INTERREG-SUDOE Rural-transition-labs Project: Rural Transition Labs: An innovative and systemic approach to climate change adaptation

In rural Southwest Europe, rising temperatures, increased droughts, water scarcity, and land-use conflicts threaten agricultural production, robust infrastructure, and the quality of life of rural citizens, contributing to rural depopulation. These vulnerabilities also affect urban areas: food security, energy sovereignty, and urban expansion depend on the capacity of rural areas to adapt to climate change. Rural areas have a key role to play in Europe's Green Transition and must be recognized as hubs of innovation. Rural communities in Southwest Europe also face similar challenges, such as democratic practices and the difficulty of moving from planning to implementation.

The RURAL TRANSITION LABS project aims to establish rural communities as innovation hubs, experimenting with new participatory and ecosystem-based solutions, thereby increasing rural resilience and the capacity to adapt to climate change. A shared strategy and action plan will be developed for the implementation of the Labs, drawing on the knowledge and experience of each partner (territorial dialogue, climate change action and GIS, local ecosystems). The three pilot communities will implement the strategy, building capacity for systemic change through the development of pilot projects that address the challenges of climate change adaptation in Southwest Europe.

The pilot projects will experiment with a specific solution and demonstrate the relevance of Rural Transition Labs as drivers of innovation for climate change adaptation and resilience in rural areas of Southwest France. These solutions will be compiled in a catalog and transferred to other regions of Southwest France. The project's innovation lies in its approach to the territorial dimension of climate change adaptation. Moving away from the typical siloed approach, the project is based on a systemic approach, in which stakeholders define a shared vision and take an active role in achieving it. This means developing new forms of cooperation, facilitated by an innovative GIS tool to promote synergies, stimulate action, and encourage wider community involvement.