ASSET (Action to Strengthen Small European Towns)
Project Description
ANNEX D: INTERREG
Following several meetings in 2008 with potential partners of a Pan-European bid to INTERREG IVC, the working hypothesis of the scope of the aims of a bid was:
"Small towns have demand for energy and potential in their hinterland for production of renewable energy (e.g. Güssing).
The character of the landscape, its biodiversity and built heritage are key cultural elements in tourism and economic activity.
Adverse changes resulting from energy production (crops, timber, wind turbines, hydro, waste conversion, hydroelectricity brown coal and other mining ) need to be addressed.
The competition for agricultural and forestry land posed by renewable energy and threats to locally sourced food and timber processes also requires to be examined in terms of local and regional self sufficiency – local markets for local products, to avoid excessive transportation energy and costs in the context of climate change.
These are sustainability considerations.
The involvement of local citizens is essential to policy formulation and the implementation process. Small towns and rural areas cannot be viewed in isolation from each other and from the dominant larger urban areas in spatial policy terms.
Support from regional agencies to small towns and rural areas is needed to enable the municipalities and civic society to engage in a vision for the future of energy autonomy and economic self-sufficiency.
Small towns are ideal venues to carry out new projects and experiences in renewable energies because they have a critical density of an urban area, within a rural setting that offers potential for sources of renewable energy to be harvested using traditional techniques from the landscape in close vicinity.
The ability of small rural towns to achieve and sustain competitiveness in economic terms may rely on retaining the entrepreneurial spirit of younger people. For that, key issues are rewarding jobs, affordable homes, social and retail facilities and transport choices within the local area of each town.
Policies and action aimed at restructuring small towns will be examined, with the aim of positioning them as the backbone of rural regions through enhancing the attractiveness of the rural territory in support of socio-economic development and through sustainable tourism by protecting cultural heritage and landscape.”
The proposal to INTERREG IVC was not put forward. However, several of the potential partners, including Malta as lead partner, submitted a proposal to INTERREG IVB Mediterranean – the TOWNES project: “Towns networking with small rural areas in the Med” (programme reference 1236093550).
Partners are:
Malta _ Gharb Local Council, Gozo – Lead Partner
Malta - (Genista Research Foundation)
Spain - Puerto Lumbreras Local Council, Region of Murcia,
Spain - Diputación Provincial de Granada, Region of Andalucia
Spain - SODOVEGA SA, Region of Andalucia
Italy – ANDRI (Italian Association of Rural Districts), Lazio Region
Italy - The GAL (Local Action Group)”Molise Verso il 2000”
Italy - Local Action Group A.L.L.BA, Basilicata
Italy – University of Calabria
Greece – University of Patras, Anatoliki, Makedonia, Thraki
Greece – Efxini Poli, Attiki
Greece - National Technical University Of Athens (NTUA)
Greece - NATURE INNOVATIONS, Dytiki Ellada
Portugal – Social Development Institute (IDS) Lisbon
Portugal – Municipality of Arraiolos, Alentejo
Cyprus - Development Company Paphos Aphrodite Ltd
Non-Med EU Partner – ASSET
Non EU and Non-IPA Partner – ECOVAST Croatia.
The TOWNES project will target small towns and village clusters in rural territories by setting up and developing transnational strategies for institutional networks by:
The socioeconomic decline of rural territories is a worldwide phenomenon, but with stronger presence in developed countries. The gap between urban and rural areas, deepens more and more: rural areas characterized by poor infrastructure and access to services, are suffering from marginalization from the global economic scene and strong competition coming out from
more innovative and performing areas. As a result, certain trends appear in these areas, with the most important of them being
depopulation trends and incapability to build up a development perspective based on their own comparative advantages
Resting on the valuable resources that rural areas dispose (natural resources, cultural resources, landscape resources, agro-food, diffusion of craftsmanship of quality) the project will focus on strengthening the role of rural areas in the regional economies and improving their competitive position through the identification, evaluation and transfer of best practices in four main policy decision areas, linked to the diffusion of innovation and knowledge.
(i) to improve the quality of life and income opportunities of rural population
(ii) to regenerate values and ways of living that traditionally belong to these territories. New sustainable development perspectives for rural areas and territories will be explored, that aim at a more efficient and effective economic development, strengthening their competitive position and supporting local income, while keeping in track with sustainability principles. Emphasis will be placed on citizen engagement in policy decisions
Rural areas characterized by poor infrastructure and access to services, are suffering from marginalization from the global economic scene and strong competition coming out from more innovative and performing areas, consequently deepening the gap between urban and rural areas. As a result, certain trends appear in these areas, with the most important of them being depopulation trends and incapability to build up a development perspective based on their own comparative advantages e.g. natural resources, cultural heritage, landscape, traditional food, energy production. Moreover, they have to deal with certain risks emerging from: unsustainable use of local resources e.g. intensification of agricultural land, over-exploitation of water resources; poor access to infrastructure e.g. transport networks, telecommunication networks, energy networks; policy decisions deteriorating rural environment e.g. location of polluting activities in their territory.
The project TOWNES will target small towns and village clusters in rural territories by setting up and developing transnational strategies for institutional networks by:
The methodological approach will focus on the share and transfer of best practices within 4 macro-areas addressing innovation and knowledge aspects of rural areas: linkages with tows/urban areas; economic assets; service hubs for innovation and knowledge; governance/advocacy.
The project TOWNES will focus on national dimensions however it will also target transnational dimensions to help small towns and rural villages to lower the gap and increase competition and sustainability. The project will focus the below:
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