Proactive Green Communities and Storytellers for Natural Capital Safeguarding - PRO.GRE.S.S.

Programme(s): Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values Programme (CERV)-undefined

Topic(s): CERV-2022-CITIZENS-CIV

Type of action: CERV Lump Sum Grants

Project ID: 101081384

Objective

The PROGRESS project represents an initiative of a transnational network of communities of people living in rural areas of four Mediterranean countries (IT, FR, ES, GR). The Partnership propose a democratic participation pilot model, which among others, stimulates debates and reflections among its citizens about climate and green issues and proposes solutions to decision makers. PROGRESS Partnership is aware of international environmental planning policy and in the project focuses its content actions on planning instruments that affect communities at national and regional level: Regional Territorial Landscape Plan for the maintenance and conservation of natural heritage, the enhancement of natural and cultural assets, the maintenance of biodiversity, and the ecological function of woodland areas and the enhancement of the connection function of landscapes. PROGRESS approach starts from the Environment in its entirety (Natural Capital) and from Ecosystem Services. To guarantee the conservation, protection, valorisation and broadening of the use of Natural Capital, all possible solutions and local proposals must be analysed, assessed, discussed and found, possibly to be exported. The participation of the local community will allow for a better analysis and management capacity for Natural Capital, the valorisation (not only in economic terms) of Ecosystem Services, and the strengthening of the complex socio-ecological system created by the interaction of different forms of capital (natural, social and human). The participatory process will improve the individual competences of the actors in the different areas of interest. In a nutshell the general objective of the project is to increase the participation of local communities, specifically in rural areas in European Union topics concerning active citizenship on environment and climate change. The main tangible result is to define with citizen some concrete proposals ready to be reached by policy makers at all levels.