Rural territories across Europe have been facing various structural challenges that have fueled a vicious cycle of decline, affecting their development potential and resilience to crises. Over time, it has been recognized that the strength and importance of the role of local actors in rural territories for social, economic, and environmental development is even greater than in urban territories. However, in rural areas, local actors have less leadership potential, and those who have this potential lack resources and training. Therefore, the need for training and preparation of these future local leaders becomes crucial.

This investment in enriching the skills of local actors will give them greater autonomy to face the difficulties they experience in these territories, in addition to contributing extraordinarily to greater inclusion and territorial and social cohesion, thereby reducing the existing asymmetries at these levels.

The Rural Leaders Academy aims to create and develop a training academy designed to promote the education and empowerment of local populations, ambassadors, and rural movers, covering:

• promote practices of social entrepreneurship with impact in rural territories;
• empower local agents in areas such as leadership, communication, digitalization, among others;
• create a network of interaction among various local leaders for the sharing of best practices;
• create a support network for those who wish to move/work/invest in rural territories;
• make the territories more attractive and dynamic.