Regional Centre of Expertise RCE RhineMeuse a crossborder network

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to introduce the case of the crossborder RCE RhineMeuse established as the first Regional Centre of Expertise RCE on Education for Sustainable Development in Europe. RCE RhineMeuse is an initiative of two institutions of higher education in the South of The Netherlands, but reaching out to the German and Belgian border regions. Designmethodologyapproach The case of the RCE RhineMeuse is used to give a comprehensive description of the building of a multinational and multistakeholder collaboration network aiming at knowledge dissemination on education for sustainable development. The regional approach is complementary to the global approach behind the RCE network. Findings The development of the RCE RhineMeuse over the last two years, shows the development of a functional RCE as described by United Nations University. A regional network for collaboration in the field of learning for sustainable development is created. The governance of the RCE is stable and the activities create an added value to the development of the region. Practical implications The case of the RCE RhineMeuse does not provide a blueprint for setting up an RCE like network. What the case of the RCE RhineMeuse does show, is the influence of the regional context on the development of the RCE. In addition, the RCE RhineMeuse does provide general notions that can be of use for other regions that want to establish an RCE. Originalityvalue The case of the building of the oldest RCE in Europe over the period 20042008 provides the first comprehensive overview of the creation of a new mechanism that is focussing on knowledge transfer to further regional sustainable development.