Innovation

Find out about the recent European Rural Parliament event held in Venhorst, Netherlands in this event report from Scottish Rural Action.

The village of Venhorst in Noord-Brabant did not exist until the early 20th. century when the municipality sold seven hectare plots to families wanting to settle and make a living. The nearest school was an hour’s journey away.

The latest in our #SRDPonFilm series focuses on the Skinny Milk Project.

Funded through the Knowledge Transfer and Innovation Fund, the Skinny Milk Projct is about increasing efficiency in milk production.

Dourie Farm in Fort William has embraced the project to find new ways to improve its business performance, reducing overheads while maintaining productivity long term. Watch the film below.

The Annual Implementation Report (AIR) of the Scottish Rural Development Programme (SRDP) has been published.

Covering the first three years of the 2014-2020 Programme, the full report and Summary for Citizens can be viewed on the Scottish Government website.

In this report, Ailsa Clark from Inspiralba tells us about the European Network for Rural Development Thematic Group for Smart Villages event held in Brussels on 26 October 2017.

The Smart Villages European Union (EU) Action has a focus on revitalising rural services through both digital and social innovation in rural areas.

A new brochure highlights all the Horizon 2020 calls relating to agriculture and forestry.

The official Horizon 2020 Work Programme for 2018-2020 was released on 27 October 2017.

Horizon 2020 (H2020) aims to create solutions for problems which farmers and foresters currently face. It is the largest source of public funding for research and innovation from the European Commission with a budget of around €3.7 billion.

The GlenWyvis Distillery has reached the first target of £250,000 in their second Community Share Offer.

The community-owned distillery in Dingwall already had 2,600 members who invested £2.6 million in the original share offer in 2016 and this new open share offer has already added a further 400 members in just two months.

Strengthening Communities Conference - September 2017

A summary report from the recent ‘Strengthening Communities Conference' is now available.

The HIE event took place in Aviemore on 21-22 September 2017. Around 250 people attended from a wide range of organisations such as community groups, social enterprises, development officers, support agencies and policy staff who have a focus on community-led local development.

RSPB Scotland have announced the shortlist for their Nature of Scotland Awards 2017.

The awards find and celebrate the most dedicated and passionate people working to protect Scotland's internationally renowned wildlife and habitats.

The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) and the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) invite applications to attend an interactive strategic workshop (Sandpit) to develop proposals for research and research translation projects.