Prepare AISBL

09/06/2026

Discover this 👇

Interested in gaining more insights from our latest Policy Lab?

Discover the video recordings, speaker presentations & photos of the Policy Lab on anchoring rural areas in the National and Regional Partnership Plans - link in the comments👇

The event fostered knowledge about three building blocks relevant for rural communities and territories in the NRPPs proposed for the 2028-2034 EU budget.



Préfet de Saône-et-Loire Maa- ja metsätalousministeriö Υπουργείο Περιβάλλοντος και Ενέργειας Regionaal- ja Põllumajandusministeerium Red Rural Nacional Rețeaua Rurală Națională - RRN Rede Rural Nacional Krajowa Sieć Obszarów Wiejskich+ Ministère de l'Agriculture, de l'Alimentation et de la Viticulture Lauku tīkls

08/06/2026

🌿 ERP Follow-Up: Putting Rural Civil Society in Position

On 23 June 2026, rural stakeholders, policymakers, and representatives of European institutions will gather in Brussels for a key follow-up event to the 6th European Rural Parliament.

📍 Scotland House, Brussels
🕚 11:00 – 15:00 CET

The event builds on the outcomes of the 6th European Rural Parliament and the Declaration of Inverurie & Call for Action, aiming to turn rural communities’ recommendations into concrete European policy action.

Discussions will focus on:
✅ Strengthening the role of organised rural civil society in Europe
✅ Ensuring rural voices are actively involved in decision-making processes
✅ Contributing to discussions on the future of the EU after 2027
✅ The next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF)
✅ The future of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and Cohesion Policy
✅ Building a stronger and more coordinated rural voice across Europe

At a time when many rural communities face demographic, economic and social challenges, it is more important than ever that rural citizens are not only heard but are actively shaping the policies that affect their future.

The expected outcome of the event is a shared strategy on how to organise and strengthen the rural voice in Europe and define the future role of the European Rural Parliament within it.

🔗 More information: https://europeanruralparliament.com/

05/06/2026

Join 👇👌

The second FUTURAL Policy Webinar will focus on the policy and ecosystem conditions that enable the uptake, scaling and transferability of rural innovation approaches emerging from Smart Villages and related initiatives. As part of the EU Rural Innovation Forum, and building on the outcomes of the F...

04/06/2026

RURBANIVE is joining the upcoming ELIF webinar “Right to Stay: Understanding the drivers of territorial cohesion”, organised within the European Local Innovation Forum initiative by project partner AEIDL.

The event brings together policymakers, regional actors, and local development practitioners to discuss the future of resilient and attractive communities across Europe.

🎤 Tina Katika from our partner, ISenseGroup, will represent the project during the roundtable discussion: “What the ‘Right to Stay’ might mean in practice”.

🗓️ 4 June 2026
🕙 10:00–11:30 CET
👉 Register here: https://tinyurl.com/eyby2uf6

04/06/2026

Some news from Granular - Giving Rural Actors Novel data and re-Useable tools

🌍 How can regions adapt and succeed in an increasingly uncertain world?

At the OECD Global Forum on Local Development 2026 in Maastricht, experts, policymakers and regional leaders highlighted a clear message: the future of regional development depends on stronger foresight, resilience, and place-based approaches.

As John Tomaney noted, strong regional identities are increasingly becoming a driver of long-term development.

From the integration of strategic foresight into 𝗦𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗦𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗲𝘀 to the growing recognition of territorial identity, industrial ecosystems, and cross-border collaboration, discussions reinforced the need for 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗿𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗴𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲.

Read more about it ➡️ https://bit.ly/3QbbHHi

These conversations strongly resonate with the objectives of the project. By improving access to granular territorial data and strengthening territorial intelligence, GRANULAR supports policymakers in making more informed, evidence-based decisions for sustainable regional and rural development.

📍 Next stop: Brussels, 24–25 June

Join the RUSTIK & GRANULAR Final Conference as we bring together policymakers, researchers and practitioners to explore:

🔮 Foresight
📊 Territorial Intelligence
🤝 Multi-level Collaboration

Together, we'll discuss how regions and rural areas can better anticipate change, strengthen resilience, and make smarter place-based decisions.

Registration available here: https://www.ruralgranular.eu/final-conference/

04/06/2026

📢 Less than one month to go until the RUSTIK & GRANULAR Final Conference!

Join us on 24–25 June in Brussels to explore how better data, evidence and place-based approaches can support stronger rural policies and rural proofing across Europe.

Over two days, the conference will bring together researchers, policymakers and local actors to discuss:

🔹 Rural territorial complexity and diversity
🔹 Innovative tools, indicators and frameworks
🔹 Rural proofing and place-based policymaking
🔹 Community-led approaches and rural transitions

The agenda is now available on our website, including keynote speakers, roundtables and networking sessions.

🗓️ Don’t miss the opportunity to be part of the conversation. Register now before spots fill up! ➡️ Final Conference - GRANULAR

03/06/2026

02/06/2026

⏰ 𝗢𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗸 𝘁𝗼 𝗴𝗼!

Join us for the online Policy Webinar: “𝘍𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘚𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘝𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘮𝘪𝘤 𝘶𝘱𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦: 𝘱𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘺 𝘱𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘸𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘳𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘭 𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯”

As part of the EU Rural Innovation Forum, this online session will bring together FUTURAL partners, sister projects, policy stakeholders and EU-level actors to exchange ideas, share lessons from Jonava, and discuss how policy can better support smart rural communities.

💡 𝗪𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗷𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻?
🔗 Register here: https://tinyurl.com/mt8sapfk

📄 𝗖𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗺𝗲?
Check out the full agenda: https://tinyurl.com/58b72mz4

29/05/2026

🌱 From Smart Villages to Systemic Uptake: Policy Pathways for Rural Innovation

How can successful rural innovation initiatives move beyond pilot projects and create lasting impact across Europe?

Join the upcoming Futural project policy webinar on 9 June 2026 (09:30–11:00 CEST) and explore how Smart Villages and rural innovation experiences can help shape the future of EU rural policy beyond 2027.

The webinar will discuss key policy pathways and governance frameworks that can strengthen rural innovation, including:
✅ Multi-level and partnership-based governance
✅ Financing for community-led innovation
✅ Innovation-friendly regulatory environments
✅ Digital skills and capacity building
✅ Rural innovation ecosystems and networks

The discussion will bring together experts, policymakers, researchers, rural practitioners, Local Action Groups, innovation organisations and representatives of EU-funded projects, including FUTURAL, RURACTIVE and SMART ERA.

If you are interested in rural development, territorial innovation, Smart Villages or the future of European rural policy, this event is for you.

📅 9 June 2026
🕤 09:30–11:00 CEST
💻 Online

👉 Register here: https://forms.gle/Wdp5WqvTYtzkdLaU6

🔗 More information: https://futural-project.eu/futural-2nd-policy-webinar/

Please feel free to share this invitation with colleagues and partners who may be interested.

25/05/2026

🌍 Rural Innovation in Practice

On 20 May 2026, PREPARE Partnership for Rural Europe organised an online Innovation Café connected to the Futural project.

The event brought together research, practical examples, governance approaches and future-oriented insights on how to support innovation in rural areas.

Participants had the opportunity to learn from several inspiring initiatives and projects, including NEXUS Community Creative Center from North Macedonia, PARI – PAths for Rural Innovation, SMART ERA, and FUTURAL.

The discussion showed that rural innovation is not only about technology. It is also about people, capacities, community spaces, cooperation, local leadership, governance and long-term support.

A key message from the event was clear: to develop innovative villages, places and territories, rural areas need place-tailored structures, programmes and funding. Good practices already exist across Europe — the next step is to replicate them, adapt them to local ecosystems and create the conditions for them to grow.

Thank you to all speakers and participants for sharing ideas, experiences and inspiration for the future of rural innovation.

Read more here:
👉 https://prepare-network.eu/index.php/2026/05/25/online-innovation-cafe-explored-rural-innovation-in-practice/