#ARIAwards24: Empowering young people

This year’s Agricultural and Rural Inspiration Awards (ARIA) are now launched and attracting interest from Member States. ‘Empowering young people’ is a new and important slogan for #ARIAwards24 and this message was chosen because it reflects National Network (NN) priorities for ARIA 2024. Food security, environmental resilience, and the socio-economic fabric of rural areas, including gender equality, will also be among the categories of prize winners for ARIA 2024.

Following the success of ARIA23 and its CAP-funded good practice project winners, NNs were consulted on new topics and categories for ARIA 2024. NN responses placed emphasis on youth empowerment and gender equality in addition to creating a competitive agricultural sector, supporting innovation in agriculture and rural areas, as well contributions to the CAP environmental and climate change objectives.

Following on from last year’s awards, 'ARIA 2024: Empowering young people' will showcase the active participation of rural stakeholders and their contribution to the CAP’s three General Objectives, namely:

1. fostering a smart, competitive, resilient and diversified agricultural sector ensuring long-term food security;
2. supporting and strengthen environmental resilience, including biodiversity, and climate action and to contribute to achieving the environmental and climate-related objectives of the Union, including its commitments under the Paris Agreement; and
3. strengthening the socio-economic fabric of rural areas.

Youth will be the fourth category for ARIA 2024. Additionally, this year’s jury will present a special prize for CAP-funded entries that specifically promote gender equality actions. Furthermore, ARIA 2024 aims to further promote rural stakeholder projects that deliver the Long-Term Vision for the EU’s Rural Areas and contribute to the Rural Pact.

ARIA 2024 continues to focus on seeking out the inspirational value of its project entries, with an aim to attract projects capable of demonstrating strong impact stories that can be shared and networked around Member States. The competition is an ideal opportunity to provide visibility for project promoters as well as helping communicate the activities of the NNs and EU CAP Network’s wider stakeholders.

ARIA 2024 applications are submitted only through NNs. So if you have a project that you would like to enter please contact the NN in your Member State – you will find contact details for them on the National Networks page on our website. The EU CAP Network will evaluate all the submissions and shortlist the finalists, from which an expert jury will select the winners. Once the short list is finalised, we turn to you the public to choose your favourite, and cast a vote through the online 'Popular Vote'. All winners will be announced during the award ceremony scheduled for winter 2024.

For regular updates on the competition, follow the EU CAP Network website #ARIAwards24 section and social media.