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Dear all,
Indeed we had stimulating workshops in Istanbul. I participated the multifunctionality session. Here at home I have discussed the "Istanbul conclusions" paper, just delivered by Patrick, with prof. Hilkka Vihinen (also working in our institute) and I think her comments are valuable. I believe some possible weaknesses of the conclusion paper could be avoided, or at least one could mitigate the feeling of the possible problems, with the help of the comments below. However, we both agree that the conclusion paper has many strong points.
best regards,
Heikki Lehtonen (I participated the multifunctionality session)
Agrifood Research Finland
Economic Research
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Here are some general comments on the draft for 'Conclusions of the e-Foresee Istanbul Workshop on the Future of Agriculture in the EU25+'
1) Foresight is essential for rural governance in the sense that it could provide knowledge and intellectual horizon for broad strategies at regional level. This would entail multisectoral approach to the potentials of the region, and e.g. agriculture should be integrated to the overall future functioning of the region.
2) As to multifunctional agriculture and to the European Model of Agriculture, these are important political concepts which, however, are not as such any kind of operational tools at local or regional level unless 'sustainability' or 'multifunctionality' have been interpreted and accepted at a local and regional level.
3) Based on my knowledge on rural development, I do not believe an agriculture-based approach to the rural economy of the accession countries will work out well. The most urgent thing would be to ensure that at least someone would remain in those rural areas: it is a much broader social and cultural issue, and it requires facilitating the commitment of the local people to reconstruct their local and regional economy. Agriculture should contribute to this, but it would not be enough alone.
4) In the paper, there is a strong implicit presumption that rural viability schemes would be a tool to supplement farm incomes - this is a political failure. You cannot base any kind of successful rural policy on the basis of income support to one rural industry of profession: the society in large will not pay for this.
5) In the suggestions made in the paper, one problem is the top-down approach. There are many sentences underlining the importance of the cooperation among the government, the public and their major stakeholders, but a touch to the concrete life of the rural people is missing. It has been shown too many times that policies implemented from outside are very costly and hard to administer. If peristent changes are exptected, it is crucial to involve the local people to the formulation of strategies and also to the implementation of the plans. Then the approach chosen would most probably be much more small- scale, heterogenous, recognising also tacit knowledge in addition to adjusting the kind knowledge-based solutions presented in the paper. Without local commitment it will not work.
I wish all success for the Foresight work!
Best regards
Hilkka Vihinen
Professor of Rural Policy
MTT Economic Research
tel + 358-(0)9-5608 6313,
+-358-(0)400 490 711
fax + 358-(0)9-563 1164
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Monday, November 10, 2003 12:55 AM
Subject: Istanbul: follow-up to Istanbul ...
Dear participants in our meeting in Istanbul,
It already feels like a long time has passed since we last met and I hope you have not all lost patience waiting to hear from me.
To help us communicate as a group I have set up a list that we can all use simply by sending a message to [email protected].
Many of you have sent me papers to put up on the site relating to the issues we discussed in Istanbul.
Thank to everyone or their efforts and if you still want to share material please just let me know, it will be very much appreciated ...
Thanks also those of you who provide repost on their sessions.
These are not yet accessible until we agree that they are in a shape for scrutiny outside our group.
I have put together a draft of the 'conclusions' that focuses very strongly on the role of foresight in achieving a vision for a sustainable knowledge-based EU25+.
I rushed a bit to provide something that was fairly complete so it also talks about finance and timelines and foresight templates etc.
It is intended to accompany the conclusions of our parrallel workshops but it is only a draft ...
Some of you asked for peek a while ago and this is an update on what you would have recieved previously.
Liam has already given some input ... to it ...
I suggest that we think of it as one part of a four part doc that contains the conclusions from each session as well as the overall conclusions in terms of foresight recomendations ...
I will circulate the other 3 docs later (after I correct the spellings and turn bullets into full sentences etc. etc.)
But please take a look at this and provide comments in any form you like - either to me directly or to the list ...
Regards
Pat
Patrick Crehan - Director
Crehan, Kusano & Associates
2, rue d'Arenberg
1000 Brussels, Belgium
Tel: 32-2-7421865
Fax: 32-2-7423763
Mobile: 32-473-924456
Email: [email protected]
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