IMALP - Implementation of Sustainable Agriculture and Rural Development in alpine

These guidelines constitute one of the tangible products of the IMALP project.

This guide is intended for use in the context of rural development projects, in particular when the role of agriculture and the involvement of local farmers are crucial. It emphasizes the role of farmers in local participation groups with a view to facilitating their empowerment in rural development projects.

The objective of this guide is to provide practical advice for setting up and more especially implementing collective action based on multi-stakeholder groups to promote sustainable agriculture at the local level in the Alpine region.

The guide targets in particular :

• Local actors and technical advisers in the field of agriculture and rural development;
• Advisory services, training institutions and administrative departments for agriculture and rural development.

The guide is distinguished by two innovative aspects :

• A framework for both the design and implementation phases of a project. The special focus on the implementation of actions sets the guide apart from the majority of the existing methods which are mainly concerned with the design phase.
• A method for clarifying the key moments in the social dynamics associated with the design and implementation phases of a project: This involves formalisation of the problem and project objectives by a group of stakeholders, gradual involvement of a broad variety of actors and institutions, formalisation of the roles and commitments of each partner, and collective management of actions over time. Project design and implementation is usually regarded as a linear process with a series of successive phases to be planned and managed: definition of objectives and risks, planning of actions and breakdown of tasks, implementation, and finally evaluation of actions. In this guide, we have tried to provide a framework to facilitate the understanding and handling of the social dynamics that arise during projects and that often result in overlapping phases, modified objectives, and controversies.

The guide is organised into six chapters, with theoretical parts and also some examples of concrete actions implemented during Imalp:

Chapter 1. Introduction

Chapter 2. General principles

• Designing action to promote sustainability
• The imalp project set-up
• Addressing the question of sustainability in agriculture

Chapter 3. Key factors determining success in collective action

• Factor 1 : management of group diversity and actors’ roles      
• Factor 2 : support for actors in their roles as decision makers
• Factor 3: management of changes
• The role and skills of the local facilitator
• Looking back: evaluating the success of the action

Chapter 4. Phases in managing a collective action

• Formulating the problem
• Broadening the scope of actors
• Sharing roles and duties
• Taking joint action

Chapter 5. Some examples of specificactions

• Development of tourism and on-farm educational activities in Val d’Hérens (Valais, Switzerland)
• On-farm educational activities in Val di Sole (Trentino, Italy)
• Establishing a new production and marketing chain: Hérens beef (Val d’Hérens, Valais, Switzerland)
• Working conditions in Moyenne-Tarentaise and creation of a services cooperative (Savoie, France)    
• Cooperative for wood fuel: Naturwärme St. Lambrecht (Murau, Styrie, Austria)
• Landscape management in val di sole (Trentino, Italy)

Chapter 6. Glossary of practical tools that can be used in the participative process.