GR-Atlas - Atlas der Großregion SaarLorLux

Border Region

Grande Région Saar- Lor-Lux

Language(s)

Français

Allemand

Type

Database

Maps & spatial analysis

Main Category

Regional Development – Sustainability

Employment – Education – Economy

Language – Culture – Identity

Introduction

GR-Atlas is an interactive, interdisciplinary, thematic atlas of the “Greater Region SaarLorLux,” which comprises the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the Belgian region Wallonia, the former French region Lorraine as well as the German federal states Saarland and Rhineland-Palatinate.

Summary

GR-Atlas is an interactive, interdisciplinary, thematic atlas of the “Greater Region SaarLorLux.” The atlas is the central result of a research project funded first by the Fonds National de Recherche (FNR = The Luxembourg National Research Fund) and then by the University of Luxembourg. The bilingual (German/French) atlas, which is constantly being added to, presents about 50 different thematic maps, which are based on an internet geographical information system (WebGIS) and have been created across borders for as much of the Greater Region as possible. Four maps show a diachronic view of a phenomenon by means of an interactive timeline. The objects displayed on the maps are linked to a database that can be accessed interactively. The map section is supplemented by a text section with explanations and illustrations of the individual maps.

Content

GR-Atlas is an interactive interdisciplinary thematic atlas of the “Greater Region SaarLorLux”, which comprises the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the Belgian region Wallonia, the former French region Lorraine as well as the German federal states Saarland and Rhineland-Palatinate. Although there are many cross-border initiatives in different areas, it is still very difficult to collect comparable data for all sub-regions of the Greater Region. The GR-Atlas, which is completely bilingual (German/French), is the central result of a research project (led by Michel Pauly) which was first funded by the Fonds National de Recherche (FNR = The Luxembourg National Research Fund) and then by the University of Luxembourg.

The atlas, which is constantly being added to, presents about 50 different thematic maps on the basis of an internet geographical information system (WebGIS), including maps from the fields of history, business, politics, religion, social affairs, demography, natural space, labor, tourism..., which have been created across borders for as much of the Greater Region as possible and gradually been made available online. Each map consists of various layers and can be combined with other maps to reveal spatial congruencies. More detailed information can be seen by zooming in on the map. Four maps show a diachronic view by means of an interactive timeline. An additional map allows the direct comparison of three historical map series from the period around 1800 with current topographic maps and satellite imagery.

The map section is supplemented by a complexly linked text part with explanatory texts, illustrations and tables for the respective thematic maps. The objects displayed on the maps are linked to a database that can be accessed interactively to retrieve information about the objects and to display explanatory articles in the text section by means of web links. In the text section, web links allow you to open the appropriate maps.

Conclusions

The atlas itself does not draw any conclusions. Instead, the various articles on the SaarLorLux Greater Region are listed here:

Christian Schulz, Peter Dörrenbächer, Holger Pansch (2007): Automotive Industry 2007 - Production, Research, Training
Michel Pauly (2007): Medieval Hospitals (from 600 to 1500)
Thomas Schneider (2007): Nature Spatial Classification
Malte Helfer (2008): Boom and Decline of the Coal Mining Industry
Eva Mendgen (2008): Glass and Crystal Production
Cristian Kollmann (2008): Family Names from the Glazier’s Professional Title
Sonja Kmec (2008): The Devotion to Our Lady of Luxembourg
Giovanni Andriani (2008): Miraculous healings of Our Lady of Luxembourg in the 17th Century
Malte Helfer (2009): Cross-Border Public Passenger Transport
Malte Helfer (2009): The Soil Use Maps of CORINE Landcover
Malte Helfer (2009): The Cassini Map (1750-1815)
Malte Helfer (2009): The Tranchot-Müffling Map (1803-1820)
Malte Helfer (2009): The Ferraris Map (1771-1777)
Daniel Ullrich (2009): Gas Station Tourism
Laurent Pfister (2009): The Climate
Paul Thomes, Marc Engels (2010): The Iron and Steel Industry
Ginet (2010): The Major Sports Facilities
Pierre Wolfgang Bethscheider (2010): The Higher Education System
Malte Helfer (2010): Natura 2000 Protected Areas
Martin Uhrmacher (2010): Leprosaria
Ines Funk (Krumm)(2010): The Public Health System
Alain Penny (2010): Late Medieval Cities
Patrick Wiermer (2010): Perception in the Media
Christian Wille (2010): Cross-Border Commuters (1998-2008)
Florian Wöltering (2010): Tourism
Claude Back (2010): Border Changes from the Congress of Vienna to Today
Christoph Hahn (2011): The Automotive Industry 2011
Barbara Neumann & Jochen Kubiniok (2011): The Soils
Christian Wille (2011): Developments and Structures of Cross-Border Cooperation
Christian Wille (2011): Atypical Cross-Border Commuters
Michel Deshaies (2011): Nature Parks
Brigitte Kasten & Jens Schäfer (2011): The Early Medieval Loan Possessions of the Gorze and Weißenburg Monasteries
Eva Mendgen (2011): The UNESCO World Heritage
Malte Helfer (2011): The Administrative Structure
Malte Helfer (2012): The Development of Rail Traffic
Birte Nienaber & Ursula Roos (2012): International Migrants and Migration
Emile Decker (2012): Ceramic Production
Simon Edelblutte (2012): The Textile Industry
Guénaël Devillet, Mathieu Jaspard & Juan Vazquez Parras (2012): The Cross-Border Retail Offer
Georg Schelbert & Stephan Brakensiek (2012): Church Construction in the 20th century Florian
Wöltering & Juliano de Assis Mendonça (2013): The Brewing Industry Interregional Labour
Market Observatory (2014): The Population
Christian Wille (2017): Cross-Border Everyday Practices

Key Messages

The interactive atlas does not merely serve to visualize research results relating to the SaarLorLux Greater Region, but is itself an important instrument for gaining knowledge. The cartographic representation allows comparisons to be made between individual regions but also especially makes the spatial assessment of intensity, impact and course of development processes possible. Thus, for example, the definition of the SaarLorLux Greater Region, which has yet to be determined, can be individually outlined and redefined for each of the topics to be dealt with within the framework of the atlas project. By superimposing different thematic maps, it is possible to identify a concentrated zone that will enable a different geographical definition of the Greater Region than the different administrative boundaries of the individual countries, which until now have defined the "Greater Region" rather by chance.

Lead

Institute of Geography and Spatial Planning - Université du Luxembourg

Author of the entry

Malte

HELFER

Contributions

University of Luxembourg

Universität des Saarlandes

Universität Trier

Rheinisch-Westfälische Technische Hochschule Aachen

Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology LIST

Université de Lorraine