NetworX - Inspiring Rural Europe
NetworX’ aimed to recognise the value of networking for rural development, demonstrate the results of the past ten years of rural networking and proactively look at its future. An interactive format gave participants plenty of space and time for informal discussions, inspiring conversations and sharing of experiences, both within the event strands and in the Marketplace, where 41 stands showed the breadth of rural networking across the EU and with neighbouring countries.
The event was opened by Phil Hogan, European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, and Chief Spokesperson for the European Commission, Margaritis Schinas, and the participants were able to follow six strands containing 20 interactive working sessions.
Over 400 rural stakeholders from all over Europe gathered to discuss the six strands:
- the role of networking for rural policy;
- how to build / transform a network;
- networking for innovation in agriculture and rural areas;
- LEADER/CLLD networking;
- networking for evaluation; and
- promoting effective stakeholder engagement in networks.
The event also hosted the final ceremony of the Rural Inspiration Awards, where voters were able to select their ‘popular vote’ from 25 finalists, 5 projects being awarded the winner’s prize for specific project categories.
Overall, the event identified the most successful aspects of rural development networking which should be strengthened in the future and inspired participants from all over Europe to build on their achievements and engage even more in networking. The concluding message from the event was given by Deputy Director-General for Agriculture and Rural Development, Mihail Dumitru.
https://enrd.ec.europa.eu/news-events/events/networx-inspiring-rural-europe_en