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CERUSI Webinar Series “The borders of Rural Social Innovation”  

 May-July 2021 


Introduction:

In its efforts of reaching out to rural change-makers in Central Europe the CERUSI Partnership will set up a series of three webinars (online courses) dedicated to the topic of the “Borders of Rural Social Innovation”.

In its two-year-long implementation cycle, the CERUSI-Project aims at both the transfer of skills as well as the improvement of competences of rural social entrepreneurs and actors of the regional innovation ecosystem alike. By the means of the upcoming weibnar series, the partnership will open the discussion to three thematic fields that we deem to be of overarching importance for the future integration of social innovations as a sustainable strategy for rural development.  

By building on the “border” metaphor the webinars build on a critical trajectory that shapes the implementation of social innovation in rural regions in various aspects (“triple-border-trajectory”): for one, their relative marginalisation through administrative/natural borders and tendencies of reinforcement of these (e.g. proliferated through the Covid19 crises), further their organisational thinness as regards the innovation ecosystem and finally their manifold (inter)dependencies on urban areas.

Therefore, during the exchange with experts and practitioners we seek to highlight potential leverage points for a more nuanced and positive future development in the frame of this trajectory that highlights good pathways and best practices in the fields of a) the development of and cooperation across rural border regions, b) the fostering of rural social innovations through public-private-partnerships and c) the potentials of social innovation for the integration of rural and urban regions in the development of a European circular economy.

Structure of webinars-series:

1st Webinar: “Social Innovation for the integration of Central Europe’s rural border regions” (Social Impact) (May 26th, 15:00 - 16:30)

2nd Webinar: “Social Innovation: Bridging the no man's land between private and public” (Democenter) (July 16th, 15:00 - 16:15)

3rd Webinar: “The potentials of social innovation for the development of a European circular economy”  (ZSI) (October 21st 2021, 15:00 - 16:15)

RSI Academy