Dutch Royal Palace hears about social innovation in Scotland, Europe and beyond

"I am happy that ideas from the symposium were met with interest and encouragement by the honourable audience, which included members of the Dutch Royal Family"

The potential of social innovation to tackle depopulation in rural areas of Europe and beyond was the focus of a presentation offered by James Hutton Institute social scientist Professor Maria Nijnik at the Royal Palace in Amsterdam, with HM Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands and HM Queen Máxima in attendance.

Prof Nijnik’s talk was part of a Royal Palace Symposium and as part of the event she also led a workshop titled “Depopulation in rural areas: future perspectives” as well as a panel discussion on how social innovation can address current challenges. 

Prof Nijnik, who is a member of the James Hutton Institute’s Social, Economic and Geographical Sciences group, said: “I was delighted, honoured and uplifted of being given the opportunity to present at the Royal Palace.

“I am happy that ideas from the symposium were met with interest and encouragement by the honourable audience, which included members of the Dutch Royal Family, as well as representatives of the Amsterdam Royal Palace Foundation, the Mayor of the City and other highly respected guests.”

Prof Nijnik shared ideas and experiences of social innovation in the development of rural areas gained through research in Scotland – supportedby the Scottish Government’s Rural Affairs & Environment Strategic Research Programme – and her coordination of project SIMRA (Social Innovation in Marginalised Rural Areas), funded by the European Commission’s Horizon 2020 programme. SIMRA started in 2016 and features the participation of 26 partner organizations from EU and non-EU countries. 

Prof Nijnik expressed her gratitude to all those who contributed to the workshop and provided valuable input for the SIMRA project. Some of these suggestions focus on the need to support social innovation and advance the development of rural areas through capacity and relationship building in the Netherlands and the UK, as well as other countries in the region.