Quantification of territorial keys indicators

The aim of the paper is to indicate the possible direction of the use of certain measures and indicators to operationalize the concept of territorial cohesion in general and in Polish conditions. The starting point is the five “territorial keys” proposed in the Background Report of the Polish Presidency of the European Union: a) accessibility, b) services of general economic interests, c) territorial assets, d) city networking, e) functional regions. For each of the territorial keys the set of indicators was proposed. Their usefulness and formal availability were analyzed. Analyzing the question of how to measure (quantify) territorial cohesion, it seems appropriate to divide the territorial keys for: a) keys-problems and b) keys-tools. The accessibility, services of general economic interests and city networking are undoubtedly keys-problems. The functional regions is a key-tool. The nature of the key territorial assets is double. Lack of assets is a problem, but at the same time proper identification of local resources is a tool - the basis for an effective place-based policy.