Describes a series of research studies on transnational border communities. These communities include those located at the borders of: United States-Canada, United States-Mexico, Germany-Poland, Russia-China, and Russia-Kazakhstan. Cross-border traffic of people, goods, and information has grown world wide. Border regions generally are subject to inadequate and unwelcome attention from their national governments that may apply inconsistent and often inappropriate policies. Borders, often characterized as “zones of exclusion,” create opportunity for arbitrary actions by national governments which then lead to increased corruption and smuggling. Border communities approach cross-border relations in a pragmatic way, allowing business and commercial interests to act as the best mechanism to improve cross-border relations. Community-derived cross-border cooperation exists to a large degree, particularly on issues such as public health, education, environmental protection, and law enforcement. “Extraterritorial” arrangements designed to assist in commercial and sociocultural concerns are being implemented. Lack of capacity to handle the increasing traffic is one of the greatest problems facing border communities. North American integration, although not the same as the European Union model, presents an achievable vision to pursue.
