Baza danych projektów PROW
Innovative rural learning facilities help tackle youth depopulation in Slovenia's countryside
Summary
This innovative Leader project from Slovenia set up a network of new learning facilities in rural areas to help improve young people's understanding of, and interest in, rural lifestyles - so as to help counter risks of youth depopulation.
Background
Depopulation is a major challenge for rural Europe. Finding new ways to encourage young people to appreciate the benefits of rural living can help to counter the pressures that drive out-migration. Against this background a group of rural organisations based around the Lasko area of Slovenia joined forces to develop a RDP project which could improve young people's understanding of, and interest in rural lifestyles. Project partners included youth groups, schools, forestry and tourism authorities
Objective
Goals involved building a collaborative approach between partners to increase rural areas' attractiveness for young people as a place where they could live, work and visit. It aimed to identify a network of rural businesses and organisation that could host and teach groups of young people (using techniques tailored to young peoples’ interests and needs) about rural develpment topics such as the relationship between agriculture, nature and food.
Main activities
Works analysed the curricula of kindergardens and schools to identify the suitability of different topics that would be included in the training programme. A network of host business were identified which could provide different types of farm, forest and other rural heritage services. Development plans were drawn up for these host organisations to help them prepare for their new service functions. A flexible ‘training of trainers’ scheme was prepared covering different youth target groups' needs
Results & Benefits
38 locations, hosted by 30 providers, have now been networked by the project which undertook 60 different training sessions to ensure all stakeholders knew how to provide the required services for young adults, school pupils and kindergarten children. A catalogue of all the different locations and their respective youth information/recreation services has been produced and widely disseminated via all media (press, TV radio). Results are being monitored to identify the project's success factors
Lessons learnt
This project’s multi-faceted approach to tackling rural depopulation challenges shows how LEADER provides a useful tool for testing innovative approaches to addressing rural development challenges (such as demographic change in the countryside caused by youth out-migration). Cooperation , preparation, piloting, marketing and monitoring are all also highly effective tools for this type of rural development project.
Project location and other information
Project was started by the LAG Društvo Raznolikost podeželja and involved other regions in Slovenia
Region
Savinjska
RDP Territory
Slovenia
Total project cost (€)
35 189
EAFRD contribution (€)
7 536
National contribution (€)
7 535
Private contribution (€)
5 046
Other funding sources (€)
15 072
Project website
Contact name
Mojca Krivec
Telephone
+386 034907586
Languages for contact
Slovene
At a glance
Country
Slovenia
Final beneficiary type
Individual farmers, Other
Budget range
€20 000 - €99 999
Start date:
01/11/2008
End Date:
31/12/2009
Theme / Measure:
Rural Quality of Life & Economic Diversification
Improving quality of life in rural areas
323. Conservation and upgrading of the rural heritage
Keywords:
Rural heritage, Rural tourism, Leader, Education, Young people
Last update
25/04/2012