Author: Leticia Abarca (AEIDL)
The H2020 Project DESIRA (Digitisation: Economic and Social Impacts in Rural Areas) is reaching its final month after 4 years of work. DESIRA partners celebrated it with a Final Conference in Brussels which brought together a hundred participants between policymakers, researchers, rural stakeholders and civil society associations from all around Europe. In DESIRA Final Conference, CODECS was presented through their participation in the poster exhibition and in the pitch from projects session.
The DESIRA conference focused on the challenges and opportunities of digitalization in rural areas. Speakers highlighted the social-technical nature of digitalisation and the importance of understanding its context. They emphasised the potential of digitalisation to improve agrosystems, reduce environmental impact, and create jobs in the EU’s rural areas. Challenges such as cost-effectiveness, data sharing trust, and digital literacy among farmers were addressed. Integration and coordination of digitalisation solutions with rural policies were highlighted as essential together with the necessary contribution to the EU Long-Term Vision for Rural Areas. A highlights video of the Conference can be watched here.
The Conference, that served as a platform for engagement and establishing connections among participants, emphasised the importance of sustainable digitalisation and collaboration among stakeholders. From its side, CODECS partners, who aim at continuing with DESIRA’s work and capitalise all produced knowledge and network, have compromised with DESIRA Declaration, taking the baton of rural digitalisation from now on.
