The ‘Point Vert’ experience - test areas for beginners in market gardening

The Local Action Group (LAG) Pays des Condruses in Belgium offers young entrepreneurs free access to land (test areas between 0.1 ha and 1 ha) for a period of 18 months, and provides training and advice on organic market gardening or horticulture. The initiative has proven efficient both in terms of socio-economic performance through the successful set up of organic farm businesses, and in terms of local development, since it enables young talents to remain in the area.

Find out more about this project here.

The European Commission has published a list of potential agricultural practices that eco-schemes could support in the future Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). Part of the CAP reform, eco-schemes are a new instrument designed to reward farmers who choose to go further in terms of environmental care and climate action. This list provides farmers, administrations, scientists and stakeholders a basis for further discussion on making the best use of this new instrument during the process for establishing the CAP Strategic Plans. Find out more information and browse the background documents in the press release.

The European Commission launched an online public consultation on the development of legally binding EU nature restoration targets. As a key element of the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 and the European Green Deal, restoring Europe's damaged ecosystems will help to increase biodiversity, mitigate and adapt to climate change, and prevent and reduce the impacts of natural disasters. The consultation feedback period is open until 05 April 2021.

The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, took part in the ‘One Planet Summit' for biodiversity and gave a speech on sustainable agriculture, biodiversity and the fight against climate change. She underlined the role of nature and sustainable agriculture in achieving the goals of the European Green Deal, which seeks to make Europe the first climate neutral continent by 2050. In her speech, President Ursula von der Leyen emphasised that "2021 will be the year when the world turns over a new leaf for our planet”. Watch the speech here, read it in full here and learn more about the Commission's work to protect our planet's biodiversity here.

Watch the video highlights of the 2020 edition of the annual EU Agricultural Outlook conference, organised by the European Commission on 16 and 17 December 2020. All the conference presentations are now online featuring: Lessons learnt from the crisis - vulnerabilities and opportunities for the EU agri-food sector; A green recovery for the EU agricultural sector; Farmers of the future - foresight study results; and much more.

Eurostat's publication provides a selection of recent, topical data about agriculture, forestry and fisheries, and follows the wider farm to fork chain for the 27 EU Member States. The publication includes facts and figures about farms, farmers, farm production and prices, the economic and resource performance of the agricultural sector, forestry and fisheries activities, food and beverages processing, distribution and the trade in agricultural goods. 

The submission period for the third edition of the ENRD Rural Inspiration Awards closed on 18 January 2021 and we have received 125 entries from 22 Member States. Experts will now assess the entries and  shortlist five finalists per thematic category: Green Futures, Digital Futures, Resilient Futures and Socially Inclusive Futures. Once the shortlisted projects are announced on-line, public voting for the Popular Vote award will be open. The awards will be presented during the ENRD ‘Rural Vision Week’. Follow the timeline here and stay tuned for more info! 

The European Association for Information on Local Development (AEIDL) launched an online survey on ‘Supporting gender equality in the economy through Gender-Responsive Public Procurement’ (GRPP), open for feedback until 1 February 2021. The aim is to identify good practices at EU, national and regional/local levels, including in tendering procedures of the European Structural and Investment Funds framework. The survey is part of a study on GRPP that AEIDL is carrying out on behalf of the European Institute for Gender Equality (EIGE) and the overall objective is to contribute to a more equal distribution of economic resources through public procurement procedures that integrate gender aspects.

The economic impacts of soil salinisation exceeds half a billion Euro a year in Europe alone – and the cost is projected to rise with the tides, according to a baseline report by the Interreg North Sea Region project SalFar. Facing the unprecedented risks of rising sea levels, SalFar explores the options for farming and food production under increasingly saline conditions. The report points out the urgent need to strengthen systems and mechanisms for monitoring soil salinity and associated risks. For more complementary info, check also the EIP Focus Group dedicated to soil salinisation here.

The Vision paper published by the RURITAGE project (Horizon2020) summarises how challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic in rural areas can be turned into opportunities for sustainable growth in the future. The major conclusions of the Vision paper are recommendations focusing on six capitals (natural, cultural, social, human, built, and financial). The document identifies the overarching areas of action and includes recommendations for the EU, national/regional and local level.

The European Commission launched the European Climate Pact, an EU-wide initiative inviting people, communities and organisations to participate in climate action and build a greener Europe. As part of the European Green Deal, the Climate Pact offers a space for everyone to share information, debate and act on the climate crisis, and to be part of an ever-growing European climate movement. People and organisations are invited to become Climate Pact Ambassadors, leading by example and engaging their communities in climate action.

In recent years, protest voting, voting for populist parties and, specifically for Europe, votes for parties opposed to European integration, have increased substantially. While most of the existing research looked at voters’ characteristics, a new paper published by the European Commission's Directorate General for Urban and Regional Policies (DG REGIO) focuses instead on the urban-rural divide. The paper tries to explain why cities – and urban areas in general - in Europe tend to vote less for Eurosceptic parties. 

The ENRD CP office in Brussels remains closed until further notice due to the COVID-19 outbreak but ENRD activities are all going ahead using digital approaches adapted to the new context. The team is as busy as ever networking, organising and delivering virtual events, producing publications and keeping you abreast of the latest news. We invite you to keep an eye on the Upcoming Events section of our website, where we list relevant forthcoming events. Feel free to contact us at any time!

The meeting focused on effective approaches to support the transition to fully sustainable practices in agriculture and forestry, analysing how the future CAP could best be used to upscale them.

Presentations from the day are available on the event page.

The 6th ENRD LEADER Thematic Lab explored the role of LEADER and LAGs in building and supporting local community resilience and sustainability. The discussion considered LEADER design under the future CAP Strategic Plans, as well as approaches during the transition period to the new CAP. Browse the revamped LEADER Resources section of ENRD website for more interesting materials.

In this highlights report you can read more about the progress so far of the Foresight exercise which will be one important building block for the preparation of the EU Long-Term Vision for Rural Areas. You can also browse through of a number of related stakheholder initiatives happening in many parts of Europe.

The highlights report of the 2nd meeting of the ENRD Thematic Group on the European Green Deal and Rural Areas provides an overview of success factors and conditions for upscaling sustainable practices in agriculture and forestry, and discussed potential future CAP interventions.

The report presents possible solutions as well as concrete ideas regarding the drafting of the CSP intervention strategy in several EU Member States. This webinar focused particularly on the Specific Objectives 1 -'Fair farm income', 4 -'Climate change action', and 8 -'Vibrant rural areas'.

The report of the 18th National Rural Networks meeting focuses on lessons learned for networking from the COVID-19 period, including new practices, particularly digital alternatives, and means for engaging stakeholders.