20 November 2025. ESIRA and SERIGO projects organised a joint policy workshop held on 20 November 2025 in Brussels, to explore how community-led social innovation can enhance the social inclusion of vulnerable groups in rural areas.
Co-organised by the European Association of Mountain Areas (Euromontana) and the European Association for Innovation in Local Development (AEIDL), the event gathered 33 participants, including researchers, representatives from the European Commission, as well as from EU networks and civil society organisations working on social inclusion, social economy and sustainable rural development. The discussions led to a strong call for a more holistic vision to rural policy planning.
Harnessing social inclusion for rural resilience
Rural areas across Europe continue to face persistent socio-economic challenges that do not affect all residents equally. Women, older adults, migrants, minorities and people with disabilities continue to be affected the most, often facing additional barriers to participation and inclusion.
At the same time, community-led initiatives, social economy actors and innovative local partnerships demonstrate that social inclusion can act as a powerful driver of socio-economic resilience when adequately supported by policy.
Anchored in the “Stronger” and “Resilient” pillars of the Long-Term Vision for Rural Areas, the workshop provided a space to reflect on whether current EU policies and funding instruments sufficiently address the needs of rural communities.
Strengthening social economy and rural development: EU priorities
Anastasia Costantini from the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion (DG EMPL), underscored the central role of the Social Economy Action Plan (SEAP) in unlocking the potential of the social economy in rural areas.
She highlighted key messages from the recent Rural Pact consultation, including the need for stronger policy integration, the continued importance of LEADER and community-led local development (CLLD), cross-sector collaboration, simplified and more inclusive funding access, and enhanced national engagement in the Rural Pact.
The participants were also introduced to the ESIRA and SERIGO projects by Sonia Marcos Naveira, from University of Burgos, and Marisol Castro, from AEIDL, respectively.
Designing policy as a living ecosystem
A keynote speech, given by Jill Van den Brule, social entrepreneur and researcher at the UNICEF Innocenti Office of Research and Foresight, invited participants to rethink rural policy as a living ecosystem rather than a set of static frameworks. Drawing on lessons from nature -forests, biodiversity, and root systems- she argued that resilience comes from connection, diversity, and continuous learning. The speech highlighted how initiatives across ESIRA and SERIGO already reflect these principles, showing that inclusion emerges when communities co-create, adapt, and innovate together.
Key messages included the need to move from control to co-evolution, from projects to long-term platforms and from consultation to genuine co-design. The speaker proposed new approaches such as circular policy loops, bioregional design and stronger feedback systems. Ultimately, the keynote called for EU policy that is regenerative, rooted in local intelligence and centred on belonging, ensuring rural communities are recognised as vital to Europe’s shared resilience.
Building more inclusive rural areas
The panel discussion, moderated by Alexandra Yaghil from AEIDL, brought together perspectives from leading social economy experts.
Paula de Diego from Social Economy Europe presented the INSPIRE project, which is implementing Smart Village Labs in seven rural contexts to promote wellbeing and inclusion. The project maps the needs of vulnerable groups and identifies solutions to strengthen entrepreneurship, digital access, and social participation. Key challenges emerging from the pilots include geographic isolation, digital and economic exclusion, limited access to education, health inequalities, and insufficient business support structures.
Dorotea Daniele from DIESIS Network highlighted their extensive European and global network supporting social economy models that revitalise rural communities. Their work focuses on capacity building, social innovation, and empowering marginalised groups, such as youth, women, educators, and people with disabilities, to become active agents of local development. She emphasised the importance of interventions that combine economic pathways, training, policy advocacy, and mutual learning, noting that multi-stakeholder and community-owned models are essential for sustainable inclusion.
Leida Rijnhout from ECOLISE presented their community-led approaches to climate resilience and sustainability. With 50 members across 18 EU countries, ECOLISE supports networks engaged in transition initiatives, permaculture, ecovillages, and local food systems. She stressed the need to address the root causes of rural decline, including resource extraction, industrial agriculture, and forced depopulation, and advocated for sociocratic governance and systemic adaptation.
The social economy as a catalyst
Building on the panellists’ contributions, participants joined an interactive workshop facilitated by Alicia Moreno from Euromontana. In thematic groups, they identified barriers faced by marginalised rural communities and discussed how the social economy can address them, as well as what is needed from the policy side -particularly in relation to access to services, housing, and employment-.
Participants identified major structural gaps in rural areas, including poor infrastructure, long distances, precarious employment, limited information, gender barriers, and a serious lack of quality, affordable housing. These are all interconnected issues affecting rural decline.
At the same time, participants shared diverse social economy solutions -such as cooperative housing, multifunctional social centres, itinerant services, social farming, and digital inclusion initiatives- showing how the sector can fill gaps where markets and public services fall short.
There was clear agreement on the need for enabling policy frameworks that empower local actors, simplify EU funding, strengthen LEADER/CLLD, and give greater recognition to the social economy in rural development. Overall, the discussions underscored that, with proper support, the social economy can be a catalyst for sustainable rural resilience and inclusion.
Key takeaways
- Integrated approaches across access to services, housing and employment: rural challenges are interconnected; therefore, they require holistic strategies that treat these areas together rather than in silos.
- Stronger communication and awareness: the social economy remains insufficiently understood, and better communication at both EU and local levels is needed to ensure policymakers and communities recognise its value.
- Enabling legal and cooperative frameworks: supportive legislation and platforms for cross-sector and cross-territorial collaboration are key to scaling social economy solutions in rural areas.
- A long-term and forward-looking approach is essential: foresight and anticipatory planning should guide rural development to strengthen long-term resilience.
- Solutions must be grounded in rural realities: the panel stressed the need to move beyond Brussels-centric debates and engage meaningfully with rural actors to design policies that reflect local needs and contexts.
- Policy frameworks must shift and adapt: rural-proofed policies, simplified funding, empowered local authorities and fairer urban–rural reciprocity are essential to enable inclusive and sustainable rural development.
For more information, you can view the event slides here.
About ESIRA
ESIRA (Enhancing Social Innovation in Rural Areas) is a Horizon Europe project conducting research on community-led rural innovation spaces to enhance the understanding of the needs and challenges faced by vulnerable groups and to facilitate the upscaling and replication of social economy initiatives across rural Europe. ESIRA is also implementing innovative socio-economic initiatives in 8 EU countries, with a focus on developing local social networks in rural communities and improving the economic situation of marginalized groups.
More information: www.esira.eu
Contact: esira@esira.eu
About SERIGO
SERIGO (Social Economy for Resilience, Inclusion and Good life in Rural areas) is conducting community-based research, fostering collaborations, and providing policy recommendations on how social innovation can enhance rural communities. The project is exploring innovative solutions initiated by or involving actors from the Social Economy. With a focused approach to addressing the challenges faced by rural communities, SERIGO is committed to harnessing the capabilities of social economy actors to drive inclusive development initiatives. More information: www.serigo-project.eu
Contact: Marisol Castro, mcr@aeidl.eu
