C-BIRD, Cooperative, business and innovative rural development

Project status: concluded

C-BIRD recognizes the diversity and complexity of rural areas across Europe in terms of needs and development solutions. In fact, there can be no one, clear, exclusive model behind rural development, given the multiple development paths resulting from various combinations of forces. The project involves six European countries with strong agricultural cooperative sectors: Spain, Italy and Ireland, two newly incorporated countries, Bulgaria and Romania, and tne candidate country, Serbia.

Objectives

This project investigates the innovative role of cooperatives and related rural actors (including academic institutions, commercial enterprises, NGOs, associations, etc.) in rural development.

The research exchanges and the focus on specific areas and identified case studies will increase the understanding of the research subject and the main drivers of rural change. The research secondments will also be useful to explore economic and productive activities that enhance socio-economic and environmental sustainability for vibrant rural areas. Furthermore, the project aims to identify the key characteristics of socio-economic and environmental development in rural areas and related institutional entities and functions and to define the main reasons for different patterns of organizational rates (cooperative movement/producer organizations) across the project countries.

Website http://c-bird.eu/
Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/pages/C-Bird/1499056210366222