The Outaouais: Between peripheral region and region under metropolitan influence
In 2019, the Quebec National Assembly adopted a motion recognizing the special situation of the Outaouais. The purpose of this paper is to explain the rationale for this special status claimed by regional actors in the Outaouais. To do so, the authors show that this status is in part a response to the hybrid character of the region, which the centre-periphery model cannot fully capture. The metropolitan dynamic created by the federal capital has a profound impact on the distribution of activities and wealth in the region. The existing divide between an urban and peri-urban Outaouais and a more rural Outaouais has, however, recently been reworked by a regional mobilization that seeks to create a community of shared interests. The Front régional Outaouais (FRO) thus proposes to go beyond the territorial cleavages and municipal specificities, and also to adopt a global approach to development that extends across traditional sectors of public policy.