• The national cooperation project "Tierra Minera" receives the public award for revitalizing historic mining areas and converting them into tourist destinations.
• For its part, the European cooperation project "5StarNature" received the first prize from the jury for developing nature tourism events at an international level in their respective rural areas.

The second European LEADER Congress (Poitiers, France, October 2-3) brought together Local Action Groups ( LAGs ) from across Europe to discuss each group's ongoing cooperation projects. It's important to remember that cooperation has become an essential pillar of the new CAP for the continued implementation of LEADER; networking at the regional, national, and EU levels should be a priority for LAGs in this new era, given that knowledge sharing and transfer are essential in a new global world.

Within this framework, the " LEADER 2024 European Cooperation Awards " were held . These awards were presented to LEADER projects whose implementing LAGs have worked in cooperation, regardless of the level. However, the cooperation project had to be implemented during the 2014-2022 programming period. Thus, four prizes were awarded: three jury prizes and one popular prize awarded by the public after a virtual voting period with all the projects selected by the competition jury.

Prize for Spain

In both the Jury's First Prize and the Audience Award, Spain received the following awards:

• First Jury Prize: 5StarNature Project :

This is a cooperation project that brings together four European countries (Finland, Spain, Estonia, and Italy) to develop and host international rural tourism events and highlight nature tourism in their respective rural areas. This involves the creation of international networks of local tourism businesses. The project's premise is to consider nature tourism as an opportunity to diversify rural economies.

Six LAGs began working together on the 5Starnature project . In Spain, the participating entity is DIVA , the Association for the Integral Development of the Ambroz Valley ( Extremadura ). Its manager, Diego Curto, explains to the PAC Network that "the project has helped internationalize tourism in the Ambroz Valley, which is why the ' Magical Autumn ' in the Ambroz Valley has been declared a 'Festival of International Tourist Interest' by the Ministry of Culture and Sport, a boost undoubtedly provided by this project."

The project was implemented from 2018 to 2020 and continued from 2021 to 2024. During this continuation, the 5StarNature II project developed rural cycling and cycling tourism events. This new phase includes the existing UNESCO Geoparks in Spain, Finland, and Italy, which will play an important role in the 2023-2027 CAP programming period. As a result, the project has requested the creation of a geopark in Estonia.

• Popular Prize: “ Tierra Minera ”

This cooperation project, which won through public voting, is clearly national: it is led by six territories located in three autonomous communities: Aragon, Castilla la Mancha, and Andalusia , and with a common past: mining .

The project's goal is to recover and preserve the mining region through sustainable and innovative tourism utilizing new technologies, serving as a positive stimulus for the local economy. Thus, "Tierra Minera" offers immersive journeys into Spain's mining heritage as a tourism product through exploration of underground galleries, interactive exhibits, and augmented reality applications, bringing the past to life in a dynamic and engaging way.

The 6 GAL members of the project are: Association of the Office for the Promotion and Development of the Mining Basins , Rural Development Group of the Alto Guadiato Valley , Montesur Association , Association for the Comprehensive Development of Bajo Martín and Andorra Sierra de Arcos , Association for the Comprehensive Rural Development of the Lands of Jiloca and Gallocanta and Association for the Development of the Upper Ebro River .

Following an initial phase during the LEADER period 2014-2020, the aim is to extend the "Tierra Minera" brand throughout Europe as a model for other European regions facing similar challenges, enabling them to leverage industrial heritage for sustainable development.