The concept of cultural heritage and identity includes a multitude of tangible as well as intangible components. The project has to focus mainly on tangible components, such as cultural landscapes, sites, monuments, cultural facilities, but also on more intangible components, such as events, identity, cultural jobs, intellectual productions, which are all considered as key assets for territorial development.Apart from presenting main spatial patterns of cultural heritage and identity, the project also aims at proposing a classification of regions based on their cultural components, and their cultural "œorientation" in the provision and fruition of cultural elements (e.g. conservation / production / diffusion of culture). The project also investigates spatial effects of culture on territorial development, by crossing some of the basic cultural indicators with other ESPON territorial indicators, like e.g. accessibility and other regional performance indicators. Another interesting aspect also lies in the production of a wide range of case studies looking upon management practices and territorial effects of cultural heritage at a more local level.On the basis of these analytical elements, the project will develop a set of policy recommendations supporting a more efficient and sustainable use of cultural resources, and addressing protection, planning and management policies and actions.