After 30 months of intensive work and transnational cooperation, the RurALL – Rural Communities of the Future project has been successfully completed, focusing on developing new approaches and solutions for the sustainable development of rural areas.

The Regional Agency for Economic Development of Šumadija and Pomoravlje (REDASP) and the associated project partner, the Municipality of Despotovac, achieved a number of important results through their joint work. Some of the key outcomes are designs for renovation of abandoned dwellings and business models for their adaptive reuse, applying citizens participation and New European Bauhaus principles, as well as the multi-stakeholder governance model and the manual, through transnational exchange of experience and knowledge and subsequently adapted to the local context and needs of the Municipality of Despotovac. You can see the documents on the following link: http://www.redasp.rs/rurall.p223.html

A particularly important aspect of this process was the active involvement of the local community. Residents of the Municipality of Despotovac, particularly representatives of rural local communities, worked together with representatives of the local government in developing both the governance model and the accompanying manual. In this way, the project demonstrated how citizen participation can contribute to the development of better and locally adapted policies and solutions for rural areas.

The final project conference, held in Beltinci, Slovenia, provided an opportunity for representatives of the Municipality of Despotovac and REDASP to actively participate in discussions on the challenges facing rural areas, as well as possible solutions and approaches that can contribute to their sustainability and the quality of life of their residents.

A particularly valuable outcome of the final phase of the project was the establishment of an official partnership between the Municipality of Despotovac, Serbia, and the Municipality of Beltinci, Slovenia. This partnership is a concrete result of the transnational cooperation developed through the project and opens up opportunities for continued exchange of experience, joint initiatives and future cooperation between the two local communities.

The RurALL project has once again demonstrated the importance of transnational cooperation, exchange of experience and active involvement of local communities in developing new and sustainable responses to the challenges faced by rural areas.