Theodor-Lieser-Str. 2 | 06120 Halle | e-mail iamo@iamo.de | iamo.de | phone +49 345 2928-310

1. LEIBNIZ INSTITUTE OF AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT IN CENTRAL AND EASTERN EUROPE Theodor-Lieser-Str. 2 | 06120 Halle | e-mail iamo@iamo.de | www.iamo.de | phone +49 345 2928-310

2. The contribution of LEADER to networking and collective action in rural communities Kinga Boenning PREPARE Gathering, Ohrid, Macedonia 2010 e-mail boenning@iamo.de | phone +49 345 2928-121

3. 1) Collective action and coordination problems – A economists` point of view • 2) Collective action and the LEADER programme • Background on LEADER and the New rural raradigm • Two major steps in the functioning mechanism of LEADER • 3) The Pilot Programme LEADER+ in Poland - some lessons learned Outline of the presentation

4. 1) Collective Action in rural communities – a economists` point of view

5. Management of natural ressources and provision of „public goods“ • State • - national • regional • local administration Market Failure (coordination problem) A traditional economists‘ point of view

7. Nobel prize in economics in 2010 -> local communities (often) manage ressources best by themselves Elinor Ostrom

8. -> local communities (often) manage ressources and solve development problems best by themselves Findings & research: -> under which conditions do people in communities cooperate successfully to achieve their goals (-> collective action theory) -> when do such communities survive on the long term (-> design principles) New economists‘ findings

9. When do communities manage their ressources successfully and when do they survive on the long term? • Face-to-face communication • Good collective-choice rules (how do we coordinate and work together), which fit the situation • Shared understanding of goals and shared values • Where necessary good sanctioning mechanisms • Linkages to other levels and networks • (Ostrom 1998 and Fleischman et. al. 2010) Studying local communities – some lessons learned

10. 2) LEADER and Collective Action

11. The „new rural paradigm“ • Publication by the OECD in 2006 • Focus on regions, the people and their potential • Importance of ‚bottom-up rural development‘ • LEADER • In the EU-15 since 1991 • In some new member states implemented since 2004 • Since 2007: mainstreamed in the EU as the fourth axis of the EAFRD The new rural paradigm and the LEADER programme - Background

12. Source: European Commission: The LEADER Approach: a basic guide

13. Rules -> Action Arena 1 – EU level Actors at EU-level debating & designing LEADER and other policies Action Arena 2 – Polish national level Polish administration designing detailed LEADER regulation Action Arena 3 - Region /local community Individuals and organisations build partnership & design strategy Action Arena 4 – Local Action Group Members of LAG and other locals interact, develop and implement projects … Rules -> Rules -> Projects Jobs Cultural events Nature protection New ideas, external funding, motivation Polish official rules for PPL+ LAG Strategy Trust Synergy Owner-ship Shared understanding EU – regulation on LEADER+ - Community Attributes - Rules in Use - Biophysical World - Community Attributes - Rules in Use - Biophysical World - Community Attributes - Rules in Use - Biophysical World - Community Attributes - Rules in Use - Biophysical World Source: Own depiction, based on IAD-framework (Ostrom 2005) Analysing the LEADER programme: Different levels in implementation and analysis

14. Rules -> Action Arena 1 – EU level Actors at EU-level debating & designing LEADER and other policies Action Arena 2 – Polish national level Polish administration designing detailed LEADER regulation Action Arena 3 - Region /local community Individuals and organisations build partnership & design strategy Action Arena 4 – Local Action Group Members of LAG and other locals interact, develop and implement projects … Rules -> Rules -> Projects Jobs Cultural events Nature protection New ideas, external funding, motivation Polish official rules for PPL+ LAG Strategy Trust Synergy Owner-ship Shared understanding EU – regulation on LEADER+ - Community Attributes - Rules in Use - Biophysical World - Community Attributes - Rules in Use - Biophysical World - Community Attributes - Rules in Use - Biophysical World - Community Attributes - Rules in Use - Biophysical World Source: Own depiction, based on IAD-framework (Ostrom 2005) Analysing the LEADER programme: Different levels in implementation and analysis

15. Rules -> Action Arena 1 – EU level Actors at EU-level debating & designing LEADER and other policies Action Arena 2 – Polish national level Polish administration designing detailed LEADER regulation Action Arena 3 - Region /local community Individuals and organisations build partnership & design strategy Action Arena 4 – Local Action Group Members of LAG and other locals interact, develop and implement projects … Rules -> Rules -> Projects Jobs Cultural events Nature protection New ideas, external funding, motivation Polish official rules for PPL+ LAG Strategy Trust Synergy Owner-ship Shared understanding EU – regulation on LEADER+ - Community Attributes - Rules in Use - Biophysical World - Community Attributes - Rules in Use - Biophysical World - Community Attributes - Rules in Use - Biophysical World - Community Attributes - Rules in Use - Biophysical World Source: Own depiction, based on IAD-framework (Ostrom 2005) Analysing the LEADER programme: Different levels in implementation and analysis

16. Adequate design of rules by EU and national administration important for success • Two major steps of functioning of LEADER in the region1) collective action + coordination -> 2) concrete projects + activities • Coordination of goals and activities with broad participation of local actors is the major first step to make the programme work. Analysing the LEADER programme - conclusions

17. 3) The Pilot Programme LEADER+ in Poland – some lessons learned

18. It‘s possible to implement LEADER with good results, even in regions with little experiences • Decisive for success are people who want to engage in the programme and understand the idea(-> support common engagement in the community) • Information about experiences with the programme or similar activities (potential benefits!) are an important motivating factor LEADER+ in Poland – lessons learned

19. Very important role of training of animators by FAOW -> spreading the understanding of LEADER as bottom-up programme • Important to involve stakeholders (especially potential beneficiaries + experts) from rural areas into the design of detailed regulations for LEADER • Especially in the first phase: broad spreading of information to rural inhabitants (independently of animator) would enhance success LEADER+ in Poland – lessons learned

20. Challenge: Domination by local administration -> undermining the functioning mechanism of the programme • Targeting the right people and a careful design of rules is more important than a high amount of money (?) • Is there a ‚pigmalion effect‘? -> Are formal partnerships without much engagement developing engagement, participation and synergies in a later step? LEADER+ in Poland – lessons learned

21. -> Programmes like LEADER can help to get the people „at one table“ and encourage them to coordinate common goals and activities. This can allow for synergies and the use of common potential of a region. • -> participation of diverse local actors is vital! • -> collective action takes time, but it pays ! -> have some patience, if it seems slow or difficult in some phases LEADER and Collective Action – some final conclusions

22. Thank you for your attention! • I‘m looking forward to questions and a discussion of the topic!