Lifelong Education and Training in FUTURAL: Unleashing smart solutions for Rural Communities’ Key Challenges

by reframe.food

A continuous rise of climatic extremes such as heatwaves, droughts and floods has been observed by authorities across Europe. The European Climate Risk Assessment [1] of 2024, published by EEA delineates this phenomenon, clusters the affected domains and also spots the light on the areas of Southern Europe, low-lying coastal regions and EU outermost regions as the ones with multiple climate risks.Yet another challenge watched in Europe, and measured by Eurostat [2], is the continuous population decline in rural areas since 2015 in contrast to population growth in urban regions. This phenomenon is a combination of low birth rates and migration of young people to cities for education and job opportunities. The data provided by Eurostat shows that rural regions in Eastern and Southern EU countries are most affected by it. This environmental stress coincides in rural areas with depopulation and ageing which makes those areas more vulnerable and difficult to prosper. 

FUTURAL smart solutions in MAPs of Birda (Romania) and Kythira (Greece) pave the way for mitigating such challenges via Lifelong Education and Training and an online platform delivering open courses tailored to the needs of rural communities These courses aim to enhance practical knowledge in key rural sectors and support skills development in sustainable and innovative farming practices.

Birda, Romania: Training for Flood Protection and Water Quality

In Birda, Romania, the rural community there is facing two main challenges: flooding and bad water quality supply. When water levels rise due to heavy rainfall, the town of Gataia consistently floods because of the shared drainage infrastructure. Runoff from three settlements (Birda, Gataia, and Berecuta) is collected, but a discharge channel running from Birda to the Bârzava River causes the river to overflow its banks precisely where it borders Gataia. At the same time, the area faces intensified challenges in water supply due to poor water quality from groundwater sources, which are not currently acceptable. This issue is historically linked to the once-widespread practice of pig farming, which severely affected the groundwater quality.

FUTURAL tackles some of those challenges through lifelong learning education and training to be made via an online platform of the project. This platform will deliver open courses to improve social knowledge of water challenges and facilitate stakeholder engagement in proposed solutions for flood protection, water availability, and water quality. The courses will help the community to: 

• understand the challenges, methods, and solutions;
• build the skills needed to operate innovative water and Nature-Based Solutions; and 
• interact and demonstrate real-world solutions

Kythira, Greece: Developing Modern Skills to support Entrepreneurship of Youth

In Kythira, a Greek island at the Southern part of Europe, confronts a combination of demographic decline (youth leaving the island) and infrastructural limitations (transport/mobility), which climate-related risks could sharpen over time. The number of young adults under 35 is declining and limited opportunities for young entrepreneurs contribute to slow growth. Locals lack education, skills development and training to broaden their interests and acquire modern skills. Also, the difficulty in transportation with the mainland of Greece particularly the winter season is yet another challenge that they need to resolve. FUTURAL through lifelong learning activities and training delivered via an online platform shall contribute to building modern work skills to the rural community and encourage young people to gain new, up-to-date skills linked to digitalization and innovation services. 

TERRA.game: Inspiring Example of Lifelong Education in Action 

Among FUTURAL’s Open Call sub-projects, TERRA.game stands out as an inspiring example of how lifelong education can drive real change. This innovative educational tool, which  is currently under development in Portugal’s Centro Region, uses a smartphone game and community-based activities to increase awareness of the circular economy, particularly among elderly people living in rural areas.

Through gamification, players learn to connect traditional sustainable habits with modern circular practices by showing that innovation and heritage can grow side by side. TERRA.game,currently in development and co-created with local users,  will be included in the FUTURAL Metasearch platform, transforming education into engagement, enabling people to learn, share, and take action for a sustainable future.

FUTURAL supports the rural areas in becoming more resilient and sustainable by unleashing smart solutions for assuring citizens’ well-being!

References

[1] European Climate Risk Assessment, EEA Report 01/2024

[2] Urban-rural Europe – demographic developments in rural regions and areas