From environmental sustainability to sustainable development? : Making concepts tangible in structural funds programmes

Explains how concepts of environmental sustainability and sustainable development can be made tangible in EU structural funds programmes

The 2007-13 operational programmes: a preliminary assessment: Spring – Autumn 2005

A preliminary assessment of the 2007-13 operational programmes on EU cohesion policy

Assessing Scotland's Progress on the Environmental Agenda

For good reasons the environment has a high political profile in Scotland. This report is concerned with three important components of the environmental agenda and the way in which they are being taken forward by the responsible authorities in Scotland. The delivery of environmental outcomes on agricultural land by means of a range of current policies, including agri-environment schemes, cross-compliance conditions on direct payments to farmers and implementation of the EU Water Framework Directive.The selection and management of a new network of Marine Protected Areas.Policy measures designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to mitigate climate change.Each of these topics is addressed individually in three separate chapters, aiming to identify some of the leading questions and the policy responses that have been adopted. The progress that is being made in meeting the objectives and aspirations set out in legislation and other key policy documents is then considered. Some of the objectives under review are determined entirely by the Government and by more local authorities in Scotland. Others arise primarily from obligations under EU legislation

Definition of a bottom-up rural development model as a governance instrument through the analysis of the rural development political strategies in the United Kingdom and in Italy : the cases of four Local Action Groups (LAGs) in Scotland, England, Emilia-Romagna region and Puglia region

PhD ThesisThis thesis explores the comparative evolution of rural development policies and Local Action Groups (LAGs) in UK and in Italy in a multi-level governance framework. It highlights the increasing importance of a bottom-up development approach. In the last few years, it has become widely accepted that there is a need to promote diversified and integral rural development with a strong emphasis on local solutions for local problems. National institutions cannot solve rural development problems alone. To this end, development policies for rural areas support the building of ‘local capacity' and cooperation in partnerships between the public, private and voluntary sectors with the aim to contribute to the implementation of rural development policies at various levels, supplementing decisions taken by national parliaments and local elected councils. In this context, LAGs and in particular their public-private local partnerships have become common practice in the governance of rural areas. This governance operates within the European Union LEADER approach (Liaison entre action de développement de l’économie rurale - Links between actions for the development of the rural economy) as a tool designed to generate the development of rural areas at local level. They operate within a structure and are responsible for devising and implementing rural development strategies for their areas by implying consensus, openness and an invitation to participate. The thesis draws on the experience of four EU LEADER LAGs/public private partnerships in order to understand the conditions, including political arrangements and actors, that facilitate or hinder their development and their workings. This thesis, using the Multi-Level Governance (MLG) approach, asks what are the conditions that facilitate the LAG approach, which flows from the bottom-up and utilises partnership approaches. In order to establish the implications of the LAG practices for rural development through a case study approach, the following main objectives for this research have been established: 1) to explore the utility of EU strategies for rural development; 2) to explain how LAGs structure, institutional arrangements and working are positioned in the layers of MLG framework when managing rural development; 3) to carry out a comparative evaluation of the LAGs working in the different nations and their subnational contexts. More specifically, the thesis conducts a focused case study comparison of four LAGs, operating in the United Kingdom (Argyll and the Islands LAG – Scotland and Coast, Wolds, Wetlands and Waterways LAG – England) and in Italy (Delta 2000 LAG – Emilia Romagna Region and Capo Santa Maria di Leuca LAG – iv Puglia Region). Each LAG has its own history, actors and specific ways to approach local partnerships. This comparison involves key elements (such as the reasons, influences and factors attributed to the initiation of the partnership, the involvement of the partners, and the difficulties and constraints found in the partnerships’ operations), as well as the common points and key differences of the politics at European, national and local level that shape each LAG. The empirical findings for each case study are based on fieldwork involving open-ended, qualitative interviews with local actors as well as documentation gathering. The main concerns of this institutional analysis of each case study are the process, the mechanism and condition of development, and the links between different elements such as policies and the role of actors. Some significant findings from the case studies are summarized in relation to these themes: the key characteristics and the outcomes associated with the LAG working mechanisms and what do we draw about the emergence, operation and performance of local partnerships. The core argument of the thesis is that the partnership approach inherent in the LAG approach has given the rural development actors a governance platform to help increase beneficial interactions and economic activity in each of these LAGs, but it is the bottom-up leadership of key local actors, seizing opportunities provided by the EU funding, which have been the most important factors for the LAG successe

When Linguistics and Heritage Intersect: Language Preservation and Revitalization in Cultural Institutions

This work explores the ways in which cultural institutions, namely museums, libraries, and archives, can help save dying languages. It first introduces language preservation and revitalization as a field and then evaluates current efforts, including those outside the museum sphere. The question guiding this research is: Given the missions of cultural institutions, their collections, and their relationships with surrounding communities, how can these institutions successfully contribute to the preservation and revitalization of endangered languages in the long-term, and how might success be evaluated? The preservation of Scottish Gaelic will be considered as a specific case study by looking at several approaches, such as language policy, school and education, cultural institutions, and technology. While these efforts are making great strides, there will be anticipated gaps that museums can fill, for which suggestions will be discussed. To lose languages is also to lose the unique cultural insights of diverse communities, but with museums extending their reach beyond artifact preservation to language preservation, connection to those communities will strengthen

Skills Assessment for Business Services: Final Report

No abstract available

Making sense of European Cohesion Policy : 2007-13 ongoing evaluation and monitoring arrangements

An ongoing evaluation of European Cohesion Policy between 2007-2013

Assessing the Social Media Use and Needs of Small Rural Retailers: Implications for Extension Program Support

To assess small rural retailers\u27 use of social media and the role of social media in their business sustainability, we conducted focus group interviews with small business owners/managers from rural communities in a midwestern state. Participants revealed strong interest in social media, especially for use in sales and marketing. However, their engagement in social media was limited due to lack of knowledge and resources (i.e., time, human resources, financial resources, effectiveness measurement) related to developing and updating content. On the basis of these findings, we examine implications for Extension professionals and outreach educators regarding social media needs and programming for small rural businesses