Rural Europe on the move English_chap7_13 | Page 54

CHAPTER 11
RURAL PARLIAMENTS
The first Rural Parliament was pioneered by the Swedish rural
movement Hela Sverige Ska Leva (HSSL). Every second year since
1995, HSSL has brought a thousand or more people from their
network of (now about 5000) village action groups to a three-day
gathering in a regional town, to share their problems and solutions,
to hear and challenge high level politicians and to agree a
programme of collective action for the next two years.
This model has been followed by many National Rural Parliaments
in a growing number of other countries, including the PREPARE
1
partners in central Europe and the Balkans.
Emerging synergies
During this travelling week in
Estonia and Sweden, the idea grew volunteered to draft proposals for the the collapse of the Soviet Union. I told
that this group of people should action that might follow. Hannes, from halfway round the world,
continue working together through that I had a ‘wet towel’ around my head
the time of transition and accession – which is a method that has also
to help new neighbours into a new
common Europe, and to spread the
good news that rural Europe could
become more democratic, more
innovative and more sustainable
Writing reports
with a ' wet towel'
Michael Dower takes up the story
The event in Estonia and Sweden
been used in finishing this book!
The themes in the report – action
by the people, added value to local
products, strengthening of civil society,
cooperation between public and civil
in the best sense of the word. We, was a particular delight for me. I met sectors – were already the stuff of life
the members and friends of Forum Forum Synergies for the first time, for me. Since 1985, I had been a leader
Synergies, who had mainly focused made many new friends, and came of the European Council for the Village
on Western Europe, now started to home with a head full of stories. and Small Town (ECOVAST), which
At that time, having retired campaigned to promote the well-
discover our new neighbours.
The event had impressed the
from government service, I was a being of rural people, small towns and
European Commission, which Research Professor of European Rural heritage of rural Europe. As President
suggested that this method be more Development at the University of of ECOVAST from 1986, I drove the
widely applied. The team which had Gloucestershire; and, in that capacity, process of building a network of rural
led the event were joined by Michael making a series of month-long visits people across the wider Europe,
Dower, Secretary General of ECOVAST to Vietnam to train public officials in with national sections springing up in
and former Director of the Countryside the pursuit of their 5-year plan for Central and Eastern Europe (Croatia,
Commission in England, who had rural development. A few months after Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Russia
taken part in the travelling workshop. the Forum Synergies event, Hannes and elsewhere) as well as in Western
He completed the editing of the asked me to final-edit the report on Europe. In 1991, ECOVAST published
report on the travelling workshop, that event; and I found myself in a hot, a ‘Strategy for Rural Europe’, which
which was published by the European quiet weekend office in Communist established it as a consultative partner
Parliament with title ‘Creating Hanoi writing about an event focused of the European Commission and of
Partnerships for Pre-Accession’ and he on animating rural Europe following the Council of Europe.
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