• Organised by Rural Pact
  • CEST
  • English
  • Online

This Good Practice Webinar, organised by the Rural Pact Support Office, showcased national, regional and local experiences and initiatives that promote innovation in rural areas. It built participants’ capacity to develop and implement innovative actions that respond to the emerging opportunities and challenges in rural areas, with a particular focus on technological, ecological and social innovation.

Objectives
  • Exchange on and learn from national, regional and local experiences and initiatives that promote innovation in rural areas;
  • Build participants’ capacity to develop and implement innovative actions that respond to the emerging opportunities and challenges in rural areas with a particular focus on technological, ecological and social innovation;
  • Encourage and mobilise the Rural Pact Community and relevant stakeholders to take concrete actions that enhance rural innovation and related ecosystems, ensuring sustainable, inclusive and impactful solutions for rural communities.

The webinar brought together public authorities, project implementers and promoters of innovative rural initiatives, including potential local project holders as well as local, regional and national private and public actors.

Video recordings
Resources shared during the webinar on rural innovation
Web platforms and tools
Projects
Smart Communities
Women entrepreneurship
Social entrepreneurship
Green entrepreneurship
Knowledge & capacity building
Organisations
Publications
Background

How can innovation be best supported and implemented in rural areas to drive technological, ecological and socioeconomic progress?

Place-based, rural innovation and dedicated innovation ecosystems are key in revitalising rural areas and transforming them into dynamic places of opportunity. This requires connecting multiple stakeholders – including local authorities, businesses, research institutions, and civil society – to co-create, pilot and implement innovative technological and social solutions. This would enable them to seize opportunities and address pressing challenges in areas such as depopulation, limited access to public services, economic development and climate change. 

The European Commission implements several strategic initiatives to strengthen place-based, rural innovation in order to boost the digital, green and social transitions. These include the Regional Innovation Valleys (RIVs), Smart Specialisation Strategies (RIS3),  Horizon Europe projects for smart communities (e.g. Smart-era, Futural, Ruractive), LEADER/CLLD (Community-Led Local Development), Smart Villages, EIP-AGRI Operational Groups and the Start-Up Village Forum.

More recently, the Commission’s Vision for Agriculture and Food announced a revision of the strategic approach to research and innovation (R&I) to increase the competitiveness of agriculture, forestry and rural areas. The aim is to ensure more efficient investments, align future priorities with scientific developments and seize new opportunities.

The Commission’s efforts are complemented by a wealth of initiatives in Member States, regions and rural communities to create the right conditions that enable and drive innovation on the ground.

The Good Practice Webinar showcased inspiring initiatives supporting rural communities to create and implement digital, technological and social innovations, and foster exchange on how to unlock the innovative potential of rural communities, businesses and people.

Programme

English language

Agenda

(PDF – 203.63 KB)

Additional info

Organiser

Rural Pact Support Office

Other

Resources

Presentations

English language

Event objectives and agenda, Enrique Nieto, Rural Pact Support Office

(PDF – 395.4 KB)

English language

Unlocking rural innovation, Eduardo Montemayor, OECD

(PDF – 1.08 MB)

English language

EU Rural Action Plan, Arianna Pasa, European Commission

(PDF – 2.05 MB)

English language

European Clusters Collaboration Platform, Giovanni Emma, European Commission

(PDF – 623.09 KB)

English language

Regional Innovation Valleys, Magdalena Cymerys, European Commission

(PDF – 628.3 KB)

English language

Centres of territorial innovation, Maria Martos, Ministry for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge

(PDF – 844.42 KB)

English language

Rural innovation systems, Rita Trattnigg, Federal Ministry for Agriculture, Regions and Tourism

(PDF – 779.5 KB)

English language

Accelerating the Creation of Rural Nascent Start Ups, ACORNS (Ireland), Mary Walsh, Ire Wel Pallets

(PDF – 430.45 KB)

English language

SMART-ERA, Matteo Gerosa, Fondazione Bruno Kessler

(PDF – 875.82 KB)

English language

Rural ClimAccelerator Iberian, Thais Glod, Innobound

(PDF – 3.05 MB)

English language

RURAL RiSE: Empowering Rural Communities through Social Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Paolo Montemurro, Matera Hub

(PDF – 715.87 KB)

English language

Innovation centre for rural areas, Helena Kurki, Innovation Center for landsbygden

(PDF – 666.45 KB)

English language

Digital rural, Adamantia Kokkinaki, CIHEAM Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Chania

(PDF – 753.01 KB)

English language

Badevel, Samuel Gomes, Mayor of Badevel & University of technology of Belfort-Monbéliard

(PDF – 2.06 MB)

English language

The Innovation Lab for Forest-based Bioeconomy, Manuel Esteban, Castilla La Mancha University

(PDF – 3.35 MB)

English language

Art and Culture, Joe Lockwood, Lab Genalguacil

(PDF – 3.47 MB)

English language

SmartAltopiano, Viola Gaudiano, Romea Strata & Ruralities Horizon Europe project

(PDF – 244.37 KB)

English language

Next steps, Enrique Nieto, Rural Pact Support Office

(PDF – 617.89 KB)