Understanding Green Infrastructure and Shrinking rural areas – Uptake article

The ESPON-TNO programme organised a virtual Peer Learning Workshop with ESPON researchers, academics and Spanish stakeholders on the 24th of February 2022. The topic was of particular interest for Spain in order to find the ways of operationalising Green Infrastructure (GI) as a tool for new development plans both in urban and rural areas, with particular reference to shrinking rural areas. The current beginning of next programming period as well as the implementation of the National Recovery Plan under Next Generation EU provides an opportunity to rethink the development strategies for Spain, fully integrating the territorial dimension with the elaboration of new regional development plans facing sustainability issues as well as demographic decline. This issue was faced by the Spanish National Strategy for the Demographic Challenge. The multidisciplinary approach aimed to cope with climate change effects on the most vulnerable groups and geographical areas. Furthermore, rural areas and depopulated Spain could find profitable opportunities to be developed in ecological transition policy.