Entrepreneurship in declining rural areas
The workshop has now ended. You can now acess the conclusions and the key learning on this follow-up article.
What it will be about
Entrepreneurship is an important component of place reinvention and economic diversification strategies designed to stabilise or revert population trends in rural areas experiencing population decline. A twofold objective is pursued: promoting individual entrepreneurial initiatives, and maximising their chances of having a lasting positive effect on local economic prosperity.
Multiple parallel challenges often need to be addressed, e.g. limited local resources, a lack of entrepreneurial traditions, small labour markets and long distances to higher education and professional training institutions. At the same time, these areas often have unique assets such as natural resources, high quality living environments and tightly knit local communities.
What to expect
This will be a truly interactive workshop. Participants will be invited to jointly reflect on the design on effective methods to promote entrepreneurship in rural areas. We will challenge them to specify their strategic medium-term objectives, and make proposals on how the path to get there. These exchanges will be inspired by a series a keynote speeches and presentations of good practices.
The workshop will be divided in four sessions:
- Presentation on key policy developments at EU and national levels.
- A focus on challenges and opportunities for youth entrepreneurship. How can policies help youth see opportunities in areas where others only see obstacles? How does one capitalise on young people’s energy and commitment to create lasting change?
- A deep dive into gender dimensions of rural entrepreneurship. Do rural areas make full use of the entrepreneurial potential of women? What obstacles still persist? How can a gender perspective on entrepreneurship make a difference?
- Exploring digital opportunities for rural entrepreneurship. What is needed to capitalise on them? Could digital tools help rural entrepreneurs recruit the talents they need to transform individual initiative into robust businesses?
Practical information
To help you prepare for your upcoming trip to Burgos, we have prepared for you a guide with practical information.
You will learn all you need to know about the venue, how to get there and the accommodations we recommend.
What is the Policy Learning Platform?
The Policy Learning Platform is the second pillar of the Interreg Europe programme. It aims to facilitate policy learning and the exchange of knowledge among regional and local authorities in Europe.
The platform provides a space for policymakers to share good practices, exchange experiences and work together to improve policies at the regional and local levels.
The platform provides information on various topics through publications, events and direct communication with experts. Community members can use services for free if they need tailored advice on policy challenges.
