Rural Europe on the move English_chapt1_6 | Page 24

CHAPTER 2
Back in 2010, Greece was just known as a place of crisis,
under the control of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the
European Central Bank (ECB) and the European Commission
(commonly known as the Troika). These organisations held
serious decision-making power. Fiscal, environmental, social
and security matters were in the hands of foreign bodies and
administrators, a substantial loss of our country’s sovereignty.
But Karditsa seems to be a spot of hope, because people
stuck together in times of crisis.
Greece lost 25% of its GDP in just the first four years of the
Troika’s arrival. Youth unemployment is still around 40% and
we have an unbelievable debt which will haunt us until at least
2060. Half a million Greeks out of the total 10 million have
left in a massive brain drain that still goes on. A new young
3. View of lake Plastiras
entrepreneur in Greece faces profound obstacles: crushing
bureaucracy, limited access to resources and tax raids, and
that’s just for starters. In such a context it is a challenge to
survive, let alone thrive.
“The ‘crisis’ gave us the feeling
that we were completely alone.”
Vasileios Bellis
EUROPEAN RURAL SUSTAINABILITY
GATHERINGS (ERSG)
Every two years, Forum Synergies organises
a 3-day gathering with 50 to 100 participants from
different backgrounds and from all over Europe
and neighbouring countries, in order to stimulate
a constructive exchange of good practices and
to jointly explore possibilities for sustainable rural
development. These European Rural Sustainability
Gatherings are organised with local partners
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in rural areas and put a strong focus on flexible
processes and the quality of human interaction.
They aim at building bridges between the local,
national and the European level.
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