The Intercoop Foundation has developed in Spain Bioes2, a methodology wich allows to promote the implementation of entrepreneurial initiatives that bring wealth and sustainable development in rural áreas.
To achieve this, they have created a tool to gather information on resources of specific rural areas and create indicators that quantify these resources, so that decision can be made to develope sustainable economic activities. In this process, Bioes2 boost the participation of civil society in each area, a team of experts and public and private entities of the territory and its own technical team.
The result of the application of this methodology is a comprehensive report on the economic value of land and assets that comprise it.
This document is available to all people who want to start an activity in the reference area and serves to make business decisions reliably. In adition, Bioes2 opens information offices in each área to support entrepreneurs with advice about the creation and implementation of their initiatives.
The Bioes2 project was developed between 2010 and 2013 in four rural areas of the Spanish territory: Els Ports and Alto Palancia in Valencia, and Deza and Ordes in Galicia. This work reveals that there are four lines that can create sustainable economic initiatives: tourism, environmental, productive and social.
Therefore, Bioes2 made the initiative public in other Spanish rural areas and in Greece, Romania and Bulgaria, where they also have been able to implement the methodology.