• The "European Voices" report gathers the opinions of 3,000 rural citizens from 19 European Union countries.
• The testimonies have been collected by the various European rural networks, including the National Rural Network, from workshops conducted by agents in the territory.

Participants had to cope with the restrictions imposed by the pandemic and conduct the workshops virtually. The seminars also had to be completed within a very short period of time—between December 2020 and the end of February 2021—in order to meet the consultation schedule for the communication planned by the European Commission, which will be released shortly.

Rural Europe 2040

The main sections included in the report on this vision of the future of Rural Europe in 2040 are: Infrastructure and services (schools, transport, etc.) / Digital and technological change (internet access and digital literacy) / Supply of basic goods (food and energy) / Employment / Social inclusion (diversity) / Environment / Climate change.

And the big headlines from this report on the opinions gathered from the population are:

• Adopting a holistic approach can generate multiple economic, environmental, and social benefits . People are calling for interconnected, sustainable development that starts at the local level.
• High-quality, affordable, and accessible digital infrastructure is required . This is claimed as a prerequisite for the development of many other activities, both economic and social, and is identified as one of the highest priorities.
• The strength of the community spirit and the importance of volunteering for social activities are recognized . There is a strong awareness of rural sisterhood . Rural centers, physical meeting spaces, and facilitators were identified as necessary to support the continuation and development of existing activities and the launch of new ones.
• There is concern about the current availability and quality of infrastructure and services , including health, education, transportation, and housing, particularly in remote areas. There is pessimism about their future.
• Concerns about climate change, environmental degradation, and unsustainable agricultural practices are growing . People are highlighting the impacts of these practices and are calling for a greater focus on sustainability .
• It is perceived that rural areas may be affected by climate change . However, there is recognition that rural communities are well positioned to contribute positively to the green transition.
• The need to make agriculture more sustainable and reduce its negative environmental impacts is an issue raised by most.
• Improving rural development policies and governance . There is a need to increase participation in local decision-making and to strengthen rural networks and alliances , as well as links between rural and urban areas. Regulatory and fiscal frameworks that facilitate rural development, rather than hinder it, are called for, as well as less bureaucratic and administrative red tape.

To view the full report, you can download it here .

The vision of Spain

In Spain, the National Rural Network (RRN) was responsible for disseminating, encouraging, and supporting local entities to organize participatory workshops—through its Regional Antennas —and for sending the results to the European Rural Network .

To this end, the RRN's Regional Antennas held a total of ten outreach sessions between January 8 and 13, 2021, and were later responsible for compiling the results of the workshops organized by the local rural development entities of the autonomous communities. The results obtained were as follows .

In addition to the "Rural Voices" report published by the European Rural Network, the European Commission is expected to issue its communication on the NRN's long-term vision for rural areas soon, to which both these results and those of last year's public consultation will have contributed.