Source: ENRD, 2020 Smart Villages and Rural Digital Transformation is the latest Briefing developed by the European Network for Rural Development to assist Managing Authorities and rural stakeholders in designing and implementing Smart Villages initiatives in key domains. The focus of this document is on promoting digital transformation [...]
The Rural Digitalisation Forum set-up by DESIRA held the first meeting online on 10 September 2020. The event gathered around 60 attendees from different backgrounds (research, public authorities, SMEs, stakeholders’ organisations, members of National Rural Networks…) from 22 EU Member States (including one from Georgia). Participants from different [...]
The European Innovation Council (EIC) Prize on Blockchains for Social Good has awarded €5 million to six winners selected in a call to identify scalable, deployable and high-impact blockchain solutions for societal challenges. The winning solutions propose blockchain applications for fair trade and circular economy, increasing transparency in [...]
In the fourth and latest call of WiFi4EU, over 900 municipalities were awarded vouchers of €15 000, to support the installation of Wi-Fi equipment in public spaces. Browse through the list of awarded municipalities. The WiFi4EU initiative promotes free access to Wi-Fi connectivity for citizens in public spaces including [...]
In June 2020, the European Commission published its latest report on the Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI) that monitors Europe’s digital performance and tracks the progress of EU countries in digital competitiveness for economy and society. The index provides data on the state of digitisation of each [...]
The Wood-chain project, funded by PEFC International, will test and stimulate the application of blockchain technology as an innovative IT solution for forestry and wood applications, strengthening traceability and PEFC certification. Blockchain technology may allow a transparent and complete tracking of wood and timber products, fully compatible with [...]
In two recent documents published by the Horizon 2020 project SHERPA, digitalisation is highlighted as a potential key factor to boost the development of rural areas. SHERPA is supporting 20 Multi-Actor Platforms (MAPs) in the development of a ‘Long-term vision for rural areas’ based on sound research evidence. [...]
In a focus group meeting organised by the University of Pisa within the Summer School of the International Master of Science in Rural Development, Laura Martinelli and Franca Bernardi talked about their experience with digitalisation and COVID-19 in their agritourism farms located in Garfagnana (Tuscany, Italy).
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, DESIRA partners had to divide the General Assembly into several online meetings. On 23 July 2020, the Scenario Planning Training concluded this series of events. The meeting introduced Living Labs Coordinators to the concept of Scenario Planning. A preliminary report has been produced, [...]
A second training organised by DESIRA Work Package 2 leaders on 8 July 2020, focused on providing Living Labs with the necessary tools that will help them assess the impacts of digitalisation in their specific areas. Through online surveys and participatory assessments, Living Labs will be able to [...]
