LDnet

Local Development Network

CAP Strategic Plans: Where is LEADER?

We are moving towards the adoption of the provisions regarding LEADER in the 2021-2027 period, but it is still difficult to place LEADER in the new architecture of CAP. The proposals of the European Commission regarding Community-led Local Development (CLLD) and LEADER were published in May/June 2018. The legislative process is in progress and a number of concerns have been … [Read more...]

RELOCAL project: early findings

Early findings from the RELOCAL EU Horizon 2020 research project ‘Resituating the local in cohesion and territorial development’: R E L O C A L  in brief: Departs from the premise that “place” can precondition the chances of local action in promoting fairness and well-being; Aims at identifying factors that favour local accessibility of European policies and funds; … [Read more...]

Social Innovation Community Yearbook

The Social Innovation Community (SIC) project was funded under the European Commission Horizon 2020 programme over a three year period, from 2016 to 2019. During these three years, SIC ran a series of on and offline activities - including practical place-based experimentation, learning, policy and research. The project started from the premise that more open innovation … [Read more...]

A powerful new contribution on the future of local development in the EU

A major new contribution by Yves Champetier has been published by AEIDL entitled Europe: a major player in the development of territories. In this Yves offers a personal account and an overview of the progress that has been made over the last 40 years and the challenges facing us today. In his article he concludes: A vast project that requires the involvement of everyone  My … [Read more...]

Re-thinking local development policies in times of polarisation

This book, Regional and Local Development in Times of Polarisation, edited by Thilo Lang and Franziska Görmar, contains contributions from 32 academics on “re-thinking spatial policies in Europe”. It is part of the New Geographies of Europe series published by Palgrave. The book takes its starting point by considering a threefold polarisation within the EU: an increasing … [Read more...]

Workshop on “New Challenges of Decentralisation”: Call for papers

Decentralisation has been a main trend in good governance for many decades, spreading also to the developing and transition countries worldwide. Many territorial reforms have been implemented under the umbrella of principle of subsidiarity and decentralisation, but recently centralisation attempts have emerged highlighting that decentralisation has crucial preconditions and … [Read more...]

Internships with LDnet

There are opportunities for internships with LDnet for people with studies or interests related to local development. We have offered such internships, jointly with other Brussels-based organisations, in the last two years with students from French and German universities. We expect to be able to offer one or two internships in 2019. We follow a flexible format and an … [Read more...]

Local knowledge-based development

In this paper Professor Ilona Pálné Kovács outlines the theoretical frameworks of knowledge-based governance and development, examines the role of local governments as important actors in local development, and examines the scope for place-based development in a centralised governance context. To read the full paper, including abstract and literature, click … [Read more...]

LEADER in the witness box: Hearing in the European Parliament

On 22 November 2018, the AGRI Committee, together with the CONT (Budgetary Control) Committee of the European Parliament held a Public Hearing on LEADER experiences - lessons learned and effectiveness of EU funds for rural development. The aim was to evaluate how the LEADER programme had worked over the past, what its added value was and how it could be improved in the … [Read more...]

CLLD/Leader: Past, present and future

In this wide-ranging paper Robert Lukesch goes back to the precursors of Leader and looks at each stage of its evolution, highlighting the complex principles behind this approach (“more than the seven features and usual clichés”) and discussing success factors. He takes us to the current CLLD/Leader period and looks at what lies ahead. He debates whether CLLD/Leader has become … [Read more...]