ENRD magazine. Spring/Summer 2012.
Date: 2012-09-27
Institutions: Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development
Subjects: rural development, rural region, serial publication

C o n n e c t i n g   R u r a l   E u r o p e . . .

r o p

i n

Spring/ 
Summer
20012

E n g l i s h

MAIN STORY:  
LEADER Event 2012 
Local Development  
Strategies and Cooperation

Funded by the

 
 
Dear Reader,

W elcome  to  the  ENRD  Magazine  –  

dedicated to bringing you up to date 
with all of the rural development news that 
concerns you, from across the EU. 

And what better way to begin this issue than to look back at 
a major ENRD event recently held on the LEADER approach 
to rural development? As many of you know, LEADER is all 
about ‘bottom-up’ and giving rural actors on the ground 
more control over the development of their local area. And 
the LEADER Event 2012, which focused on local develop-
ment  strategies  and  cooperation,  brought  the  ‘local’  and 
EU dimensions of LEADER together. But the lynchpin for the 
event was the 230 LEADER Local Action Group (LAG) repre-
sentatives from all across the EU. The LAGs sought partners 
for a range of rural development projects and shared their 
experiences  and  views,  on  what  worked  well  in  the  past 
and their hopes for the future programming period. In this 
issue,  you  can  read  all  about  the  event,  including  some 
of the key messages, such as ‘top tips’ on the design and  
implementation of Local Development Strategies. 

As always, we’ve trawled right across Europe to get updates 
and insights into the many activities you are involved in. We 
bring you a report on the recent NRN meetings in Finland 
and  Greece  and  on  FLAG-LAG  cooperation  in  our  ‘Rural 
Focus’  section.  And  we  hear  from  Northern  Ireland,  Italy 
and Germany in our ‘Over to You’ section. We are sure you 
will be as intrigued as we were by the diversity of interest-
ing and innovative rural development events, taking place 
in a country near you!

Finally, enjoy our pick of EAFRD Projects, selected from 
the RDP Projects Database on the ENRD website, where 
we  visit  a  bakery  in  Romania,  an  eco-farm  in  Hungary, 
and lots more… 

So, a big ‘thank you’ to all of you who contributed to this 
issue and we hope you ﬁnd it an inspiring and enlightening 
read!

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Table of Contents

Image of Rural Europe 

ENRD Report 

A round-up of all the latest ENRD news, including a report 
from the LEADER Event 2012 in Brussels, and lots more…

NRN Focus 

A summary of what some of our National Rural Networks 
have been working on over the last few months, including 
NRN meetings in Finland and Greece...

Over to you! 
ITALY: The Italian NRN talks us through their very successful  
ESEMPI Awards for Rural Development 

GERMANY: An interesting feature from the German NRN  
on alternative community living, in rural Germany 

NORTHERN IRELAND: The Northern Irish Network  
shares its ﬁndings on village renewal and development  

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LEADER in Action 

Local Action Groups (LAGs) from all over Europe inspire us 
with their interesting and innovative projects and events.

Rural Focus 

We focus our attention on cooperation between Local 
Action Groups (LAGs) and Fisheries Local Action Groups 
(FLAGs).

EAFRD Projects 

A selection of inspiring and diverse rural development 
projects including a bakery project from Romania and an 
eco-farm project from Hungary.

In Your Own Words 

We turn the microphone over to you and hear what you 
have to say… 

Out &About 

Smile, you’re on camera! A selection of your networking 
photographs, taken over the last few months.

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Image of Rural Eur o p e

It’s 3 a.m. and already light! Lake Ähtärinjärvi, in western Finland

Aspen and pine trees by Lake Ähtärinjärvi, in western Finland, on the occasion of the 15th NRN meeting in Ähtäri in May, 2012.  
See page 11 for more information.

ENRD Website Re-launched! 

ENRD

With over 18 000 visits per month, use of the ENRD website has increased by 204%, 
since December 2010. Currently re-launched, it now features a number of new and 
exciting additional elements. 
T he  six-language  website  aims  to  inform  rural  development  stake-

holders and the general public about EU rural development policy 
and related issues and the website re-launch now makes it even easier to 
access key information. Log on now to see what’s new!

WHAT’S NEW?

(cid:116)(cid:1)

(cid:116)(cid:1)

(cid:116)(cid:1)

(cid:116)(cid:1)

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An  interactive  EU  map  on  the  home-
page – to allow users to access ‘country 
specific’ information with one click; 

 A  new 
information easier to find; 

‘search’ 

function  makes  

Content is organised into key sections 
– including ‘Policy in Action’, ‘Country’, 
‘Themes’,  ‘LEADER’,  ‘Networks  and 
Networking’, ‘Publications and Media’ 
and ‘Events and Meetings’;

The new ‘themes’ section reflects key 
rural  development  related  topics, 
such as forestry and the environment;

The  ever  popular  RDP  Projects 
Database has grown to feature some 
350  rural  development  projects,  in-
cluding 
transnational  cooperation 
(TNC) projects, from all across Europe 
on  a  diverse  range  of  topics.  And 
look  out  for  the  RDP  Project  ‘Video 
Postcards’ – produced by the ENRD to 
give you a taste of how these projects 
work on the ground!

‘stand-alone’  mini  websites 
New 
include  the  ‘Rural  Entrepreneurship 
Gateway’,  the  ‘NRN  Self-assessment 
Toolkit’ and the ‘LEADER Gateway’; 

(cid:116)(cid:1) OpENRD replaces MyENRD as our on-
line community platform – now open 
to even more stakeholders!

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To view the new website please visit: http://enrd.ec.europa.eu/

ENRD Report

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Participants celebrate a successful conference at the closing  
of the LEADER Event 2012, in Brussels on 27 April, 2012. 

LEADER Event 2012 –  
Local Development Strategies 
and Cooperation
S ome  400  participants  including  over  230  Local  Action 

Group (LAG) representatives attended the ’LEADER Event 
2012: Local Development Strategies and Cooperation’ held 

on 27-28 April, 2012. 

ENRD Report

The European Network for Rural Development 
(ENRD) hosts and supports numerous events 
throughout Europe, not to mention its  
involvement in a variety of ongoing thematic 
initiatives – all aiming to promote and share 
valuable knowledge on rural development. 
In each issue, we update you on some of its 
latest activities.

LEADER  began  in  the  1990s  as  an  initiative  to  allow  for  a  more 
‘bottom-up’  approach  to  EU  rural  development,  with  local  actors 
on the ground being more involved in all major aspects of improv-
ing their own local areas.  Since then, the initiative has progressed 
through  LEADER  II  and  LEADER+  to  now  being  integrated  in  the 
Rural Development Programmes (RDPs). 

To implement the approach some 2 300 LAGs have been set up 
all  across  the  EU.    The  LEADER  Event  2012  saw  LAGS  joined  by 
representatives from National Rural Networks (NRNs), Managing 
Authorities (MAs), Paying Agencies, and DG Agriculture and Rural 
Development,  thereby  providing  a  platform  to  bring  local  and 
European dimensions of LEADER together. 

>>

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Participants stroll past a display for the ENRD Images of  
Rural Europe Competition, at the LEADER Event, 2012. 

5

 
 
 
 
 
 
Transnational Cooperation

The spirit of LEADER was very much in evi-
dence at the event with potentially 70 new 
transnational  cooperation  (TNC)  projects 
formed  on  a  number  of  diverse  themes  – 
from  environmental  services  to  tourism, 
among others. 

Rhiannon  Hardiman,  from  the  Bridgend 
LAG  in  Wales,  said  she  was  there  to  de-
velop a transnational cooperation project. 
“This is a great opportunity to meet some 
new partners and make some new links,” 
she said. 

Panayiotis  Patras,  from  the  Trikala  LAG  in 
Greece, put the TNC notice board to very ef-
fective use, ﬁnding a Czech LAG with whom 
they hope to collaborate on a religious tour-
ism project. “We were talking of the possi-
bility of having a transnational cooperation 
project - through LEADER - on how better 
to make use of these religious monuments 
we have in our territory,” he said. 

A  participatory  approach  was  used 
throughout  the  event,  which  allowed  par-
ticipants many opportunities to share their 
views and feelings.  A number of heated ex-
changes took place in the panel discussions, 

with a lot of information shared on what is 
working  well  in  this  programming  round 
and  the  likely  impact  of  potential  changes 
after  2013.  “It’s  great  to  see  so  many  like-
minded  people  and  great  to  see  so  many 
people with a positive message,” said Ross 
Curley,  a  LAG  representative  from  County 
Cork, in Ireland. 

The importance of TNC was addressed and 
it  was  acknowledged  that  what  may  start 
out as simply one LAG visiting another LAG 
region, can reap real  dividends in terms of 
providing  the  spark  of  inspiration  for  a  vi-
able  rural  development  project.  “It’s  about 
helping  them  to  ﬁnd  new  solutions  to  old 
problems and I think that’s very important,” 
said  Luis  Chaves  from  the  Portuguese 
LEADER Association. 

Future Programming Round

DG AGRI presented an overview of changes 
proposed in the next programming round. 
The  changes  highlighted  included  better 
deﬁnition of roles for MAs and LAGs; better 
deﬁnition  of  running  costs  and  animation 
costs, etc. Whilst most LAGs seemed to wel-
come  the  increase  in  autonomy,  the  likely 
rise  in  administrative  burdens  was  seen  as 
a potential issue. 

“It’s great to see so many like-minded 
people and great to see so many 
people with a positive message,” 

Ross Curley,   
LAG representative from County Cork, Ireland       

A proposal for a new multi-fund approach 
in  the  new  programming  period  was  pre-
sented  as  an  opportunity  to  improve  RDP 
implementation.  This  will  make  it  easier 
to  access  funding  from  diﬀerent  sources 
and  should  make  for  a  more  robust  Local 

Future Programming Round: 
What’s New for LAGs?

(cid:116)(cid:1) More clearly defined roles for LAGs/
MAs  as  regards  quality,  selection 
and implementation tasks;

(cid:116) LAGs  to  receive  and  assess  applica-
tions  for  support  and  decide  the 
amount of support to be granted;

(cid:116) More  monitoring  and  evaluation 
tasks for LAGs to monitor the eﬀects 
of the LDS but also the project; 

(cid:116)(cid:1) Clearer deﬁnition of running costs;

(cid:116)(cid:1) Clearer  deﬁnition  of  ‘animation’  or 

communication costs; 

(cid:116) More  preparatory  support  will  be 
available including a LEADER start-up 
kit  for  new  LAGs  and  provisions  for 
capacity building.

Development  Strategy  (LDS)  capable  of 
responding  to  the  broader  needs  of  an 
area. However, some concerns were raised 
as  to  its  potential  impact  on  the  LEADER 
approach. 

Speaking  of  his  many  years  of  experience 
working  with  multi-funds  in  Ireland,  LAG 
Manager Ryan Howard struck a positive note 
on the issue: “In the last few months I’ve heard 
more  about  the  ‘fear’  of  this  multi-fund  ap-
proach, [such as] ‘will it actually kill LEADER?’. 
And I think we need to be taking this forward. 
We  are  risk-takers.  We  are  here  to  help  and 
support innovation and encourage that to a 
new platform,” he said.  Hans-Olof Stålgren re-
ceived a round of applause for his comment: 

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Participants were interested in developing transnational cooperation (TNC) projects at the LEADER Event 2012, on a range of themes.  

 
 
 
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ENRD Report

A participant notes some observations on the importance of local development strategies (LDS) at the LEADER  
Event 2012. A participatory approach ensured that all those attending could offer their suggestions and views.

“Let LEADER be the leaders – let us start now! 
Let us take the lead to develop strategies for 
the coming period, where we can include the 
social fund, we can include the regional fund 
and if something will change and we can no 
longer use the social fund – well, we solve that 
problem!”

Design and Implementation of 
Local Development Strategies

Concluding his summary of the outcomes 
of  the  workshops,  LDS  expert  and  mem-
ber  of  the  ‘ENRD  Focus  Group  4’  on  the 
issue - John Grieve, said an LDS ‘local de-
velopment strategy’ is a process: “It’s not 
just a document. It’s dynamic. It needs to 
be owned. It needs to be embedded and 
it needs to be delivered. So a real strategy, 
not  a  bid…  and  it  needs  to  be  needs 
driven.” 

A number of workshops were held on issues 
relating to the design, as well as monitoring 
and evaluation of an LDS, with a number of 
key messages emerging...  

The importance of an early start and plan-
ning eﬀectively was underlined, both in the 
strategy preparation work and strategy im-
plementation.  The need to simplify admin-
istration  was  highlighted,  particularly  for 
small-scale  projects.  More  innovation  was 
called  for  at  all  levels,  as  was  better  com-
munication of the overall impact of LEADER 
– particularly in terms of its potential to help 
achieve the aims of an LDS. “It is up to us to 
show the community that LEADER is impor-
tant.  We  must  show  our  results,”  said  Petri 
Rinne,  President  of  the  European  LEADER 
Association for Rural Development (ELARD).

‘Five Hundred Lonely  
Rangers...’

But  perhaps  it  was  Petri  Rinne  who  best 
summed  up  the  spirit  of  the  event.  “I  often 
feel that we are like lonely rangers, waging our 
lonely war against globalisation and urbanisa-
tion. But then at an event like this, we see we 
are 500 lonely rangers in the same room, and 
we can develop this family feeling and use the 
secret weapons of innovation and knowledge 
transfer between our regions.” 

Note:  You  can  find  further  information 
on  the  event,  as  well  as  on  transnational 
cooperation  and  Local  Development 
Strategies on the ENRD website. To view a 
video of the event visit the ‘media gallery’ 
on the ENRD website or click here. 

‘Top Tips’ For LAGs
on Better Local
Development Strategies
(cid:116)(cid:1) It’s  a  process! A  good  LDS  means  a 
good process. You need a good analysis 
of  the  needs  of  the  community,  based 
on  a  strong 
‘bottom-up’  approach, 
good ownership, realism and a dynamic 
approach to delivering the strategy; 

(cid:116) Keep talking! Keep your MA informed 
of  developments  as  you  go…they  can 
alert you to any pitfalls or issues, before 
it’s too late;

(cid:116) The earlier the better! Start early and 
plan,  plan,  plan.  An  LDS  works  well 
when there is continuity between one 
programme and the next;

(cid:116) Money matters! Be careful with fufund-
ing – assess costs and ‘match fufufunding’ 
accurately  and  be  prepared td  to  ada just 
accordingly; 

(cid:116)(cid:1) Keep watching! The LDLDS and the proo--
jects need an active ree r  eview.  Constantly 
watch what’s goingng on!n! 

(cid:116)(cid:1) Interact with thh the commmm unity! Interact 
with  the  prproroject  promoteters  more  – 
s  reregards  monitooring  and 
especially lyy  a 
evaluatiation;

(cid:116) Focuocus on the bigger picture! Focuus s on 
qqualitative as wellll as quau ntitative/ﬁnanan-
cial aspects and benneﬁe ts;

(cid:116)(cid:1) Spread  the  word!  AActc ivelely y promote 
whhata   you  are  doing  ––  a  ndd  h  ow  – 
itself. 
especic ally  to  the  commmunu ity 
a 
Peoplee  n 
strategy aandn  that it’s being achhieieved!d!  

to  know 

ththere’e’s s

eed 

(cid:116) EnE joy  the 

learning  curve!  LLeae rn 
through  the  prprocess  and  share  whhata  
you’ve learned!

Local Development Strategies: Focus Group Meeting in Helsinki

The  ENRD  Focus  Group  4  (FG4)  on  the  implementa-

tion,  monitoring  and  evaluation  of  Local  Development 
Strategies (LDS), held its second meeting in Helsinki, on 29-30 
March, 2012. 
Hosted  by  the  Finnish  NRN,  the  main  objective  of  the  meeting 
was to present the initial ﬁndings of FG4 surveys and to develop 
a common understanding about diﬀerences in implementation 

and monitoring & evaluation (M&E) practices between LAGs and 
Managing Authorities (MAs) in EU Member States. 
The preliminary findings of the second phase were presented 
at  the  LEADER  Sub-Committee  on  31  May,  2012.  The  overall 
report of FG4, including findings both from the first and sec-
ond  phase  of  its  work,  will  be  finalised  by  the  beginning  of 
July 2012.

7

 
 
 
Campaign to Mark 50 Years  
of the Common Agricultural  
Policy (CAP)

YEARS
of Common Agricultural Policy
APartnership between
Ready for the future
ope and Farmers

A campaign  to  mark  the  50th  anniversary  of  the  Common  Agricultural  Policy 

(CAP)  is  currently  underway  at  the  European  Commission  (EC).  The  CAP@50 
campaign  was  oﬃcially  launched  at  an  inter-institutional  event  in  Brussels,  on  23 
January, 2012, gathering more than 150 guests involved in the history and current re-
form of the CAP.  Speaking at the launch, the Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural 
Development, Dacian Cioloş, said: “2012 is an important year, not only to remember 
the past 50 years of history, but especially for us to look ahead towards a new reform 
of the Common Agricultural Policy. Today, food security remains important, but we 
have also new concerns such as climate change and the sustainable use of natural 
resources. This campaign will help to reﬂect on this evolution”. 
Under  the  slogan  ‘a  partnership  between  Europe  and  farmers’,  the  campaign 
 includes  an  interactive  website,  a  travelling  exhibition,  audio-visual  and  printed 
 materials,  as  well  as  a  series  of  events  in  Brussels  and  EU  Member  States.  Several 
 national launching events are also foreseen in the six founding Member States of the EU.
In a video statement, presenting the campaign on the CAP@50 website, the Commissioner warns that given the expected growth in world 
population  in  the  coming  years,  agricultural  production  will  have  to  double  in  the  same  period,  despite  the  problems  posed  by  climate 
change, loss of biodiversity, water scarcity and other challenges. 

A Partnership between
Europe and Farmers

http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/50-years-of-cap

For more information on the CAP@50 campaign, visit:  http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/50-years-of-cap/network/index_en.htm 
And…to follow the very latest updates on the CAP, visit: http://www.facebook.com/EUAgri 
and/or https://twitter.com /#!/ecspokesroger

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Policy in Action! New Factsheets Available
A new  series  of  brief  rural  development 

‘Policy  in  Action’  publications,  called 
“thematic  information  sheets”,  have  been 
developed by the ENRD Contact Point. These 
information  sheets  examine  speciﬁc  topics 
relating  to  EU  rural  development  policy  so 
as  to  provide  a  clear  perspective  on  policy 
intervention.  In  this  way  they  highlight  links 
between  policy  and  the  implementation  of 
measures,  coupled  with  examples  of  their 
actual outcomes on the ground. 
Topics  in  this  series  include:  promoting 
knowledge  transfer  and  investing  in  hu-
man capital; investments in physical capital 
and  modernisation;  promoting  agricultural 
production under recognised quality label/
standards;  supporting  farms  in  the  new 
Members States so they may enter the market; the preservation of the 
EU’s  natural  resources  and  farm  landscapes;  supporting  forestry;  en-
couraging diversiﬁcation of the rural economy; and improving services 
for population areas. In addition, the use of speciﬁc project examples, 
extracted  from  the  ‘RDP  Projects  Database’  (available  on  the  ENRD 
website) illustrates the perspective of project promoters/owners. 

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Thematic Information Sheets are available on a range of themes including 
the promotion of recognised quality standards for agricultural production.

For further information, visit the ‘Policy in Action’ section of the ENRD 
website. Or click here.

 
 
ENRD Attends Major  
International Fairs

The ENRD was recently in attendance at two 
major international fairs...

International Agricultural Fair, Paris
The Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) was the main 
theme  of  this  year’s  International  Agricultural  Fair, 
held in Paris from 25 February to 04 March, 2012.  DG 
AGRI representatives were present at the European 
Commission  Stand,  to  convey  to  the  event’s  
600 000+ visitors, how revisions to policy can help 
meet the current challenges faced by EU rural areas. 
The ENRD was represented by some 15 experts on 
rural development, farmers and Local Action Group 
(LAG)  members,  who  showcased  their  project  ex-
amples and brought along local products for tasting. 
The history of the Paris Fair goes back to the 1870’s, and over time 
the event has managed to evolve to embrace the changing face of 
agriculture and rural development in Europe.  

ENRD Report

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‘Valentine’ – a ‘Gascon’ cow and the mascot and star of the Salon de l’Agriculture Show in Paris. 

International Green Week, Berlin

The  77th  International  Green  Week  –  the  world’s  largest  agricul-
tural summit – took place in Berlin, from 20-29 January, 2012.  This 
year’s event saw some 420 000 visitors ﬂock to the Berlin Exhibition 
Grounds – its largest attendance in over four years. All aspects of 
food quality and safety were promoted at the fair, which featured  
1 624 exhibitors from 56 countries. 
The ENRD joined DG AGRI at the exhibition, to showcase a selec-
tion of best-practice EAFRD projects from around Europe, during a 
series of eight ‘country days’ for Poland, Finland, Germany, Austria, 
Estonia,  Scotland,  Hungary  and  Luxemburg.  Each  day  featured  a 
short presentation by the Rural Network of the respective country, 
together  with  a  demonstration  of  projects  from  that  country  by 
Local Action Groups (LAGs). 

To learn more about the 2012 ‘Salon International de l’Agriculture’ 
visit: http://www.salon-agriculture.com

For information on International Green Week, visit:  
http://www.gruenewoche.de/en/

Workshops Held  
on Future Rural Development Programmes
S ome 170 participants attended a two-day workshop on what 

the  future  holds  for  Rural  Development  Programmes  (RDPs) 
on 14-15 March, 2012, in Brussels.  The workshop entitled ‘Strategic 
Programming and Monitoring and Evaluation for RDPs 2014-2020’ 
was  jointly  organised  by  the  ENRD  and  the  European  Evaluation 
Network for Rural Development. 
The  event  brought  together  representatives  of  National 
Authorities, NRNs, EU organisations and the European Commission, 

as well as evaluators. The overall aim was to further engage Member 
States and rural stakeholders in preparations for the future RDPs. 
Participants were asked to oﬀer concrete ideas and suggestions, on 
how to enhance strategic programming, and how to ensure sound 
monitoring and evaluation in the next programming period, from 
2014-2020.  For  further  information  on  the  speciﬁc  outcomes  of 
these  workshops,  please  visit  the  ‘CAP  Post  2013’  section  on  DG 
AGRI’s website: http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture.  

9

 
 
Focus Group  
on Environmental Services

T he  recently  established  ENRD  Focus  Group  on  the  delivery  of 

environmental services had its ﬁrst meeting on 16 March, 2012. 

The  purpose  of  this  group  is  to  consider  how  the  delivery  of 
environmental services (biodiversity, water quality, soil function-
ality,  climate  regulation,  etc.)  supported  through  the  European 
Agricultural  Fund  for  Rural  Development  (EAFRD)  can  be  im-
proved and maximised in the future, in order to inform the design 
and  implementation  of  Rural  Development  Programmes  (RDPs) 
after 2013. The group is examining, among other things, the avail-
able measures and ways of combining them, the role ‘ collective 
action’  and  community-led  initiatives  can  play,  and  how  to 
encourage  farmers  to  become  more  involved  in  environmental 
work.  The meeting provided for an animated discussion among 
members – who represent a wide spectrum of actors, from farm-
ers to Managing Authorities. In particular, members shared their 
experiences,  and  began  identifying  good  examples  of  policy 
delivery and key factors for success, including: better ownership 
and collaboration between stakeholders in the design and imple-
mentation of the measures; more collaborative advice and good 
quality,  fairer  contract  design.  The  initial  ﬁndings  of  the  Focus 
Group were presented at the Coordination Committee meeting 
in Brussels, in June 2012. 

Intercontinental Forum  
for Sustainable  
Development in Brazil 
O ver 200 participants attended the Intercontinental Forum for 

Sustainable Development, held in Santa Catarina, Brazil, from 

21-24 November, 2011. 
The  event  was  organised  in  recognition  of  how  the  issue  of  local 
sustainable  development  has  become  increasingly  important  in 
recent decades, both in Europe and Latin America. Despite diﬀering 
contexts,  a  common  desire  is  emerging  to  strengthen  mutual  ex-
change of experiences and search for innovative solutions to tackle 
rural development issues. Hence, the event focused on strengthen-
ing the links between actors involved in promoting local and ter-
ritorial development. 
The  European  LEADER  Association  of  Rural  Development  (ELARD) 
- an ENRD member organisation - joined participants, representing 
13 European and Latin American Countries, at the event. Concluding 
the Forum, a ‘Declaration of Santa Catarina’ was signed by the par-
ties  involved.  It  underlines  the  importance  of  local  development 
processes  and  promises  new  perspectives  for  the  exchange  of 
experiences and cooperation between actors, on both continents. 

For more information, visit: http://www.foro-santacatarina2011.org

ENRD Contact Point Visits

Bulgarian Local Action Groups (LAGs)… 

Finnish Rural Network Unit… 

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A  study  group  of  Finnish  rural  development  stakeholders, 
representatives  of  the  Finnish  regional  authorities  and  the 
Finnish  Paying  Agency  visited  Brussels,  in  February,  to  hear 
about the latest activities of the ENRD.

Romanian Network Support Unit… 

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Representatives from the NSU in Romania, with members 
of the ENRD Contact Point team, in Brussels.

Three  representatives  from  the  newly  formed  Network  Support 
Unit (NSU) of Romania visited the ENRD Contact Point premises 
for the ﬁrst time on 19 April, 2012. The visit focused on ENRD ac-
tivities and possibilities for cooperation with other National Rural 
Networks (NRNs).

Representatives from the Bulgarian LAGs with members  
of the ENRD Contact Point team, in Brussels. 

Representatives  from  ﬁve  -  recently  established  -  Bulgarian 
Local Action Groups (LAGs) visited the ENRD Contact Point on 
24 April, 2012 to learn more about the structure and role of the 
ENRD and the activities that focus upon LEADER. 

University of Missouri Students… 

A group of students from the University of Missouri visited the 
ENRD  Contact  Point  on  12  January,  2012,  as  part  of  a  wider 
study visit to the EU institutions, in Brussels. They were keen to 
learn about reforms to the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) 
and  the  role  of  the  ENRD  in  furthering  networking  and  ex-
change among rural development policy actors, throughout 
the EU.

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MAGAZINE

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S p r i n g   /   S u m m e r   2 0 1 2

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
NRN Focus

Participants at the 15th NRN meeting in Finland enjoyed blue skies in Ähtäri...

Finnish Network: 15th NRN Meeting 
in Finland 
T he  15th  NRN  Meeting  was  held 

in  Ähtäri,  Finland  on  8-9  May, 

(NRNs),  how 
the  challenges 
including: 

they  perform  and 
they  encounter, 

2012. 
This meeting was billed as the most 
important  NRN  meeting  to  date, 
with  the  general  aim  of  building  a 
shared understanding for forthcom-
ing  discussions  on  how  to  improve 
the  effectiveness  and  efficiency  of 
networking  as  a  rural  development 
policy tool in the EU-27. 
For  the  ﬁrst  time  at  such  a  meeting, 
over  70  participants  from  Managing 
Authorities  (MA),  Network  Support 
Units  (NSUs)  and  Evaluators  came 
together  and  engaged  in  animated 
discussions,  so  as  to  enhance  the 
current  level  of  knowledge  and  un-
derstanding  of  networking  in  rural 
development  policy,  and 
identify 
ways in which to improve networking 
as a policy tool in all Member States in 
the future. 
The  meeting  covered  the  diversity 
that exists in terms of the form and 
function of National Rural Networks 

(cid:116)(cid:1)

(cid:116)(cid:1)

(cid:116)(cid:1)

The role and responsibilities of the 
NSUs, as well as networking for the 
current programming period;
The  composition  and  constitu-
tion of minimum requirements, in 
terms  of  structure,  competence 
and budget required for an NSU to 
eﬀectively deliver its mandate;
 Available  tools,  for  assessing  the 
outputs  and  results  achieved  by 
the NSUs, as well as general net-
working activity.

The results of the discussions will feed 
directly  into  an  ENRD  Coordination 
Committee  Workshop  on  the 
‘The 
Future  of  Rural  Networking’  –  planned 
for  September/October  2012.  This 
will  contribute  directly  to  enhanc-
ing  the  networking  component  of 
Rural  Development  Programmes,  in 
2014-2020.  

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NRN Focus

National Rural Networks (NRNs) are  
set up by Member State governments to bring 
together those involved in rural development 
and to help implement EU rural development 
policy. This section features all the latest NRN 
news from recent meetings and other events 
organised throughout the EU.

Greek Network: 14th NRN 
Meeting in Greece 
A total of 54 participants from 18 NRNs attended the 

first NRN meeting of 2012, in Thessaloniki, Greece 
on 2-3 February. Hosted by the Greek NRN, the meeting 
focused  on  a  number  of  key  themes,  from  ‘clustering’ 
to ‘rural finance’ and the ‘added value of networking’. 
An overview of the outcomes of the ﬁrst ‘Mediterranean 
Macro-Regional  Network  Cluster  Meeting’  which  took 
place on 01 February, 2012, in Thessaloniki, was presented.  
The  theme  of  ‘Demonstrating  the  Added 
Value  of  Networking’  was  addressed 
through  an  update  on  action  related  to 
joint-action  and  common  meth-
NRN 
odologies  for  demonstrating  the  added 
value of networking.  In addition, the issues 
of  Rural  Entrepreneurship  and  the  Joint 
NRN Initiative on ‘Rural Finance and Short 
Supply Chains’ were discussed.   

For further information on both of these NRN meetings, visit the ‘Events and Meetings’ section of the ENRD website or click here.   

11

...while participants at the 14th NRN meeting in Thessaloniki, Greece, experienced an uncommonly chilly reception.

 
 
 
 
 
 
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A ‘vision’ of rural development by young people 
involved in the Swedish NRN initiative.

Vanessa Thomas from the Welsh Rural Network, 
with Michael Hammond, owner of ‘Quackers’ 
farm-diversification project. 

Signmark – the deaf Finnish hip-hop artist who 
participated at the ‘Little Miracles’ event to pro-
mote the role of the arts in rural development.

Swedish Network: New Website  
to Engage Young People  
in Rural Development  
T he  Swedish  NRN  has  launched  a  new  website,  designed  to 

engage young people in rural development. The website fol-
lows a review of the RDP, carried out by the NRN’s working group on 
youth, which concluded that young people are  under-represented 
‘at all levels’. As a result, funding was provided to explore and ad-
dress the issue, as well as to set up the new website, which aims to 
assist all young people who would like to invest in rural areas. The 
working group is also encouraging young people to visualise what 
they imagine the future of the countryside to be. Their creations 
are  displayed  as  interactive  ‘collages’  on  the  site,  with  messages  contained  inside  each  image. 
Commenting on the importance of such an initiative, Hans-Olof Stålgren from the Swedish NRN 
said: “Without young people desiring to live in rural areas there cannot be any sustainable rural 
development”. For further information, visit: www.landsbygdsnatverket.se.

Welsh Network: Workshop on Farm Diversification 
A workshop on ’farm diversiﬁcation’ was held in Wales on 23 February, 2012. 

Facilitated by the Welsh NRN, the workshop allowed participants to dis-
cuss problems and achievements encountered, whilst running projects under 
Measure 311 (Axis 3), of the Rural Development Programme (RDP). 
Some 30 participants, from all over Wales, heard presentations from Johathan 
Williams  and  Eleri  Wyn  Roberts,  of  the  Wales  Young  Farmers  Club.  And  Nia 
Hollins, from the Vale of Glamorgan LAG spoke about their ‘Pride in our Farming  
Families’ grant scheme. 
The event was held at Quackers, Newbridge-on-Wye, a successful farm diver-
siﬁcation project, involving an indoor play centre area for children, conference 
facilities and a café. Participants also heard about ‘diversiﬁcation in action’ from 
the farmers who have developed the Quackers Centre. For further information, 
visit: www.wales.gov.uk/ruralnetwork or www.quackersnow.com.

Finnish Network: Seminar on the Role of the 
Arts in Rural Development 
A seminar, celebrating the role of arts and creative businesses in rural development, was held in 

Finland, on 15-16 February, 2012. 

This  was  the  third  ‘Little  Miracles’  seminar,  held  in  Kaustinen,  a  small  municipality  in  western 
Finland, which hosts the country’s biggest folk music festival. 
Leaders of creative businesses and representatives from the Ministries of Education and Culture; 
Employment and the Economy; and Agriculture and Forestry came together to discuss opportuni-
ties for the sector, barriers to development and how diﬀerent EU funds can be used to nurture and 
support a creative approach to growing the rural economy. 
Participants heard from a range of inspirational speakers, including Signmark, a deaf Finnish ‘hip-
hop’ artist. A visit to an actual audio-visual training centre was also organised as part of the event. 
Juha-Matti Markkola, Network Coordinator said: “We have been delighted to work with so many 
partners, including the municipalities of Kaustinen and Kokkola, to bring together this third semi-
nar for creative industries. We believe the sector is still under-utilised in terms of business devel-
opment and its role in regenerating our countryside.”  For further information, visit: www.rural.
fi,  www.ruralpolicy.fi/en,  www.creativeindustries.fi,  www.luovatalueet.fi,  www.taiteenk-
eskustoimikunta.fi/web/pohjanmaa/pohjanmaan-taidetoimikunta.

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NRN Focus

Irish Network: New Case 
Study on Development 
in Action
T he Irish NRN has expanded its database of 

case  studies  with  a  report  focused  on  ‘ru-
ral  community  development  in  action’,  based 
on  the  locality  of  Upperchurch-Drombane,  in 
County Tipperary. 
Launched  in  2012,  the  study  examines  factors 
aﬀecting the potential of the area to become a 
self-reliant community, including critical success 
factors and barriers to development and growth. 
The  report  also  identiﬁes  a  range  of  lessons 
learned.  For example, one of its recommenda-
tions  is  that  future  rural  development  policy 
“should include a focus on developing commu-
nities’ capacity to exploit assets such as food, water, air and energy in a sustainable way”.
The Upperchurch-Drombane report is the latest in a range of studies completed by the NRN, on such 
diverse themes as renewable energy, community development, outdoor recreation, waste manage-
ment and agriculture. All of the case studies aim to “analyse and disseminate examples of good practice 
within the RDP and to act as a stimulus to others”. For further information, see the Irish NRN website 
www.nrn.ie or click here. 

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Residents of  local community housing in 
Upperchurch-Drombane.

Flemish Network: Consultation Day  
on the Countryside after 2013
A consultation day for agricultural and rural stakeholders from across Flanders was held on 7 

February, 2012, in Brussels. Hosted by the Flemish Rural Network, the event was part of oﬃcial 

preparations in Flanders for the next Rural Development Programme (RDP). 
Some 170 delegates, including farmers, farming organisations, nature conservation organisations, 
landscape conservators, LEADER Local Action Groups (LAGs), and ﬁnancial and insurance compa-
nies attended the meeting.  Their contributions are now being incorporated into a report, which 
the Network will use to inform the development of the Flemish RDP, from 2014-2020.
Nele Vanslembrouck, Coordinator of the Flemish Rural Network said: “We appreciate the eﬀorts of 
all the actors. They joined forces in order to prepare the ﬁrst steps of a powerful RDP, and we hope 
they will keep on working like this.” For further information, visit: www.ruraalnetwerk.be.

German Network: New Discussions  
on Agri-Environment Measures 
A meeting on the future development of Agri-Environment Measures in Germany was held in 

Göttingen, on 8-9 February, 2012. The joint meeting, between the German Rural Network and 
other partners aimed to make the existing measures more eﬃcient, whilst taking better account of 
requirements on nature conservation, biodiversity, water protection, climate change and sustain-
able agriculture. 
The 130 participants included representatives from all Federal States, as well as the Federal Ministry. 
The meeting focused on the CAP reform proposals, the results of the mid-term evaluation and 
feedback  from  EU  auditors  and  German  administrators,  as  well  as  ‘new  challenges’.  However, 
practical issues were also addressed, such as farm advisory services, planning Agri-Environmental 
Measures at farm level and speciﬁc measures for grasslands and farmland. Fifteen posters depict-
ing  scientiﬁc  and  empirical  evidence  were  also  displayed.  For  further  information,  see:  www.
netzwerk-laendlicher-raum.de/aum.

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Laurence Lamb shows the participants around 
the recording studios, in Scotland.

Alun Davies, Deputy Minister for Agriculture, 
Food, Fisheries and European Programmes of 
the Welsh Government addresses the event.

Austrian workshop session on participative 
processes in protected areas.

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Scottish Network: Project  
Visits Begin  
with Youth Project 

T he  Scottish  Rural  Network  organised  a  visit  to  an 

award  winning  social  enterprise  project  on  7-8 
February, 2012, as part of a series of project visits around 
Scotland, planned this year. 
In  total,  11  participants  visited  the  LEADER  supported 
project called ‘Yipworld.com’ in Ayrshire in the south-west 
of  Scotland,  which  provides  young  people  with  a  wide 
range of training opportunities, indoor and outdoor ac-
tivities,  active  citizenship  and  volunteering  places,  career  and  employment  support  and  much 
more. Outreach support is also provided through a mobile unit that delivers information and ad-
vice to some 3 000 young people every year. 
The visit also formed part of a series of events on the topic of ‘Young, Gifted and Rural’ – a joint 
initiative with the Carnegie UK Trust, which culminated in a large-scale conference, in June 2012. 
For further information, see: www.ruralgateway.org.uk or www.yipworld.org

Welsh Network:  Food Tourism Event Shares  
Good Practice 

A n event focused on sharing good practice regarding ‘food tourism’ was held in Wales 

on 08 March, 2012. The event organised by the Welsh Rural Network, in partnership 
with Mid Wales Local Food Talks, involved presentations on topics such as accreditation, 
developing food clusters and sustainable food businesses.
Keynote speakers on the day included the Welsh Deputy Minister for Agriculture, Food, 
Fisheries and European Programmes, Alun Davies; and Peter Birnie, who has worked ex-
tensively with organisations such as ‘Visit England’ and ‘Alastair Sawday Guides’. Speaking 
about the event, Alun Davies told delegates: “A strengthened Welsh food culture, leading 
to a steady demand for quality food, is one of the most important attractions for visitors in 
Wales. When one thinks of a holiday in France or Italy, the promise of great food is a huge 
attraction. I want tourists, from the UK and beyond, to think of Wales in the same way.”
For further information, see the Welsh Government’s website http://wales.gov.uk or click here. 

Austrian Network: Seeks to Improve Processes 
for Participation in Protected Areas

A meeting  on  improving  stakeholder  participation  in  the  management  of  protected 

areas in Austria was held on 23 February, 2012, in Klagenfurt.

Some 80 participants, including managers of protected areas, and representatives from 
local stakeholder groups, came together to discuss ways of addressing conﬂicts of interest 
that may arise between those involved in diﬀerent sectors, such as agriculture, forestry, 
road construction and nature conservation in protected areas.
The Austrian NRN - ‘Netzwerk-Land’ - along with the University of Klagenfurt, delivered a 
workshop on good practice in protected areas to promote mutual understanding among 
all stakeholders. Participants heard about work from ‘Natura 2000’ in Styria and Carinthia 
and the Hochgebirgs-Naturpark in the Zillertal Alps. They also worked in small groups to 
address their own local challenges.
Hemma  Burger-Scheidlin,  conference  coordinator  from  the  Austrian  National  Rural 
Network said: “By organising a conference for protected areas every year, we could start a 
continuous process of discussion”. For further information, visit the Austrian NRN website     
www.netzwerk-land.at or click here. 

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Over to You: Italy! 

Over to You!

In this section, we share a selection of  interesting 
articles on issues that matter to you - either 
taken directly from your publications or written 
 especially for this magazine.
So, Over to You - Italy, Germany and Northern 
Ireland!

The  Memory Oak  project’s  agri-tourism centre.

The ESEMPI Awards  
for Rural Development:  
A ‘How-to’ Guide

The ESEMPI awards
are seen in Italy as
an instrument for 
communicating ‘good 
practice’ examples of 
rural development. In this
article, written especially 
for the ENRD Magazine,
Milena Verrascina, of 
the Italian NRN’s Good 
Practice and Innovation 
Task Force, guides us 
through the process of 
running a highly successful 
awards campaign. 

A nalysis  and  cataloguing  of  good 

practices has become quite a wide-
spread activity in terms of publicly-
financed  actions.  In  recent  years,  whether 
due  to  a  growing  interest  in  the  sector  or 
to  a  growing  awareness  of  the  need  for 
accountability  -  analysis  of  those  actions 
and  the  projects  financed  through  rural 
development  policies  has  become  more 
apparent. 

The  work  plan  of  the  Italian  National  Rural 
Network  (NRN)  includes  an  action  dedicated 
to  precisely  this  –  the  analysis,  cataloguing  and 
transfer of good practices. This entails the iden-
tiﬁcation  of  appropriate  tools  for  supporting 
analysis and dissemination of actions, including: 
production of traditional information tools such 
as magazines, newsletters, reports and thematic 

publications; 
monitoring 
and  development  of  project 
databases;  organisation  of 
conferences  and  workshops; 
and  study  visits  to  foster  ex-
change  and  comparison  of 
experience.  Such  activities 
require  eﬀective  communi-
cation  strategies  and  tools, 
capable  of  reaching  various 
targets.  Good  practices  are 
interesting  in  themselves  but  their  value  in-
creases  if  others  know  about  them  -  thereby 
inspiring  others  to  follow  suit.  This  necessitates 
the planning of combined actions to be imple-
mented  using  standard  and  more  innovative 
communication  tools.    Awards  ceremonies  are 
one such tool. 

15

Francesca Lenzi and Graziella Romito at the awards ceremony.

Awards  provide  an  incentive  (directly  or 
indirectly) to improve or continue the pro-
jects  that  receive  them.  The  idea  for  the 
ESEMPI competition for outstanding devel-
opment  work,  using  innovative  methods 
and practices - and its related prizes - was 
designed  therefore,  to  lend  visibility  and 
resonance to publicly-ﬁnanced rural devel-
opment  projects.  The  ESEMPI  competition 
was  launched  in  June  2011  and  a  second 
ceremony for 2012 is underway.

The ESEMPI Awards

The period prior to the development of the 
competition saw the drafting of the Europe 
2020 Strategy. This gave rise to a lively de-
bate  on  the  contribution  that  agriculture 
and  rural  development  could  make  to  the 
strategy.  For  this  reason,  the  awards  cer-
emony  was  geared  towards  actions  linked 
to  Europe  2020,  which  demonstrate  the 
potential  of  rural  development  to  achieve 
smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. In 
order  to  highlight  the  importance  of  the 
LEADER  approach  to  implementing  devel-
opment actions in rural areas, certain award 

categories  were  dedicated  to  projects  ﬁ-
nanced within the LEADER framework. 

An expert ‘working group’ was set up, so as 
to  ensure  broad  dissemination  of  informa-
tion in support of the awards. The working 
group  consisted  of  NRN  stakeholders  in-
cluding rural development actors and those 
more directly involved  in rural   policy.  The 
group  invited  all  round-table  members  to 
inform the coordinators of relevant projects 
or nominate projects for the awards. 

Prizes  oﬀered 
included  stipends  worth 
€16  000,  which  allow  recent  graduates  to 
undertake one-year study periods with the 
winning projects.

Network’s  information  channels:  on  the  main 
websites dealing with rural development issues; 
via correspondence to the Network mailing list; 
and  through  communication  actions  by  the 
Network’s regional Contact Points.

including  qualitative 

Entries were submitted by ﬁlling in an online 
form, which required candidates to submit in-
formation on the main characteristics of their 
project, 
judgements. 
A  system  was  used  whereby  candidates 
proposed  themselves  based  on  their  own 
self-assessment. Entries were validated by the 
working  group  who,  after  having  checked 
that they fulﬁlled the minimum eligibility re-
quirements,  placed  the  relevant  projects  on 
an online database.

At  the  end  of  the  selection  process,  seven 
projects  received  prizes  in  the  following 
categories:  Sustainable  Growth,  Inclusive 
Growth, Smart Growth, Sustainable Growth 
on  the  basis  of  the  LEADER  Approach, 
Inclusive Growth on the basis of the LEADER 
approach, Smart Growth on the basis of the 
LEADER approach and a special Innovation 
Prize,  awarded  by  a  jury  of  experts  to  an 
innovative  project,  which  combines  these 
three elements of growth.

Running the Competition

The call was addressed to public and private 
actors  (individual  entrepreneurs,  consortia, 
local 
institutions,  non-proﬁt  organisations) 
responsible  for  initiatives  and  projects  ﬁ-
nanced under the European Agricultural Fund 
for  Rural  Development  (EAFRD)  2007-13  or 
through other sources.  It was felt that open-
ing up the competition to projects funded by 
sources  other  than  EAFRD,  including  self-ﬁ-
nanced projects, would broaden the scope of 
potential candidates and provide extra ‘food 
for  thought’  on  ways  to  help  rural  areas  use 
private funding or other support mechanisms. 

The  ‘call  process’  -  aimed  at  identifying  out-
standing projects - was publicised through the 

When  the  deadline  for  submissions  ar-
rived,  over  100  entries  had  been  received. 

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Food produced through sustainable environmental practices, as part of the Memory Oak project.

 
 
 
 
Following evaluation of the proposed pro-
jects,  a  jury  -  with  expertise  ranging  from 
environmental  matters  to  regional  market-
ing  and  from  evaluation  to  social  matters 
- presented its verdict, identifying the most 
relevant  projects  divided  into  categories. 
The relevance criteria and thus the evalua-
tion  parameters  focused  on  three  aspects: 
the  ability  of  the  project  to  reach  rural 
development  goals  (i.e.  its  eﬀectiveness), 
the project’s sustainability based on its eco-
nomic,  social  and  environmental  aspects, 
and the transferability of the actions carried 
out or the results obtained.

The  ﬁnal  vote,  which  involved  more  than 
100  of  the  Network’s  stakeholders,  was 
taken on 19 October, 2011. Each winner, was 
given a few minutes to explain their project 
in person, so as to capture the attention of 
the  audience  on  an  emotional  level  and 
to  demonstrate  the  impact  support  ac-
tions  can  have  on  territorial  and  business 
decisions. 

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Workers employed at the social inclusion project  
‘Orti  ETICI ‘  –  winner of the Special Innovation Award.

As planned, the prizes for the winning pro-
jects take the form of study stipends for re-
cent graduates who will have the chance to 
carry out ﬁeld work, receive training on as-
pects of rural development or support fur-
ther development of the winning projects. 
For their part, by training the graduates with 
a view to oﬀering them future employment, 
the winners will be able to acquire extra pro-
fessional support in achieving their growth 
objectives. The choice of awarding a study 
stipend fulﬁls an aim of the NRN in helping 
to  bring  young  people  and  civil  society  in 
general, closer to the rural environment.

Over to You: Italy! 

Final Considerations

Particularly 
innovative  characteristics  of 
the  ESEMPI  awards  include  a  participatory 
approach  based  on  a  ‘bottom-up’  process, 
which  starts  with  the  projects  putting 
themselves  forward  as  candidates,  before 
broadening through the active involvement 
of  the  NRN’s  expert  group,  thus  allowing 
widespread diﬀusion of information on out-
standing  projects,  irrespective  of  whether 
they win, among key actors in rural develop-
ment policy. Another particularly interesting 
aspect  is  linked  to  the  nature  of  the  prizes 
themselves, which consist of graduate train-
ing opportunities, as well as support for the 
continuation and development of the win-
ning projects (in many cases the projects re-
quire human, rather than ﬁnancial resources 
to  continue  their  work).  Therefore,  this 
presents  a  ‘double  advantage’  for  the  win-
ners,  with  graduates  receiving  a  year-long 
traineeship with the winning projects.  The 
success  of  such  an  approach  is  conﬁrmed 
by  the  high  level  of  interest  in  the 
stipends among recent graduates. 

Finally,  as  regards  the  selection  of 
projects  eligible  for  the  awards,  it  is 
worth noting that these are not only 
open  to  projects  ﬁnanced  through 
the  European  Agricultural  Fund  for 
Rural  Development  (EAFRD).  The 
rationale for this was that whilst it is 
of course important to demonstrate 
the impact of the EAFRD, at the same 
time,  we  should  remember  that  as 
researchers  and  as  a  National  Rural 
Network,  we  are  concerned  with 
rural  areas  and  the  rural  economy 
as  a  whole,  and  thus  with  any  pro-
jects  that  do  outstanding  work.  All 
of these projects help us to understand the 
real  needs  of  such  areas  and  how  best  to 
launch and support development processes, 
be  they  business,  social  or  land-related.  An 
interesting  statistic  from  the  projects  sub-
mitted  concerns  their  ﬁnancing  sources. 
Most  received  EU  support  through  EAFRD 
and  the  European  Agricultural  Guidance 
and Guarantee Fund, as well as through the 
European Regional Development Fund and 
the European Social Fund, but a considerable 
number of projects (19%) were self-ﬁnanced. 
This shows that there is a high level of dyna-
mism  among  the  initiatives  submitted  and 
in rural areas as a whole, even when public 
support is not available.

The Winners - General Awards:

(cid:116) Special  Innovation:  Awarded  to 
‘Ethical  Gardens’  (Orti  E.T.I.C.I)  –    a
social-inclusion  project  that  offers
job placements for vulnerable social
groups,  with  local  agricultural  and
horticultural enterprises;

(cid:116) Inclusive  Growth:  Awarded 

to 
the  ‘Le  Ali’  cooperative  for  its  work 
restoring an ancient villa, located in 
the  hills  around  Bologna.  The  villa 
is  now  a  tourist  attraction,  which
offers  city  dwellers  a  “taste  of  the
countryside” among other things.  

(cid:116) Sustainable  Growth:  Awarded  to 
the ‘Memory Oak project’ – an agro-
tourism  centre  that  promotes  sus-
tainable environmental practices.

(cid:116) Smart  Growth:  Awarded  to  the 
‘Vastedda della Valle del Belice’ pro-
ject  which  provides  a  milk-curdling
centre  for  use  by  all  Vastedda  PDO
cheese  producers,  thereby  enhanc-
ing the value of this local cheese.

The Winners - LEADER Awards:

(cid:116) Sustainable 

LEADER  Growth:
Awarded  to  a  cooperation  project 
run  by  the  Mongioie  LAG,  which
aims  to  get  all  44  local  administra-
tions in the mountainous Piedmont
region  to  sign  up  to  an 
‘Eco
Management  and  Audit  Scheme’
(EMAS);

(cid:116) Smart  LEADER  Growth: Awarded 
to ‘School, Job and Future’ – a pro-
ject that aims to increase a sense of 
local  identity  and  heritage  by  pro-
viding training and work experience
for  students,  on  local  projects  that
make the most of local resources;

(cid:116) Inclusive 

Growth:
LEADER 
Awarded to the ‘Castagneto Tourist
Enhancement Project’ of the Antico
Frignano  e  Appennino  Reggiano
LAG.  This  project  aims  to  get  local
people involved in the development
of the area as a tourist attraction.

For  more 
information,  please  visit  the 
“Buone  Pratiche  e  Innovazioni”  thematic 
page at www.reterurale.it.

17

 
 
Taken from the ‘In Focus’ 
section of the publication 
‘LandInForm’ Issue 4/2011,
published by the German 
NRN, this article examines
how communities 
interested in developing 
alternative lifestyles, such 
as alternative economic 
systems and communal 
living, constitute a 
counterweight to the 
trend of rural emigration. 
By Iris Kunze.

A ‘handmade’ straw-bale house in the eco-village of ‘Sieben Linden’.

Communities Strengthen 
Infrastructure and Social 
Climate, in Germany
T he  migratory 

from 

trend 

the 
countryside  to  towns  goes  on. 
However, movement in the oppo-
site  direction  has  also  been  detected.  It 
is  not  just  ‘drop  outs’  and  nature  lovers, 
but  also  people  interested  in  alternative 
ways  of  life  who  see  the  countryside  as 
somewhere  they  can  realise  their  po-
tential.  The  driving  force  behind  this  is, 
among  other  things,  a  desire  for  more 
community-based living. 

-  seek  fulﬁlment  in  technologically-advanced, 
densely-populated, big-city life. Since the green 
movement came to prominence, others - includ-
ing the educated ‘middle-class’ - have gravitated 
more and more towards lifestyles that oﬀer pos-
sibilities  to  combine  communal  living  with  self-
fulﬁlment. The countryside is becoming an ever 
more  attractive  place  for  this.  One  way  this  is 
reﬂected is in the growing number of alternative 
communities that have been set up, particularly 
in  rural  areas  of  eastern  Germany,  thanks  to  fa-
vourable land and property prices. So what form 
do  these  communities  take  and  can  they  be 
viewed as a homogeneous group?

Two  opposing  trends  exist  in  western  societies. 
On  one  hand,  people  (especially  single  people) 

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Over to You: Germany! 

More than 200 Communities 
in Germany

Working towards the Future 
at Klein Jasedow

The  Eurotopia  directory  (www.euroto-
pia.de)  currently  lists  some  200  alter-
native  communities  in  Germany,  all  of 
which  have  differing  objectives.  They 
are  involved  in  ecology,  culture,  social 
issues  and  training  and  run  activities 
in  these  fields,  often  related  to  agricul-
ture.  A  common  characteristic  is  their 
community-oriented 
lifestyle,  which 
extends beyond the small family group. 
Many of the communities are inter-con-
nected and have set up networks with a 
view to exchanging experience. For ex-
ample,  the  ‘Global  Ecovillage  Network’ 
(http://gen.ecovillage.org)  has  some 
15 000 members, also organised on a re-
gional basis. Through four-week courses 
provided  by  the  Network’s  ‘Ecovillage 
Design  Education’  training  programme, 
interested  parties  can  learn  the  funda-
mentals  of  how  to  make  such  villages 
economically  efficient  and  equitable 
or  how  to  maintain  good  neighbourly 
relations and a strong community spirit 
(www.gaiaeducation.org). 
Examples 
of  good  practice 
in-
clude  rules  for  decision-making  and 
the  common  use  of  machinery,  cars  or 
communal  areas.  That  such  skills  are 
indispensable  is  evidenced  by  the  fact 
that  only  about  10%  of  these  intended 
communities survive their first five years 
of existence.

in  these  areas 

In  1997  at  Klein  Jasedow  in  the  Federal 
State  of  Mecklenburg-Vorpommern,  a 
community,  which  had  originally  been 
established in Bavaria, opened a media-
production  company,  publishing  house 
and  concert  and  seminar  facility.  With 
financial  support  from  the  private  sec-
tor,  they  bought  three  dilapidated  resi-
dential houses, a former cultural centre, 
three  out-buildings  of  an  old  manor 
house,  as  well  as  land  for  building  and 
farming. Over time, the community also 
launched  charitable 
initiatives,  such 
as  the  ‘European  Academy  for  Healing 
Arts’,  which  developed  the 
‘Zukunftswerk  Klein  Jasedow’ 
regional 
(www.
network 
zukunftswerk-kleinjasedow.
de). Today, the community has 
an 
incredibly  diverse  range 
of  businesses  and  charitable 
projects.  One  example  is  the 
‘Sona’,  
gong  manufacturer, 
which  is  currently  in  its  start-
up  phase  and  consists  of 
a  gong-making  workshop 
instru-
producing  musical 
ments  for  use  in  sound  therapy.  The 
Oya  Media  Company  publishes  ‘Oya: 
Think  Differently,  Live  Differently’  a  bi-
monthly magazine on cultural and crea-
tive topics. The community also moved 
‘Kräutergarten  Pommerland’  or 
the 

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Permacultural gardening and eco-restoration in the ‘Steyerberg Garden’ eco-village.

Pomeranian  Herb  Garden  into  the  area 
and  has  been  producing  teas,  mainly 
using  its  own  organically-grown  herbs, 
since  2001.  Furthermore,  the  commu-
nity  has  a  recording  studio,  musical 
projects  and  a  sailing  boat  for  hire. 
The  ‘Maxwiesenhaus’  inter-generational 
project  provides  accommodation 
for 
young  and  old  people.  Many  more  ini-
tiatives  are  planned,  including  a  guest 
house  and  a  restaurant.  Apart  from 
this,  through  the  jobs  created  by  their 
activities and their ever-widening range 
of services, the charitable organisations 
are  revitalising  the  region  by  providing 
cultural  and  meeting  places,  as  well  as 
attracting tourists from elsewhere. 

Growing vegetables organically in the community.

The  latest  joint  project  saw  the  es-
tablishment  of  the  ‘Lassaner  People’s 
Power-Station  Corner’,  which  takes  the 
form  of  a  cooperative  with  the  long-
term objective of transforming the area 
into a bio-energy region. 

Life in the Steyerberg Garden

Since 1984, the Steyerberg Lebensgarten, 
or  ‘Life  Garden’,  on  Lake  Steinhuder,  in 
Lower Saxony, has transformed a former 
Nazi  forced-labour  camp,  which  had 
long  stood  empty,  into  an  ecological 
(www.lebensgarten.de). 
settlement 
This  community  has  also  strengthened 
rural  infrastructure  by  opening  archi-
tectural  and  photographic  studios  and 
various  medical  practices.  In  addition, 
the  construction  of  an 
independent 
school is currently at the planning stage. 
A seminar centre brings in visitors from 
outside  the  area,  while  cultural  events 
and  parties  are  well-attended  by  local 
people. Building projects, regular cook-
ery courses and herb gathering are not 
just opportunities to share experiences, 

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Permacultural gardening and eco-restoration in the ‘Steyerberg Garden’ eco-village.

Overcoming Prejudice 
through Openness

to  a  fruitful  exchange  of  ideas  and  the 
revitalisation of village life.

How  are  such  community  projects 
received  by  long-standing  village  resi-
dents?  A  research  study  (Kunze,  2009, 
see below) based on interviews and ob-
servations  from  participants,  collected 
over  a  number  of  years,  came  to  the 
following conclusions: At first, intended 
communities  that  do  not,  as  a  rule,  fol-
low  traditional  village  values  and  life-
styles,  encounter  irritation  and  scepti-
cism among local inhabitants. However, 
in  most  cases,  mistrust  and  prejudice 
can  be  overcome  by  openness  on  the 
part  of  the  community  and  a  desire 
to  work  together  to  benefit  the  local 
economy. Indeed, it is precisely the dif-
ferences  between  the  local  population 
and the newcomers that have given rise 

For  further  information,  please  see  the  NRN 
magazine ‘LandInForm’, on their website: http://
www.netzwerk-laendlicher-raum.de

For  further  information  on  the  research,  see: 
http://www.uni-muenster.de/de/

Further reading

Kunze,  Iris  (2009):  Social  innovations  for 
sustainable  ways  of  living  -  Intentional 
communities  and  Eco-villages  as  experi-
mental learning fields for socio-ecological 
sustainability. Ecotransfer-Verlag, Münster.

but  also  to  develop  friendships  and 
business  relationships,  between  long-
standing  residents  and  newcomers.  In 
this way, the ‘Lebensgarten’ has  become 
a local meeting place. 

Generating Economic and 
Social Proﬁts

The rural population is heavily involved 
in agriculture and is also ageing because 
of the drift of younger generations away 
from the countryside. However, the new 
communities  provide  villages  with  an 
influx  of  young,  well-trained  people. 
By using the possibilities offered by the 
Internet,  these  communities  provide 
rural  areas  with  independent,  globally-
connected  service  businesses  and  new 
job  opportunities. 
In  this  way,  they 
make a financially small but nonetheless 
important  contribution  to  revitalising 
regional economic networks. 

Along  with  concrete 
job  opportuni-
ties  and  infrastructural  improvements, 
these  communities  also  bring  other 
benefits and support. As well as provid-
ing general assistance for those living in 
the  neighbourhood,  they  also  organise 
events  for  young  people  and  help  to 
integrate older people into the commu-
nity, all of which fosters an atmosphere 
of trust and openness that goes beyond 
commercial  interests.  In  this  way,  the 
communities  often  improve  the  social 
fabric of rural areas that may otherwise 
have  become  dormitories  for  urban 
commuters. 

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Permacultural gardening and eco-restoration in the ‘Steyerberg Garden’ eco-village.

 
 
 
 
 
Over to You: Northern Ireland! 

© Philip Wallace on behalf of Ballynure and District Friendship Club

Ballynure Garden Village Fair, Co. Antrim. 

‘Future Proof your Village: 
A guide to Sustainable
Local Living’ was 
produced by the Northern
Ireland Rural Network 
following the work of 
a Thematic Working 
Group on Village Renewal 
and Development. 
Here, Aileen Donnelly  
summarises its findings. 

Future Proof your Village:  
A Guide to Sustainable  
Local Living 
T he  roll  out  of  the  Village  Renewal 

many  essentials  are  likely  to  be  a  thing  of  the 
past  and  may  require  significant  changes  in 
lifestyle. 

and Development funding stream 
in Northern Ireland resulted in the 
establishment  of  a  Thematic  Working 
Group (TWG) focusing on Village Renewal 
and Development. It incorporated a year-
long  commitment  from  a  group  drawn 
from all seven Local Action Groups (LAGs) 
and  included  six-village  study  visits  to 
share experiences. The final report of the 
group was summarised in the publication 
called ‘Future Proof your Village: A Guide 
to Sustainable Local Living’. 

There  has  never  been  a  better  time  to  revisit 
the  role  and  potential  of  the  rural  village  and 
its surroundings. The current economic down-
turn  has  affected  food  and  energy  prices,  as 
well  as  housing  costs,  making  it  harder  for 
many to cope effectively. Climate change and 
pressures  on  resources  mean  low  prices  on 

Regenerating  rural  villages  and  their  sur-
rounding  areas  by  improving  economic  pros-
pects  and  ‘quality  of  life’  is  one  of  the  central 
tenets  of  the  current  Northern  Ireland  Rural 
Development  Programme  (NIRDP)  2007-2013. 
Northern Ireland covers an area of some 1.4m 
hectares  and  has  a  total  population  of  1.7m 
(approximately  2.5%  of  the  UK  total).  Whilst 
around one-third of the population live in the 
Greater Belfast area, most of the remainder can 
be found in small towns, villages and more re-
mote rural areas.

According  to  the  NIRDP,  one  of  the  strengths 
of  rural  Northern  Ireland  is  “the  ability  and 
willingness  of  rural  dwellers  to  become  in-
volved in decisions about their future through 

21

identified as follows:  

(cid:116)(cid:1)

(cid:116)(cid:1)

(cid:116)(cid:1)

(cid:116)(cid:1)

 Quality of Life:  development of a vil-
lage where individuals and families can 
lead  healthy,  satisfying  lives  without 
unwarranted stress or strain; 

Sense  of  Place:  development  of  a 
village  that  has  character,  a  sense  of 
history, and makes the most of its land-
scape and countryside; 

A  Place  to  Live  and  Work:  a  village 
that allows more people to work near 
to where they live - by exploiting local 
opportunities  and  creating  suitable 
workplaces; 

A Shelter from the Storm: a village 
that  provides  more  independence 
from the peaks and troughs of global 
instability 
markets  and  political 
through,  for  example,  greater  self-
sufficiency  in  energy  and  food  pro-
duction – and of course a place that 
values and utilises local skills 

These defining factors all have one thing 
in common – the sense that rural villages 
are valued and ought to be nurtured. Their 
existence should be cherished, protected 
and safeguarded for future generations to 
enjoy. 

‘Future  Proof  Your  Village:  A  Guide  to 
Sustainable Local Living’ is available in both 
hard copy from the Rural Network or in soft 
copy format by downloading from the RNNI 
website www.ruralnetworkni.org.uk.

Aileen Donnelly
Northern Ireland Rural Network

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© Rural Development Council (RDC)

the  many  and  diverse  rural  community 
partnerships”.  On  that  basis,  one  of  the 
main  approaches  to  rural  development 
in  Northern  Ireland  stresses  that  “the 
communities  that  most  closely  experi-
ence  problems  or  identify  opportunities 
for  development  should  be  involved  in 
the  design  and  delivery  of  projects  and 
programmes  to  tackle  such  issues  and 
improve their quality of life”. 

An 
integrated,  village-level  approach 
was recommended, to assist villages and 
their surrounding areas to realise the po-
tential  of  their  economic,  social,  cultural 
and  environmental  resources.  The  NIRDP 
advocates  investment  in  the  social  and 
economic fabric of villages, through inte-
grated village plans. One of specific meas-
ures in Axis 3 supports people – through 
activities  –  to  promote  sustainable  vil-
lage  renewal  and  development  and  to 
enhance  the  sense  of  shared  ownership, 
social cohesion and inclusion. 

The  ‘Village  Renewal  and  Development’ 
measure  focuses  on  supporting  activity 
and capacity-building, enabling residents 
of villages and surrounding areas to create 
a vision for the area. This ensures the eco-
nomic, social, cultural and environmental 
potential  of  the  area  is  achieved  by  sup-
porting those actions for which the local 
community has ownership. It also ensures 
that an integrated action plan is devised, 
which  defines  the  role  of  the  village  and 
so develops the potential of the rural area. 

is  seen  as 

The  main  goal  of  an  integrated  village 
plan 
‘future-proofing’  and 
safeguarding the ability of people to con-
tinue to afford to live in rural villages. The 
publication ‘Future Proof Your Village’ in-
cludes sections on topics including land, 
energy, housing and settlement planning, 

Cushendall, Co. Antrim

economic  activity  at  local  level  and  col-
lective  community  effort. 
It  provides 
ideas  for  devising  a  village  plan  to  com-
plement  the  general  rural  development 
of the local area and the wider hinterland. 

The  three  cross-cutting  themes  within 
the  publication  are  energy,  cooperation 
and creative thinking. 

The  energy  theme  relates  to  how  people 
can  be  motivated  to  think  in  an  ‘energy-
eﬃcient’  way.    Energy  costs  inﬂuence  the 
aﬀordability  of  almost  everything  we  buy 
–  from  food  and  fuel  to  housing  materi-
als  and  medicines,  so  an  ‘energy  audit’  is 
a  useful  place  to  start  to  think  about  how 
village  planning  can  help  reduce  costs. 
Suggestions on how to do an ‘energy audit’ 
are provided in the document. There is evi-
dence  that  the  most  successful  way  of  re-
ducing energy and household costs, as well 
as contributing to tackling climate change, 
is to work at community level. And in terms 
of cooperation, it is clear that more can be 
achieved  by  communities  than  by  indi-
vidual  households  on  their  own.  The  third 
theme – ‘creative thinking’ – refers to eﬀorts 
that inspire imaginative ideas and the pub-
lication contains some creative  suggestions, 
in this regard. 

There are many different 
tools  and  approaches 
available to help people 
take  stock  of  village  de-
velopment  and  decide 
what should be retained 
and  what  should  be 
changed  –  as  well  as 
how 
those 
to  make 
changes.    But  some  of 
the  main  outcomes  of 
successful  village  de-
velopment  have  been 

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LEADER

in  Action

Local Action Groups (LAGs) are local public-
private partnerships who work to promote 
the LEADER ‘bottom-up’ approach to rural 
development in the EU.  This section features 
some of the many LAG-based activities and 
events to have taken place recently.

Scotland: Construction Skills  
Project Receives Boost 

Study tour to home-made ice cream producer, ‘Skriveru Saldejums’ 
as part of the International Food Conference, in Latvia.

Latvia: International Food  
Conference Hosted  
by Latvian Rural Forum
LEADER LAGs from 14 countries came together to discuss local food 

development and promotion, in Latvia, on 15-18 February, 2012. 
Some  100  delegates  attended  the  conference  entitled  ‘Local  Identity 
Product:  Sustainable  Support  Systems  for  Communities  in  Europe’,  which 
examined a range of themes relating to local food production, such as how 
global decisions aﬀect local actions; how development organisations can as-
sist local food production;  development and branding; and the potential for 
collaborative transnational projects. 
Participants also attended a food festival from the Aizkraukle district, as well 
as an international showcase of local products from all participating coun-
tries. A report is now being produced, which will provide recommendations 
for national and EU level policy on local food products. For further informa-
tion, see: www.vip.kompetences.lv or http://llf.partneribas.lv.  

Trainees  at  the  Cairngorms  Construction  Skills  Project 

were  given  a  boost  recently  when  they  were  visited 
by  Mike  Russell,  the  Cabinet  Secretary  for  ‘Education  and 
Lifelong Learning’ in the Scottish Government. 
The  project,  supported  by  the  Cairngorms  LEADER  LAG 
since  2010,  has  already  supported  22  trainees  in  securing 
skills  related  to  the  construction  industry.  Coordinated  by 
the Highland Small Communities Housing Trust, the project 
enables  trainees  to  spend  three  days  per  week  in  college 
and  two  days  per  week  on  placement,  either  with  a  local 
business  or  working  on  community  projects,  including 
improvements  to  a  village  church,  a  hospital  and  school 
gardens in the area. 
The project’s next community undertaking involves the dismantling of a traditional wooden highland 
cottage in Carrbridge, which will be relocated to the Highland Folk Museum in Kingussie, some 25km 
away, where it will be re-built, thereby safeguarding its future. 
Other  upcoming  activities  involve  the  construction  of  the  second  phase  of  an  aﬀordable  housing 
initiative at Ardgeal, starting with felling the timber in local forests. For further information, see: www.
cairngorms-leader.org, www.hscht.co.uk.

Stuart Dunbar, Marcus Reuttimann and 
Hamish Fenton, marking trees for Phase 2  
of new houses in Argael, Scotland.

23

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Participants brave the cold in Satakunta.

Promotional Poster for the Cooperate to  
Compete Conference.

Finland: LAGs meet  
with Transnational 
Partners to Discuss  
Local Food
A meeting between potential transnational partners to 

discuss joint-ideas for working together on local food 
projects - was held in Finland on 16-17 February, 2012. The 
meeting, hosted by four Finnish LAGs involved delegates 
from  LAGs  in  Sweden,  Cyprus,  Austria  and  Ireland,  all  of 
whom got together in the coastal region of Satakunta, in 
south-east Finland. The ﬁrst day of the meeting involved 
each LAG presenting their area and ideas for joint work-
ing, before collective discussions took place on possible 
collaborations. The second day was complemented by a series of ﬁeld trips to local food producers 
and food markets. The Finnish LAGs are already collaborating on the development of a network 
of local food producers, establishing improved links between local producers, local markets and 
restaurants and educating the public about the availability and use of local produce. Work is also 
ongoing  on  overcoming  supply  chain  problems.  International  collaboration  would  involve  the 
transfer of good practice between countries; developing links between food producers, so as to 
foster new collaborations; and ‘local food’ events featuring produce from partner countries. For 
further information, see: www.karhuseutu.fi.

Spain: Cooperate to Compete  
Conference Learns from LEADER
The LEADER model, and examples from both the current LEADER programme and LEADER+, 

were presented at the third Congress of Rural Development in Aragon, northern Spain, on 15-
17 February, 2012. Entitled ‘Cooperate to Compete’, the Congress was part of the 37th International 
Fair of Agricultural Machinery and was designed to reﬂect the importance of cooperation in ad-
dressing the challenges of competing in a global economy. In particular, the conference examined 
how cooperation can be used to improve competitiveness in territorial development, food chain 
and market development, resource access and use. One of the LEADER examples showcased was 
the Marca de Calidad Territorial (Calidad Rural Case Study), which demonstrated how a region cov-
ered by nine LAG areas can develop, and make use of a quality brand for a wide range of products 
and services. For further information, see: www.calidadterritorial.com.

Estonia: LEADER Supports Web Design Skills 
in Businesses 
Sixteen Estonian enterprises beneﬁtted from training in web design and marketing, thanks to 

the support of LEADER funds. Some €8 900 was granted to the Räpina Incubation Centre by 
the Borderlands LAG in south Estonia, which facilitates training for participants working together 
to achieve improved quality standards for web design and cross-marketing. 
The training was delivered between March and November 2011, during which participants worked 
with professional advisors to develop their own websites. These have all now been launched and 
have been ‘live’ since January 2012. 
Participants were delighted with the training they received. According to Irina Bobkova, a glass 
artist: “Now my activities are visible not only to local customers, but to international ones as well”. 
Another participant, Aime Klaa, a massage therapist added: “If you’re not on the internet, you don’t 
exist in the business world”. To view the websites, links can be accessed from the Räpina Incubation 
Centre’s own webpage: www.ariabi.ee. 

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LEADER in Action

Ireland: LAG Ensures Active Citizenship 
through Ageing with Confidence
An initiative to encourage ageing citizens to take a more active role in rural development has 

been undertaken by a LAG in County Clare, in the west of Ireland. The programme, entitled 
‘Ageing with Conﬁdence’ was launched in March, 2012 by the Clare Local Development Company. 
It is being run in seven communities across the region. 
Each programme aims to provide support for older residents in remote areas and is delivered over 
eight weekly sessions with a maximum of 15 participants, in each. Speaking about the project, 
Mary Farren, Community Development Oﬃcer explained that, as people age, their conﬁdence is 
aﬀected and this can reduce their quality of life: “Through this programme we are able to address 
issues relating to physical, mental and emotional health, whilst oﬀering practical solutions, such 
as information on local services,” she said.  Following the success of this project, the LAG is now 
looking at developing a ‘Programme on Active Citizenship for Older People’ in partnership with 
an organisation called ‘Age and Opportunity’ in Dublin. For further information, see: www.cldc.ie.

LEADER Transnational Cooperation  
Project Announces Photo  
Competition Winners

A selection  of  images  submitted  as  part  of  a  LAG 

photo  competition  on  geology,  are  now  ac-
cessible  for  public  viewing.  LAGs  from  Müllerthal  in 
Luxembourg  and  the  Brenz  region,  in  Germany  have 
been collaborating since April 2011, on a range of geol-
ogy related initiatives. Their most recent enterprise - a 
photographic  competition  entitled  ‘Stone  Kingdom’ 
-  was  designed  to  capture  the  landscapes  and  geo-
logical characteristics of the two areas. Some 150 im-
ages were submitted in Brenz region, while 77 photos 
were submitted in Müllerthal. The awards ceremonies 
in  both  countries  were  held  in  January  2012  and  the 
winning entries were exhibited in each community. A 
selection of the entries and the winning photographs 
can now be viewed on the LAG websites. Anette Pieter 
from the Müllerthal LAG said: “We had some surprising feedback from the participants of the com-
petition.  They  all  conﬁrmed  that  through  this  competition  they  had  come  to  understand  their 
local area better. And through the visual acuity gained through looking through the lens of the 
camera, they had discovered previously overlooked highlights”. To view the photos, please visit the 
LAG websites: www.mu.leader.lu and www.brenzregion.de.

Portugal: PROVE Project Launches Weekly 
Seasonal Produce Baskets 

An  exciting  Portuguese  project,  which  supplies  a  variety  of 

seasonal fruit and vegetables to some 1 500 customers every 
week is expanding to Lisbon, thanks to LEADER funds. The pro-
ject, developed with the support of 16 LAGs across Portugal, takes 
produce from some 100 farmers and supplies them to customers 
via 45 delivery points set up around Portugal. Now PROVE Lisbon, 
which began in February 2012, will see the Culinary Arts Centre in 
Santa Clara supplied-to-order with baskets of the local produce, 
every Tuesday. Working with the LAG - ADREPES (Associação para 
o Desenvolvimento Rural da Península de Setúbal), PROVE Lisbon 
will be sourcing local seasonal produce from a young farmer called Ana Marques situated in Várzea 
da Moita.  For further information, see: www.adrepes.pt or www.prove.com.pt.

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Winner in the ‘individuals’ category of the ‘Stone 
Kingdom’ photography competition - João Jago.

25

 
 
 
Rural Focus

EU rural development is a multi-faceted  
topic, incorporating a diverse range of  
issues from forestry to rural finance or  
‘new challenges’ like climate change.  
In this edition, we ‘focus’ our attention on 
cooperation between Local Action Groups 
(LAGs) and Fisheries Local Action Groups 
(FLAGs).

© ENRD Contact Point

LAG and FLAG territories often overlap. 

EU Funds on the Ground: 
Cooperation between 
LAGs and FLAGs  

T wo-thirds  of  Fisheries  Local  Action  Groups  (FLAGS) 

are  formally  cooperating  with  Local  Action  Groups 
(LAGs), so as to better ensure the effective implemen-
tation of community-led local development programmes in 
their shared territory. This is according to a recent study by 
the European Fisheries Area Network (FARNET).

Fisheries zones and rural areas often coincide and overlap, espe-
cially in the more remote rural coastal zones and around inland 
lakes  and  waterways.  Therefore,  cooperating  to  promote  more 
sustainable paths for development and to more effectively use 
various EU funds is becoming increasingly recognised as a highly 
productive approach to rural development. 

However, although the desire for cooperation clearly exists, dif-
fering  geographical  conditions  and  developmental  priorities 
preclude any ‘one size fits all’ organisational model for LAG/FLAG 
cooperation. 

For example, the recent FARNET study notes the following:

(cid:116)(cid:1)

(cid:116)(cid:1)

(cid:116)(cid:1)

In 40% of cases considered by the study, the FLAG and LAG are, 
in fact, the same organisation, with a single overarching strat-
egy. In this case, the speciﬁcities of the ﬁsheries part are taken 
care of by a separate sub-partnership. This model is especially 
important in Finland, Denmark, Germany and Latvia.

In  around  10%  of  cases,  both  FLAGs  and  LAGs  are  man-
aged  as  ‘sub-partnerships’  of  a  third  ‘accountable  body’, 
usually a local public organisation. Examples here include 
the FLAGs and LAGs managed by the local development 
agencies  in  Greece,  the  “Pays”  or  other  inter-municipal 
bodies in France and similar models in Portugal, Sweden 
and the Netherlands.

Some 12% of FLAGs have some sort of formal organisational 
relationship  with  the  LAG,  even  though  they  are  separate 
freestanding  organisations.  This  kind  of  solution  has  been 
used  by  countries  such  as  Finland  and  Ireland  to  deal 
with  the  fact  that  many  FLAG  areas  overlap  with  multiple 
LAGs    because  of  the  geographical  dispersion  of  fishing 
communities.    

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funded  by 
European  Agricultural  Fund 

LAGS and FLAGS – 
an overview
W hile  LAGs  are 

the 
for 
(EAFRD)  LEADER 
Rural  Development’s 
programme,  FLAGs  fall  under  the  remit  of 
Axis 4 of the European Fisheries Fund (EFF).  
Launched  in  2007  Axis  4  for  “the  sustain-
able  development  of  ﬁsheries  areas”,  fol-
lows similar principles to those of LEADER.  
The  average  budget  of  both  FLAGs  and 
LAGs is fairly similar (€3.2 million for FLAGs 
compared to €3.9 million for LAGs), though 
the variation in budget between FLAGs is 
greater  than  for  LAGs  (ranging  from  un-
der  €0.1  million  to  €17  million  per  group). 
Both  have 
local 
strategies,  with  projects  selected  by  local 
partnerships  made  up  of  a  balanced  mix 
of local stakeholders. However, the nature 
of  the  areas  and  the  composition  of  the 
partnerships can diﬀer. 

integrated  area-based 

Rural Focus

From  these  models  we  can  already  see  that  a  number 
of  components  –  geography,  institutional  infrastructure 
and strategic objectives – inform the model of coopera-
tion.    And  there  are  other  considerations  also  -  namely 
the  differing  goals  and  focus  of  Axis  4  of  the  European 
Fisheries  Fund  (EFF)  and  LEADER;  the  different  arrange-
ment of boundaries for FLAG and LAG areas (LAGs often 
cover a larger area than FLAGS, which are often concen-
trated along a coastline); and differences in terms of the 
key stakeholders for each programme (the setting up of 
project selection committees may help in this regard). 

However,  it  is  clear  that  in  the  future,  ways  in  which  the 
different  initiatives  interact  and  complement  each  other 
will become more important. In light of challenges such as 
climate change adaptation and economic instability, coop-
eration is a key tool for maximising the effectiveness of EU 
funds and for ensuring that rural and fishery areas develop 
in a holistic way. With both LEADER and EFF committed to 
fostering community-led local development, the challenge 
for  stakeholders  is  to  design  cooperation  in  such  a  way 
that  it  will  provide  additional  benefits  for  their  respective 
programmes, rather than dilute their central focus. Strategic 
and  organisational  cooperation,  which  explicitly  takes  ac-
count  of  the  particular  conditions  of  an  area  will  avoid  an 
ineffective ‘standardised’ approach and generate the syner-
gies that drive sustainable paths of development.

A fishing village in East Cork, Ireland. 

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EAFRD  
Projects

The European Agricultural Fund for Rural  
Development (EAFRD) co-finances an array  
of rural development projects, across the EU.  
In each issue, we select a few projects that  
we find interesting and inspiring!

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EAFRD Supports Traditional Bakery in Romania

The bakery used EAFRD co-financing to 
combine modern equipment with traditional 
baking methods.

A  small  bakery  business  in  Romania  used 
EAFRD support to modernise and expand its 
capacity. Now the ‘Agropan’ bakery provides 
fresh bread for over 85 000 people, as well as 
much needed employment for locals, in the 
counties of Cluj and Bistrita. 

The  project  centres  on  increasing  the  pro-
ductivity and competitiveness of the bakery, 
as well as expanding the range of products it 
can  oﬀer  to  local  communities.  At  the  same 
time, the bakery is increasing the geographi-
cal area to which it sells its products – which 
now includes almost all shops in the region.

Agropan  started  activities  in  1991  as  a 
small  bakery  run  by  Monika  Ersek.  It  was 
clear to Monika that expanding the busi-
ness would require crucial investment and 
so,  together  with  her  team,  she  decided 
to take a risk and restructure the business. 
Thanks  to  €900 000  received  in  EAFRD 
funding,  coupled  with  private  funding 
of  some  €1.7  million,  Agropan  was  able 
to  invest  in  such  activities  as  renovating  
the  factory,  modernising  equipment  and 
staff training, all of which improved both 
productivity and hygiene standards. 

And  Monica’s  enterprising  vision  paid 
off.  The  hard  work  of  her  team  and  the 
vital funding support they received have 
ensured  that  locals  now  enjoy  an  array 
of  produce,  including  traditionally  baked 
bread  and  other  high-quality  baked 
goods.  In  addition,  Agropan  has  created 
103  new  jobs  in  the  area  –  an  enormous 
boost for a region where unemployment 
is a major concern.  

To see a ‘video postcard’ of this project visit 
the media gallery on the ENRD website.  

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Black Pig from the Basque Country. 

Spanish and French LAGs Cooperate 
on Food-chain Business Development

A  transnational  cooperation  (TNC)  project,  located  in  the  cross-border  area 
of  the  Basque  and  Navarra  mountains,  is  supporting  cross-border  economic  
development projects on ‘food chains’. 

The  TNC  project,  between  the  French  ‘Montagne  Basque’  LAG  and  the 
Spanish ‘Montaňa de Navarra’ LAG, centres on cooperation, as a means of im-
proving overall professionalism and developing new opportunities for food- 
related industries. This includes the pooling of resources and joint initiatives 
on the promotion and marketing of products and quality services.
In  particular,  cooperation  between  the  LAGs  led  to  three  main  out-
comes:  the  development  of  a  strategy  for  the  Basque  pig  industry; 
support for cheese cooperatives experiencing processing difficulties; 
and  the  development  of  procedures  for  the  direct  sale  of  meat  be-
tween the two regions. 
The  project  spanned  seven  months  between  September  2010  and  March 
2011.  The total budget was €45 815

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Austrian LEADER ‘Cheese’ Project Creates Local Synergies 

EAFRD Projects

EAFRD  funding  has  enabled  a  LEADER 
project,  aimed  at  adding  value  to  locally-
produced cheese, to collaborate with tourist 
services  and  farmers  alike  –  improving  the 
local economy of a mountain area in Austria. 

Some  € 61186  in  EAFRD  support  has  ena-
bled  the  Bregenzer  cheese  route  project 
to engage in a range of activities, including 
organising  culinary  and  cultural  events  to 
promote the area, and training and promo-
tion  events  to  improve  business  planning 
and  marketing.  Some  180  partners  from 
diﬀerent sectors are involved in the project, 
which is helping to safeguard local farming 
methods,  employment  and  the  income  of 
1 200 farming families, as well as the ongo-
ing viability of 90 alpine dairies. In addition, 
turnover has increased signiﬁcantly through 
direct  marketing,  giving  local  producers 

more independence from mainstream milk 
buyers. The project is currently focused on 
increasing  ﬁnancial  viability  through  con-
tributions from three main partner groups: 
farmers,  tourism  and  the  public  sector.  A 

The Bregenzerwald region is famous for the quality of its cheese.

genuine  example  of  the  eﬀectiveness  of 
networking for creating synergies between 
farming, tourism and the local economy!

EAFRD Supports Family-Run Eco-Farm Project in Hungary

about beekeeping. As well as allowing the 
family to diversify the farm’s activities, the 
project  also  provides  jobs  for  the  whole 
family and helps to keep young people in 
the area. The farm also beneﬁts the entire 
local community by providing a new tour-
ist attraction, where visitors can enjoy fresh 
and  organic  food,  and  promote  organic 
food practices in the region. 

EAFRD funding has helped an organic fam-
ily farm in Dél-Alföldi region, in Hungary, to 
diversify  its  activity  to  include  eco-tourism 
services for groups and individuals alike. 

The  Héjja  family  have  been  practicing  or-
ganic  farming  since  1999,  and  now  run  a 
‘multi-functional’  facility  hosting  research 
projects  and  farm-to-school  programmes 
for  local  schools.  In  total,  some  €145  000, 
including  €66  000  in  EAFRD  funding  was 
invested  to  expand  farm  activity,  allow-
ing  for  the  building  of  a  new  agricultural 
exhibition  centre  to  showcase  traditional 
farming  activities  and  equipment,  an  ani-
mal petting area to educate children about 
farm animals; and a new 60m2 apiary, made 
of  traditional  materials,  to  teach  students 

Students learn about honey and organic produce at the 
popular ‘Farm to School’ programme at the eco-farm.

Belgian EAFRD Project Helps Prevent River Pollution

Municipalities  in  the  province  of  Limburg 
are  cooperating  with  farmers  to  create  and 
maintain natural buffer zones, which prevent 
river pollution from fertilisers and pesticides. 

Farming  activities 
in  the  Dommel  and 
Warmebeek  river  basin  have  resulted  in 
run-oﬀ  from  some  residues  from  fertilisers 
and  pesticides  seeping  into  the  river.  To 

combat  the  problem,  seven  municipalities 
in the province of Limburg, along with the 
Dommelvallei Water Management Agency, 
agreed  to  join  forces  with  local  farmers 
to  ﬁnd  a  way  to  protect  and  improve  wa-
ter  quality,  as  well  as  biodiversity.  Some 
€500  000  was  used  to  support  farmers  in 
the  creation  and  maintenance  of  buﬀer 
zones  between  ﬁelds  or  arable  land  and 

watercourses,  and  to  assist  them  in  com-
pleting  the  necessary  administrative  re-
quirements. The buﬀer zones oﬀer beneﬁts 
for  water  quality  and  biodiversity,  as  well 
as  improving  the  overall  management  of 
brook  banks.  In  addition,  the  project  fos-
tered a ‘spirit of cooperation’ between local 
authorities  and  farmers,  and  encouraged 
additional farmers to join the scheme. 

For more information on all of these projects and hundreds more, log on to the RDP database on the ENRD website: 
http://enrd.ec.europa.eu/policy-in-action/rdp_view/en/view_projects_en.cfm

29

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
In your  
Own words

In this section, we pass the microphone to 
you and hear what you have to say. For this 
issue, we spoke to you at the LEADER Event 
2012, held in Brussels on 27-28 April. 

 “I  just  hope  that  this  programme  will  change  in 
the  right  direction  and  that  means  the  bottom-
up   approach  must  be  delivered.  LEADER  cannot 
be  anymore  just  an  approach.  
It must be a programme.”

Peter Plaimer, from the LAG  
Regionalkooperation Unterkärnten, 
Austria, speaking at the LEADER 
Event 2012, about his hopes for 
LEADER in the future.

“Transnational  cooperation  is  important  to  us  because  meeting  other  LAGs, 
 exchanging ideas and sharing challenges, means we can work together to solve 
problems – or even ﬁnd someone with a solution already! Seeing our area through 
other people’s eyes builds conﬁdence in what we can achieve.” 

Malgorazata Sliczna, Stowarzyzenie Lokalna Group, Dzialnia Dolina Stobrawy, Poland, speaking 
about the importance of TNC, at the LEADER Event 2012. 

“FARNET  –  the  ﬁsheries  area’s  network  is  
actually  about  bringing  the  LEADER-type  
approach to a diﬀerent type of area with a 
diﬀerent set of problems, which is the ﬁsher-
ies areas… indirectly  proving that the LEADER 
 approach  works,  that 
it  is   eﬀective.  Because 
it  has  been  transferred 
now  to  another  situa-
tion and it still works.”

Urzula Budzich-Szukala 
FARNET, speaking about 
the effectiveness of LEADER  
during a panel discussion, at the LAG Event 2012. 

“I  don’t  apologise  for  having  a  system  with  sound  ﬁnancial 
management  practices  in  it  –  because  it  has  to  be  there.  
At the end of the day, we have to realise 
that  we  are  managing  somebody  else’s 
money.  We  are  managing  tax  payers’ 
money.  We  have  to  ensure  the  systems 
in place are robust enough to make sure 
that money is managed correctly.” 

Deirdre Kelly from the Irish Managing Authority, speaking about the 
necessity of administration and bureaucracy - during a panel discussion 
at the LEADER Event, 2012.

  “I  think  in  the  future  it  will  be 
important  that  new  projects  can 
be  developed  without  being  con-
strained by too much bureaucracy. 
I’m part of the ‘state system’ myself, 
but yet I see from looking in at how 
well a (LAG) can work – that it should not be constrained 
by  too  many  rules  and  regulations. There  has  to  be  in-
novation and they (LAGs) have to be allowed to develop 
without constraint.”

J. Hogan from SECAD in Ireland, speaking about the need to 
curb bureaucracy for those working with LEADER. 

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S p r i n g   /   S u m m e r   2 0 1 2

Connecting 
Rural Europe...

in 

chats 

Terje  Aus,  from  Saarte   Koostöökogu  
to  
Estonia, 
LAG 
Aivar  Niinemägi    from  the  PAIK  LAG 
in  Estonia  and  another  participant  at 
the LEADER Event 2012, in Brussels, on  
27-28 April.

Out&About

Smile, you’re on camera!  
Some of our favourite photos of all the  
networking activities you’ve been  
involved in, over the last few months.

Making a good 
point...

Alistair  Prior  (Scottish  Rural  Network) 
and  Huub  Kwantes  (Netherlands  Rural 
Network)  at  the  Finnish  NRN  Meeting,  
in May 2012.

And the third most important 
aspect of a good LDS is...

Judit Rácz of Hungary chats to Silvio Calice, from the Mailella Verde LAG in Italy discuss 
Local Development Strategies at the LEADER Event 2012.

31

Toasting success...

The winning team at the Müllerthal LAG ‘Stone Kingdom’ photo competition at the awards 
ceremony in January 2012, in Luxembourg. For more information, see page 29.

Sshh!

Giuseppe  Gargano  and  Annalisa 
Del  Prete,  from  the  Italian  NRN 
share  some  networking  and 
 cooperation 
the 
LEADER Event 2012.

secrets  at 

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s

Enjoying  
the LEADER spirit...

Hanna  Hirvonen,  designer  and  owner  of  Hanhi  Design,  one 
of  the  participants  and  receiver  of  LEADER  support,  at  the 
seminar on the role of the arts in rural development, held in 
Kaustinen, western Finland, in February 2012. 

32

MAGAZINE

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Managing Editor : Rob Peters - Head of Unit - European Network and monitoring of rural development policy, Agriculture and Rural Development Directorate-General, European Commission    
Authors: Jacqui Meskell, Angelo Strano, Adrian Neal  
Contributors: ENRD CP: Ana Nechita, Sabria Regragui Mazili, Michael Gregory, Alexandros Papakonstantinou, Mara Lai,  
Anna Augustyn, Fabio Cossu, Mark Redman, Kasia Panfil, Judit Törok, Donald Aquilina / Other: Amanda Bryan.
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Juha-Matti Markkola,  Hemma Burger-Scheidlin, Paula Briody, Beverley MacLean /  Other: Iris Kunze
LAG Contributors: Ilze Muceniece, Ronnie MacRae, Patricia Methven, Janna Mälkki, Räpina Rahvaleht, Mary Farren, Anette Peiter, Hester Rapp-van der Kooij, José Diogo
Layout and design: Ryoko Abe, Jacqui Meskell
Cover Photograph: © ENRD CP Elisabetta Savarese, Joyce McMullan, Zanda Dimanta, Juha-Matti Markkola, Cecile Schalenbourg, 
Anna Molnarova, Liane Linina, Lucía Martínez García-Denche, Michael Fischer, Dorine  Ruter

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ENRD MAGAZINE is published in 6 oﬃcial languages (EN, DE, FR, ES, IT, PL) and available in electronic format on the ENRD website.  
Manuscript ﬁnalised in June 2012.  
Original version is the English text.

© European Union, 2012.   
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