: On 17 January Eurostat released its “Rural Europe” publication (together with the “Urban Europe one), featuring subnational statistics with different territorial typologies and using intuitive visualisations, innovative data presentations and concise
: On 24 January, we celebrated the International Day of Education. One of the actions under the prosperous pillar of the Vision is to encourage education, training and employment opportunities for young people in rural
: “Looking across the world, rural communities tell us the story of a thousand of years of collaboration between nature and human society.*” And tells us how heritage is profoundly linked to understanding the opportunities in rural
: The EU is going through important demographic transition. This demographic transition brings challenges, as an ageing population, a shrinking working-age population and population decline more generally, as well as increasing regional disparities, including a growing urban-rural
: As announced in our December newsletter under the article on “A soil deal for Europe”, new funding opportunities have been opened to contribute to the Mission
: Read this article, by courtesy of William Parnell, freelance Policy Analyst and co-author of Proposals for an effective Rural Proofing model for Ireland, an independent report commissioned by the Irish Government to support the development of an effective rural proofing model for
: The EU CAP Network has released the three latest issues of their Policy Insight series featuring opportunities for support offered through the Common Agricultural
: The European Commission and the Joint Research Center (JRC) have launched the Startup Village Forum as part of the long-term vision for EU’s rural areas’ flagship action on research and
: The SHERPA annual conference 2023 took place on 31 January and 1st February, bringing together stakeholders from science, society, and policy from across
: We welcome FLIARA, GRASS CEILING and SWIFT, three recently launched projects funded by the European Union under Horizon Europe, to empower and enhance the role of women in rural life and agriculture through research, training, and policy
: The four-year transdisciplinary RUSTIK project is one of the two large projects funded under Horizon Europe to improve rural evidence, with the idea to enrich the Rural Observatory with new data and
: Although pay inequalities for equivalent jobs persist in the European Union, Eurostat reveals that in 2021 the gender gap in median net equivalent income is smaller in rural areas than in urban
: The European Commission's Directorate-General for Migration and Home Affairs (DG HOME) has launched a EUR 40 million call for proposals for project grants under the 2023-2025 AMIF Work Programme with deadline on 16
: ESPON, the EU-funded science programme that supports public authorities responsible for designing territorial policies, has announced 6 new calls for tenders under the ESPON 2030
: The EU CAP Network has announced the launch of the Agricultural and Rural Inspiration Awards (ARIA) 2023, to celebrate the positive impact of CAP-funded projects on agriculture, rural areas, and communities, offering a platform to share best practices and inspire
: LEADER France has published a new report entitled "LEADER: A European programme at the service of rural areas," emphasising the crucial role of LEADER in supporting rural communities in
: The DESIRA project has released a set of policy briefs that explore ways to address the challenges arising from digitalisation while promoting its positive effects in various
: The event, entitled “Acting for Rural Areas - Sharing Rural Pact Experiences and Learning for the Future”, will bring together EU, national, and regional politicians along with local authorities, social and economic stakeholders in a participatory event that reflects the rural vision’s
: The European Commission is launching a call for Regional Innovation Valleys (RIVs) to strengthen Europe's innovation ecosystems and address Europe's societal challenges, in particular those of digital and green
: The European Committee of the Regions has launched a call for Cohesion Local , encouraging local and regional authorities to share inspiring stories that highlight the added value of cohesion policy in
: The European Commission has adopted two proposals for Council recommendations as part of the European Year of Skills, to enhance digital education and skills
: The Rural Pact Conference “Acting for Rural Areas - Sharing Rural Pact Experiences and Learning for the Future” took place in Uppsala 3-4 May. Some 150 participants from institutions & NGOs of 27 Member States gathered on site at Ultuna, campus for the Swedish University of Agricultural
: Museum in the Village is a cultural programme designed for rural residents aged over 65, who often face limited accessibility to cultural activities. The initiative connects 13 museums & 13 villages across Portugal, bringing together museum professionals, artists, communities, and local
: The Bureau of the Committee of the Regions, gathering European Union's local and regional leaders, met in Kiruna, Sweden, in April. They have adopted the Kiruna Declaration, calling the EU institutions to take into account the specific challenges faced by remote areas in the EU
: On 11 May 2023, the Rural Pact Support Office hosted its first Good Practice webinar entitled “Fostering social entrepreneurship in rural areas through local action”. We are excited to announce that all the presentations and video recordings from this event have been uploaded to the event
: In 2021, over one quarter (26%) of the EU population aged 16–74 years reported to have above-basic overall digital skills. For people living in rural areas this share was 20%, while a higher share was recorded for people living in cities
: The Council of the European Union has adopted on 25 April new conclusions on “opportunities of the bioeconomy in the light of current challenges with special emphasis on rural
: The EU co-legislators agreed on the European Year of Skills on March 7, 2023. The initiative will provide a unique opportunity to push for a skills revolution in Europe, promoting upskilling and reskilling of all working-age people, regardless of their current skills