discourse on cohesion policy both on social media and on traditional newspaper. Through this analysis, we elicited a number of thoughts that regards how discourse is associated with European identity. In presenting the guidelines, we tried to balance synthesis on the one hand and contextual details on the other hand. In other words, we advise that the distinct aspects listed below are to be regarded as interconnected with each other. We organized our recommendations in different sections to help the reader, but we recommend that it is important to capture the connections among the different dimensions of the communication of Cohesion Policy.