27. June, 2019.

The ENSURE project overview

The ENSURE project overview

The project “European Network for the Cohesion and Solidarity in Rural Areas – ENSURE”, is being concluded in July 2019. The 6th international partnership meeting took place from 5th to 7th June in Slovenska Bistrica (Slovenia). The 3-day event was entitled “Evaluation and setting of the ENSURE Network NGO”.

On the first day of the event partners met to recall and discuss all the international events that were carried out as part of the ENSURE project, which started in July 2017. The opening partnership meeting (kick-off) was held in October 2017 in Slovenska Bistrica, the following entitled “Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) from a new perspective” took place in April 2018 in Motovun (Croatia), followed by the June meeting entitled “Participatory democracy in local development stategies” which was held in Madrid (Spain). The latest international event in 2018 entitled “Going local vs. going European” was held in October in Pesaro, Italy. The 5th project event “Impacting the Young Generation” took place this year in Volos (Greece), and the above-mentioned closing event was held in Slovenska Bistrica (Slovenia). At the end of the opening day, partners discussed local events aimed to promote the project that they carried out in their local surroundings during the project implementation, as well as the possibilities for further cooperation in projects to come. A project brochure was also presented as one of the project results.

The key event of the 6th international meeting took place on Thursday, June 6, in the Slovenska Bistrica Castle, the venue of the international conference entitled “The Challenges of the EU and Future of Rural Areas after 2020”. In the opening part of the event, Member of the European Parliament (MEP) Mr. Franc Bogovič introduced the concept of Smart villages in Europe and dr. Franco Sotte of the University of Marche (Italy) presented key emphasis and open issues of the common agricultural policy after 2020. During the second part of the event, a round table was held on the main topic. The participants were as follows: MEP Franc Bogovič, State Secretary at the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food of the Republic of Slovenia, mag. Tanja Strniša, professor Emeritus of the University of Ljubljana and University of Bologna ddr. Rudi Rizman, dr. Dimitrios Antoniadis from the University of Thessaly, Greece, and President of the Slovene rural development society Aleš Zidar. The speakers emphasied that the countryside in its centuries-old development has represented and still represents one of the key development points of the common European development. Nevertheless, due to the feeling of inaction, euroscepticism appears as one of the challenges even in the countryside and will require great attention in the future. There is no doubt that the challenges in field of rural development exist, but where there is a will there are also solutions.

After the round table, the project partners enjoyed the tour around the Slovenska Bistrica Castle and took a stroll around the town centre. At the dinner they were presented with local folklore and cultural heritage.

On the last day of the event, the project partners joined the students of the Higschool of Slovenska Bistrica, with whom they participated in two workshops – one dedicated to the challenges of the EU, led by ddr. Rudi Rizman, and the other, which was dedicated to civic participation in the EU, led by dr. Malgorzata Wochowska.

The project partners, who contributed to the project through their productive cooperation, are:

Razvojno informacijski center Slovenska Bistrica (the lead partner) (Slovenia)
Municipality Trudovets (Bulgaria)
Lokalna akcijska grupa Središnja Istra (Croatia)
Hranicka rozvojova agentura (the Czech Republic)
University of Thessaly (Greece)
Kistarcsa Cultural Association (Hungary)
Associazione Alessandro Bartola (Italy)
Ligatne Municipality (Latvia)
Municipality of Kolašin (Montenegro)
Gmina Lask (Poland)
Consiliul Judetean Alba (Romania)
European Affairs Fund of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina (Serbia)
Federacion de Municipios de Madrid (Spain) and
Futuro Digitale (Italy).

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The project is implemented under the Europe for Citizens program financed by the European Union.

5. June, 2019.

ENSURE project: 6th International Partner Meeting “Evaluation and setting up the ENSURE Network NGO”

ENSURE project: 6th International Partner Meeting “Evaluation and setting up the ENSURE Network NGO”

The project “European Network for the Cohesion and Solidarity in Rural Areas – ENSURE”, which started in 2017, is now coming to an end. RIC Slovenska Bistriac – lead partner on the project is hosting the last project event, the 6th partnership meeting entitled “Evaluation and setting up the ENSURE Network NGO”, which is taking place between 5th and 7th June in Slovenska Bistrica.
During the three-day event, attended by representatives from 13 European countries, partners will focus on the issues that represent main thread of the entire project: How to get to know the European union better, how to make it closer to a wider circle of citizens, and how to understand the issues and challenges occurring in Europe nowadays. The project has especially focused on the question of bringing Europe and the European Union closer to the countryside, that is, what challenges does the European countryside face? We will be looking for answers to these questions at this partner meeting as well.

Follow us on facebook.com/ensurenetwork to learn more about the event and the project itself!
The project is implemented under the Europe for Citizens program financed by the European Union.

3. June, 2019.

INSIGHTS – INSIGHTS PARTNERS PRESENT PROJECT RESULTS AT THE CLOSING CONFERENCE IN LITIJA, SLOVENIA

INSIGHTS – INSIGHTS PARTNERS PRESENT PROJECT RESULTS AT THE CLOSING CONFERENCE IN LITIJA, SLOVENIA

Partners from Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Germany, Hungary, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia and Slovenia gathered at the closing conference, 6th Steering Committee meeting and 8th thematic meeting. The meeting took place in Litija, Slovenia on 27–29 May 2019 and was hosted by the Development Centre of the Heart of Slovenia.

At the closing conference, which took place on 28 May 2019, we presented the 30-month project INSiGHTS – Integrated Slow, Green and Healthy Tourism Strategies – which started on January 1, 2017, and ends in June 2019. The purpose of the project is to promote the sustainable use of natural resources and cultural heritage with the goal of developing sustainable and green tourism. 13 partners from the countries of Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Germany, Romania, Slovakia, Serbia and Slovenia have developed tourist strategies that will not only make the regions more attractive to tourists but will also protect its natural and cultural resources. Within the framework of the final conference, three round tables were held on the results of the project. Experts from the field of tourism have presented examples of good practices and key development guidelines within individual thematic sections.

At the roundtable discussions and good practice presentations, it was concluded that the Danube regions have outstanding natural and cultural resources that need to be protected. They also have great potential to become attractive destinations for the fast-growing trend of slow, green and healthy tourism. 13 partners from Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Hungary, Germany, Romania, Slovakia, Serbia and Slovenia have been linked to find the right solutions to make the regions more attractive to tourists. Within the framework of the INSiGHTS project, the creation of eight tourism strategies for green and healthy tourism to the destinations helped to make the region not only more attractive to tourists but also to protect its natural and cultural resources. The tourism strategies for green and healthy tourism are adaptable throughout the Danube Region.