On 19 February 2025 LDnet organised a webinar with a lively discussion about the future shape of EU policies and the potential consequences for local communities in urban and rural areas. As decisionmakers at EU level are preparing to publish the draft legislation of the EU’s Multiannual Financial Framework for post-2027, numerous stakeholder groups express their concern and publish position papers and declarations aiming to ensure that the needs … Continue Reading
A stronger future for rural Europe: petition calls for urgent action on LEADER/CLLD
The debate about the post-2027 EU budget and policy priorities is continuing among serious concerns about the potential impact of funding for LEADER/CLLD and local development. ELARD has now launched a petition calling on the European Commission to reinforce LEADER/CLLD as a key pillar of EU rural policy and funding in the next multiannual financial framework (MFF) and to recognise it as a horizontal tool for territorial cohesion with a … Continue Reading
Events & activities
FUTURAL Policy Webinar 21 May 2025 – Smarter, stronger and more competitive rural areas
Smarter, stronger and more competitive rural areas: the way forward for EU policies (21 May 2025, 9.30-11.30 am CEST, online) Building on the European Local Innovation Forum (ELIF) held in November 2024 and following the RURACTIVE Forum in February 2025, the policy dialogue continue. As the EU Institutions … Continue Reading
LDnet Webinar (23.4.2025) – “EU Climate neutral cities by 2050, a serious challenge for European cities – Summary, presentations, recording
This event took place online on 23 April 2025 as part of the 2025 series of LDnet webinars. It was led by Maria João Filgueiras Rauch and was attended by some 40 participants. The summary of the proceedings is available below together with links to the presentations and the recording of the event. EU Climate … Continue Reading
LDnet Webinar (26.3.2025) – Empowering Local Communities for Smart and Sustainable Cultural Heritage – Summary, presentations, recording
This event took place online on 26 March 2025 as part of the 2025 series of LDnet webinars. It was led by Rosalba La Grotteria and Giuseppe Pace and was attended by some 50 participants. The summary of the proceedings is available below together with links to the presentations and the recording of the … Continue Reading
LDnet Webinar (19.2.2025) – “A new architecture of EU policies and funds post-2027 – what place for local development?” – Summary, presentations, recording
This event took place online on 19 February 2025 as part of the 2025 series of LDnet webinars. It was attended by more than 120 people. The summary of the proceedings is available below together with links to the presentations and the recording of the event. A new architecture of EU policies and funds … Continue Reading
LDnet Webinar (21.1.2025)- “Citizen participation: From Sherry Arnstein’s ladder to Co-everything” (21.1.2025) – Summary, presentations, recording
This was the first in a new 2025 series of LDnet webinars. It took place online on 21 January 2025 with three main speakers - Peter Ramsden, Marijana Sumpor, Giuseppe Pace - and 45 active participants. Like all LDnet webinars it was free and open to practitioners, researchers and policy … Continue Reading
LDnet webinars in 2025
LDnet is organising a series of events in the first half of 2025. They will offer an opportunity to practitioners, researchers and policy administrators to explore different aspects of participative approaches to local development (one of current priorities of LDnet - HERE) and the emerging challenges for … Continue Reading
Articles
Post-2027 EU funding for local development under threat
The debate has started about the next MFF of the EU. Although there are no formally proposals in the public domain, informal briefings have raised concerns about the possible implications of a new MFF archtecture for the local and regional level. These concerns stem mostly from two features highlighted in two … Continue reading
CoR: Programmes led by local action groups and communities must be reinforced and simplified
The Commission for Natural Resources (NAT) of the European Committee of the Regions (CoR) discussed at its meeting on 27 November 2024 a draft opinion on "How post-27 LEADER and CLLD programming could contribute to better implementation of the long-term vision for the EU’s rural areas" (Rapporteur: Thibaut … Continue reading
EU budget and place-based policies
The European Committee of the Regions (CoR) adopted an own initiative opinion in November 2024 on "EU budget and place-based policies: proposals for new design and delivery mechanisms in the MFF post-2027" (Rapporteur: Marie-Antoinette MAUPERTUIS, President of the Corsican Assembly). This opinion is part of a … Continue reading
Moving forward with LDnet
LDnet is entering a new phase in its work. We reconstituted ourselves in 2010 building on the success of the LEDA network which had been running for more than two decades. Since then we have been the only non-profit association committed to spreading the word that local development is the real deal. Local … Continue reading
Territorial development for the green transition: Harnessing the potential of rural communities
The Rural Pact is part of the European Commission’s Action Plan to achieve the long-term vision for the EU’s rural areas by 2040. The Pact aims to mobilise all stakeholders interested in rural areas (public authorities, civil society, businesses, researchers, and individuals) to contribute to achieving the … Continue reading
Smart Rurality: Reconciling Convergence with Growth and Wellbeing at Local Level?
Over the past decade, Smart Rurality has gained significant traction in Europe, with various declarations advocating for it as a pathway to just transition and rural revitalization. Despite its popularity, the concept remains somewhat ambiguous. A policy brief by Carla Lostrangio, Expert in Rural and … Continue reading
Artificial Intelligence, Collective Intelligence and Local Development
The knowledge of AI in relation to governance is at its infancy but there are signs that it could be of relevance and interest to participative approaches to local development and this makes it worth exploring it. We provide below some hints drawn from a growing pool of insights and examples of specific … Continue reading
Insights into LEADER evaluations
Evaluating LEADER under CAP presents a substantial challenge. It is not just about measuring LEADER’s contribution to the CAP’s Specific Objectives, but also uncovering the added value generated from the application of the ‘LEADER method’. To help find a path forward, the European Evaluation Helpdesk for … Continue reading
PUBLICATIONS
Slovenia monitors and evaluates the LEADER/CLLD delivery
This paper 'Slovenia monitors and evaluates the LEADER/CLLD delivery' by Dr Irma Potočnik Slavič offers an analysis of the processes that have had a key impact on rural development in Slovenia after independence in 1991. It is important for professionals dealing with rural development and, at the same time, … Continue reading
LEADER: Where it came from and what’s still in it (2nd edition)
LEADER has a long history and is still going strong. Robert Lukesch gave a talk in the final conference of the transnational project 'LEADER/CLLD: Our common future' on 4-6 November 2024, in Cheleiros/Mafra, Portugal, on the topic of 'LEADER: Where it came from and what’s still in it'. This was based on a … Continue reading
The road to the next multiannual financial framework
In a recent post we highlighted that the debate is starting about the next MFF of the EU and the theat it presents for local development in rural and urban areas. On 11 February 2025 the European Commission published a Communication "The road to the next multiannual financial framework" marking the first … Continue reading
FAMENET report: What does CLLD bring to coastal and fisheries communities around Europe?
This report, published in December 2024, follows a FAMENET survey of FLAGs and brings together information provided by around 150 FLAGs, as well as official information reported to the European Commission by national authorities managing the European Fisheries and Maritime Fund in 2014-2020 (EMFF). The … Continue reading
25 years of LEADER: What impacts?
The Austrian LAG Styrian Volcanic Land (Steirisches Vulkanland) wanted to know what its local development efforts stretching over a quarter of a century have been ultimately good for. This groundbreaking impact study was entrusted to an ÖAR team assisted by students from the Vienna University [1] Robert … Continue reading
Social innovation in rural areas
Rural areas depend on a wide range of economic engines for growth, as well as the quality of place to attract and retain people. Social innovation seeks new answers to social and environmental problems, using new solutions that improve the quality of life for individuals and communities. Social innovation can … Continue reading
Use of ‘factors of success’ in evaluation
According to Article 1 of the European Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/1475 "When evaluating their CAP Strategic Plans, Member States shall define evaluation questions and factors of success to assess the evaluation criteria of effectiveness, efficiency, relevance, coherence and Union added value … Continue reading
Just transition and the contribution of social economy
This report is a pledge made as an answer to the call for pledges published by the European Commission as part of the transition pathway on proximity and social economy. The involves a pledge led by “Le Labo de l’ESS” in France, in partnership with “Pour la Solidarité” in Belgium, the European Network of … Continue reading
Expert report: Delivering high quality CLLD in urban areas
LDnet was engaged by the European Urban Initiative (EUI) to prepare and deliver a capacity building event focused on CLLD which took place in Timisoara (Romania) in June 2023. It was organised by EUI with help from LDnet, with a team of moderators, expert in CLLD and EU urban initiatives. Community … Continue reading
LEADER and multi-funded CLLD
The EU CAP Network has published a highlights report of its workshop on LEADER and multi-funded CLLD which was held in Ljubljana 18-19 October 2023. The workshop provided the opportunity to exchange experiences and the main challenges for the implementation of multi-funded CLLD at the Managing Authority … Continue reading