Final balance of SHERPA project after four years of designing policies for rural areas through a participatory method

The Galician Multi-Actor Platform met in Chantada to evaluate the work carried out

The SHERPA project (Sustainable Hub to Engage into Rural Policies with Actors) is coming to an end. Between 2019 and 2023, it has worked with the aim of gathering knowledge to help formulate recommendations for policies aimed at the development of rural areas in the European Union, is coming to an end. For this purpose, and unlike other more conventional approaches, SHERPA created groups that bring together actors from the scientific, social and political fields, known as Multi-Actor Platforms (MAP).

The members of the Galician MAP met in Chantada on September 15th to evaluate the work carried out. During the day, a guided visit was made by Xosé Lois Lamazares to the Daveiga-Galletas Mariñeiras facilities; where the work meeting also took place, and a lunch was held to thank the MAP members for their collaboration during the four years of the project.

At the meeting, each MAP member took stock of their participation in the MAP; and the possibility of the MAP’s continuity after the end of the project and the participation of MAP members in similar structures in the future was discussed.

The overall evaluation of the participants of the MAP is positive, emphasizing that the participation of people from different areas and territories helped them to learn new perspectives on rural areas, enriching the vision of each participant. As for the negative aspects, the lack of participation of young people was mentioned. Regarding the continuation of the MAP activity, all the members indicated their willingness to continue participating in it, although they understand that without the support of the project it is complicated to continue with the same format. Likewise, most of the members expressed that they participate in different forums in which issues related to rural areas are discussed.

SHERPA is a project financed by European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme and in which 17 partners participated.