The Rural Hub
Through the project, Leader Höga Kusten together with other promoters in the area will improve the conditions for community entrepreneurs in rural areas and make visible the engagement and development that is happening and can happen in our rural areas.
About the project
What may be the greatest opportunity for rural areas; the driving force and the constant emergence of new ideas; tends all too often not to become a reality due to the challenge of finding networks, receiving support in the process from idea to implementation, and support for the implementation. The driven people in our rural areas are, for example, rarely just entrepreneurs; they are passionate about the development of their community as a whole and are community entrepreneurs! Currently, it is difficult for community entrepreneurs to receive support in their work, and there is therefore a clear need to support and be available where the ideas are, to function as enablers and thereby increase the innovative capacity in our rural areas. The need for support becomes even stronger when it comes to working with/for the global goals.
Through the project, more community entrepreneurs will be developed, diversify their operations, create more community benefit, and develop their places. By highlighting good examples – Rural Builders – more rural areas and entrepreneurs will be inspired to create and run viable and sustainable organizations and collaborations. By working with ”rural guides,” the project will recruit four people whose task is to work for the development of a specific locality, one in each Höga Kusten municipality. And through the Rural Hub – a mobile development platform to support community entrepreneurs and rural development groups. The hub enables direct meetings with entrepreneurs in geographically dispersed locations.
How did it go in the project?
The Leader Tour
The mobile hub, also called ”Leader on Tour,” visited 16 different locations within our area and invited the public to participate in discussions about development. At each visit, representatives from municipalities, the region, and the county administrative board participated, giving visitors the opportunity to discuss their ideas directly with relevant actors. A total of over 120 ideas were coached, which is a very positive result. This initiative also created an extensive network between the promoting system and our community entrepreneurs, which has led to increased trust in the promoting actors and shorter contact paths for entrepreneurs seeking support. The mobile hub early on showed that it was appreciated, which is why a more permanent ”hub location” was also created during the project where one could sit in a location in Sollefteå and one in Kramfors, where it was possible to visit us more often at a fixed location.
Rural Guides
The project has included four local coordinators, one in each municipality, tasked with supporting development in a specific locality where they have a strong local anchoring. The local coordinators have acted as the ”spider in the web” to coordinate and identify the development needs of the locality. The results have varied depending on each locality's unique needs and goals. Each local coordinator has worked closely with a steering group consisting of representatives from various organizations and individuals representing the locality, including municipal representatives. In some places, there is consideration of how to make the local coordinator position permanent, funding to preserve their work.
Through the project, each local coordinator, together with their locality, has developed an action plan for continued work and increased collaboration with their respective municipality. This method has yielded very positive results: four localities have been able to elevate their development work to a new level, created a shared understanding of common goals, and strengthened their capacity to work for the future development of the locality.
Our Local Coordinators:
Leif Svanholm – Local Coordinator Ullånger
Karin & Björn Jonsson – Local Coordinators Ramsele
Anders Bergström – Local Coordinator Viksjö
Magnus Olofsson – Local Coordinator Mellansel
rural builders
The project has contributed to broadening and highlighting social entrepreneurship in the area, focusing on including different rural areas and collaborating organizations instead of individual entrepreneurs/people. This work has resulted in:
– Portrayal of 8 rural builders: We have highlighted eight different social entrepreneurs, ”rural builders,” who represent a diversity of interests, geographical spread, and backgrounds. These portraits have inspired and broadened the image of who can be a community builder in the countryside.
– Implementation of two ”Rural Builder Days”: We have organized two events, ”Rural Builder Days,” with a varied program that included workshops, lectures, and discussions. At these occasions, both promoting actors and social entrepreneurs have been invited, which has promoted networking and exchange of experiences.
– More social entrepreneurs in rural development: The project has inspired more individuals to take on the role of social entrepreneurs and engage in their locality.
– Strengthened local pride: The project has created a stronger sense of pride for one's own place, where social entrepreneurs and residents together see the value and potential in their locality.
On Landsbyggare.se you can meet both new and old Rural Builders in Höga Kusten and the rest of Sweden.
About the project
Project period
2023-01-01 to 2024-11-30
Project owner
Leader High Coast
Project manager
Olivia Karlsson
070-377 97 75
olivia@leaderhogakusten.se
About funding
Granted leader support
3,153,526 kronor
Total financing
3,153,526 kronor. The project is financed by the ”National Leader Fund” and does not burden the Leader area's budget.
The Leader support consists of funding from the EU, the state, Region Västernorrland Sollefteå, Kramfors, Härnösand, and Örnsköldsvik municipalities.
Incoming EU funds have been granted from:
Rural fund
