The third European Rural Parliament (18-21 October 2017 – Venhorst, The Netherlands) resulted in the Venhorst Declaration, calling on “citizens and policy-makers to support the vitality of rural areas and to ensure that general policies and programmes are rural proofed.”

The Declaration – supported by over 250 representatives of rural communities in 40 European countries – advocates the creation of sustainable rural communities and a new era of bottom-up development. Participants at the event further made proposals for a new European fund for Community-led Local Development (CLLD).