landscape with fields and hills
Empowering rural communities to act for change

Tools

RURACTIVE will provide a digital infrastructure that supports local communities and Rural Innovation Ecosystems to drive forward their local development in establishing Smart Solutions tailored to individual local needs. Central to the digital infrastructure will be an Adaptive Monitoring Tool and a Data-driven Decision Support Tool.

Both tools will be supported by a dedicated Data Manager System that determines the kind of data to be collected and the resources required in collecting them. The core functionalities of the Data Manager will be gathering data from multiple local digital solutions, storing the datasets and making these datasets available to be used by either the Monitoring Tool, the Decision Support Tool or external users through a straightforward User Interface. Specific digital connectors will be designed and developed to create a digital channel of communication between these tools and local digital solutions to bring into play micro-recommendations.

Adaptive Monitoring Tool

Through this easy-to-use, cloud-based tool, the implementation and effectiveness of the Rural Innovation Ecosystems’ smart community-led solutions can be continuously monitored and evaluated. It includes real-time data and data based on the six Rural Development Drivers central to the RURACTIVE research. Specifically defined indicators will measure the progress of co-developed local solutions over time, focussing on environmental, social, cultural and economic aspects. This will guide the smart transition of the local rural communities and ensure sustainable impact.

Once the tool is fully set up, access will be provided here.

Data-driven Decision Support Tool

Local rural communities are encouraged to develop Smart Innovative Solutions for a rural transition. The Decision Support Tool aims to support the process by providing easy access to existing knowledge, including currently available rural smart and community-led solutions, as well as tailor-made recommendations and suggestions based on local needs. It will also feed into life-long-learning digital material, developed in RURACTIVE, to help knowledge sharing and keep users up-to-date with modern methodologies. This will allow for sustainable rural innovation beyond the scope of the RURACTIVE pilot solutions.

The Support Tool will:

  1. feature a graphical user interface to let users find and explore existing innovative solutions, facilitated through mechanisms of data filtration, sorting and data analyses.
  2. include easy-to-use forms for users to include new data of innovative solutions to continue growing the value of data repositories beyond the project.
  3. explore the inclusion of geospatial imaging to support recommendations on climate change mitigation and adaptation as well as biodiversity.
  4. contribute to connecting rural communities for sharing each other’s best practices.

Once the tool is fully set up, access will be provided here.