Boosting women-led innovation in farming and rural areas

The role that European women play in rural development and in farming is still widely under-researched. And so is their role as entrepreneurs and innovation leaders, the specifics of the innovations they develop and how the current governance framework contributes to boosting their innovation capacity or to hampering it. Current evidence suggests that this role is underestimated and that the potential of rural women to contribute to sustainability transitions remains partially untapped, in particular due to a lack of targeting in policy frameworks and innovation support systems.

Proposals should analyse the role that women play and will play in the future of rural areas considering megatrends in European rural economies and communities in general and in farming in particular (proportion of official and non-official farm labour, involvement in innovative activities, role in social capital, specific social challenges and risks, relation to environment and environmentally-friendly farming practices etc.), highlighting differences between and within studied countries. They should analyse the specifics of women-led or gendered innovations in farming and in rural communities (specific needs and challenges, sectors and activities, scope, outcomes and benefits, hurdles and obstacles, knowledge and support sources and various forms of social capital involved), the relevance of the agricultural and rural knowledge and innovation systems for women, including education, training and advice. To this end, proposals should actively support a number of practical user-centred women-led interactive innovation initiatives to create knowledge of the specifics of women-led innovation processes, favour exchanges across initiatives and derive new knowledge and practical tools for women, support organisations and policy makers at national (including Associated Countries) and EU level to enhance change.

Proposals should benchmark EU and national policy and legal frameworks on farming and rural development for their gender equality performance, taking into account the new European gender equality strategy. They should also formulate recommendations on how to improve legal, policy or governance frameworks in rural economies in general and in farming in particular to support women-led innovation and women’s role in farming and rural economies.

Proposals should be transdisciplinary, with a key role for social sciences and humanities (SSH) such as sociology, psychology, economics and innovation studies. This topic should involve the effective contribution of SSH disciplines. Social innovation should be considered alongside other types of innovation[[Social innovation is defined for this topic as “the reconfiguring of social practices, in response to societal challenges, which seeks to enhance outcomes on societal well-being and necessarily includes the engagement of civil society actors”. (SIMRA)]]. Proposals must implement the multi-actor approach, involving women rural innovators and supportive organisations in all tasks alongside scientists, innovation support services and other relevant actors all along the project. The consortia and practical innovation initiatives supported should be located in a set of different locations representing the diversity of European rural socio-economic conditions. Proposals should include a task to coordinate with other proposals funded under this topic, as well as under topics on the ‘expertise and training centre on rural innovation’ (HORIZON-CL6-2021-COMMUNITIES-01-02), ‘smart solutions for smart rural communities’ (HORIZON-CL6-2022-COMMUNITIES-02-01-two-stage), other relevant projects[[These could include for example projects that will be funded under HORIZON-CL6-2022-COMMUNITIES-01-02: Assessing and improving labour conditions and health and safety at work in farming; ‘HORIZON-CL6-2021-GOVERNANCE-01-26: Deepening the functioning of innovation support’ and ‘HORIZON-CL6-2022-GOVERNANCE-01-14: Improving preparation of multi-actor projects to enable the relevant actors to work in a co-creative way’.]] and with future common agricultural policy networks[[Currently ENRD and EIP-AGRI (https://ec.europa.eu/info/food-farming-fisheries/key-policies/common-agricultural-policy/rural-development_en#enrd) to be replaced by the networks to be funded under the future CAP: https://ec.europa.eu/info/food-farming-fisheries/key-policies/common-agricultural-policy/future-cap_en]], to build synergies in engagement activities and dissemination and exploitation of results.