The highlights report of the 2nd meeting of the Thematic Group (TG) on Making the seven LEADER principles work in practice for all LAGs under the CAP Strategic Plans (24 May 2022) is now published.
This meeting discussed the four LEADER principles including key factors affecting their full application in practice. Relevant MS experience was shared, and final TG outputs were agreed.
This edition of Rural Connections includes updates on the work of the ENRD in recent months, including new Thematic Groups and events.
Rural development stakeholders from across the EU share their views and experiences with successful projects that are breathing new life into EU's rural areas.
The EAFRD Projects Brochure ‘Rural youth as leaders of change’ is now available.
The Projects Brochure looks at how Rural Development Programmes (RDPs) have been accompanying rural youth and supporting their innovative ideas, engagement and participation.
The second meeting of the ENRD Thematic Group on Rural Proofing (19 May 2022) developed the discussion on the practical implementation of rural proofing mechanisms within different administrative. All the presentations are available on the event page.
The second meeting of this ENRD Thematic Group looked at the practical implementation of rural proofing mechanisms, also looking at the links to the Territorial Impact Assessments (TIA). It built on the outcomes of the 1st TG meeting.
The highlights report of the 1st meeting of the Thematic Group (TG) Making the seven LEADER principles work in practice for all LAGs under the CAP Strategic Plans (10 March 2022) is now published.
The meeting was organised to facilitate discussion and exchanges between the TG members for a common understanding of the seven LEADER principles.
Rural Connections 2-2021 is now available in 6 languages!
In this edition of the Rural Connections magazine, rural development stakeholders from across Europe look at the future of their territories and of rural Europe. They share their views on a range of topics, including the role of rural youth, the importance of broadband development and the use of LEADER to support cultural projects.
French LAGs (Local Action Groups) invite any European LAG interested in cooperating with them to get in touch to identify possible future partnerships.
Leader LAG integrates transnational and/or inter-territorial cooperation. During the current programming period, many difficulties have been encountered by LAGs in the implementation of their respective development strategies, and, consequently, in the emergence and implementation of Leader cooperation projects.
If you are a LAG interested in cooperating with any French LAG, please write to the following email address: and find out more information on the webpage of the French Rural Network.
More than 60 stakeholders from rural areas of the Western Balkan countries gathered in Ohrid, N. Macedonia, on 15-16 June 2021 for the second Balkan Rural Parliament.
The programme included presentations (also from European Commission and ENRD representatives) and field trips in the surrounding area of Ohrid and Struga. Here the participants could learn about rural tourism opportunities and connect with local entrepreneurs.
The Balkan Rural Parliament aims to reflect on the concerns and aspirations of rural people and their implications for local development and policy-making.
A video summary of the event and a 'Green business story' are available on YouTube.
In rural Estonia, 13 LAGs (out of 26) have started the cooperation project `Smart Villages development programme´ together with 24 villages. The project aims to provide support and training activities to participating villages to create a smart village strategy and to implement innovative pilot activities.
In addition, a network of Estonian Smart Villages will be created to increase the capacity of local communities and awareness of the region's development opportunities in rural areas.
The training programme lasts one and a half year and includes six training modules on different topics, study trips, implementation of pilot activities, mentoring support, communication and information activities, network coordination and project management.
The first training day took place on 17 June 2021 and brought together, for the first time, representatives from all 24 villages to start drawing up a smart village strategy.
The highlights report of the ENRD Seminar 'LEADER - 30 years and preparing for the future' (3 June 2021) is now published.
The online workshop explored LEADER’s positive, long-term impacts in rural areas and discussed how its added-value can be maximised in the future through better partnerships, local development strategies, and local projects and initiatives under the CAP Strategic Plans.
