ABOUT US
The Story of RURENER
Back in 2008, rural communities committed to the energy transition got together within the European project RURENER (Intelligent Energy Europe programme). The project brought together 12 partners from 8 European countries: France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Romania, Scotland and Spain and built a network of over 700 rural municipalities across Europe.
The RURENER story could have ended in 2011, when the E.U. funding stopped, but the partners agreed to create the RURENER association, to keep up the network’s dynamic and a mean for rural communities to stay conencted with one another. It was just the beginning of a long story of rural communities working together towards a more sustainable future.
Between 2011 and 2016, RURENER worked on various European projects to facilitate cooperation and peer-to-peer learning. RURENER gained visibility at the European and international level, with a notable participation to the COP21 in Paris.
In 2017, RURENER took a new turn and recruited its first employee thanks to a pilot project “2017, Year of innovation for rural energy” cofunded by the French General Commissary for Territorial Equality (CGET). The project allowed to expand the network, to access new funding opportunities on different E.U. programmes (Interreg Sudoe, Citizens Equality Rights and Values, ERASMUS…) and to build up the team with the recruitment of a 2nd long-term contract employees in 2019.
Along with the growth of the network, new questions arose and in 2024, the members changed RURENER’s governance and economic models with the goals of: strengthening sustainability, responding better to members’ needs and expanding the network. It led to the recruitment of a third long-term contract employee in 2025 to provide more services to the members and continue to build our little community.
Vision & Values
RURENER’s vision is to build a European community that is aware of the potential of its rural territories to make the transition a reality. RURENER promotes a cross-cutting approach to rural development. The diversity of the members and countries within RURENER reflects its vision of a plural Europe.
The members share common values:
Optimism, the conviction that rural communities are places of opportunity;
Realism, the importance of cooperation at the local and European levels to successfully conduct territorial transitions;
Sharing, the key role of sharing successes but also difficulties and failures, to guide others wishing to learn from our experience as accurately as possible;
Solidarity, among rural communities in Europe, with different possibilities, languages, cultures but united by common challenges;
Sustainability, Just action, transversal to all public policies or activities carried out, capable of not undermining the shared principles of a sustainable society.
Missions
Developing tools and resources for the conduct of rural transitions
Facilitating spaces of cooperation, at local and European level
Providing tailored support to rural communities in transition
Bringing up the voices of rural areas to European decision-makers
Why join the network?
To seize new opportunities and experiment innovative approaches for the planning and conduct of territorial transitions, hand-in-hand with European counterparts
To share experiences with peers, to be inspired and inspire others
To promote your community’s achievements at local and European level and gain visibility
To benefit from European funding opportunities along with enriching partnerships
To make your voice heard by European decision-makers
Our goals
RURENER’s goal is to support stakeholders committed to rural development in the definition, deployment and implementation of strategies and projects for the ecological and social transitions.
More specifically, RURENER:
Produces knowledge and tools to support local authorities in defining and managing local transition strategies;
Encourages and facilitates cooperation, the exchange of experience and the transfer of skills between its members in Europe;
Puts its expertise at the service of rural communities, aiming to optimize the social, economic and environmental impacts of energy transition projects and strategies in rural areas;
Promotes local action at European level to ensure greater recognition of the essential contribution of rural areas to Europe’s transition, and better integration of their needs into European policies and programs.
Staff
Céline SEINCE, Director
With a background in anthropology and social sciences, Céline manages the small RURENER team and is directly involved in the on-going projects to support Salomé and Marion. She specializes in the facilitation of dialogue spaces and socio-political analyses.
Salomé PEGARD, in charge of network animation and European advocacy
Salomé is a graduate in Rural Geography from the University of Limoges. She commenced her professional engagement with the RURENER organization in February 2025. Her current responsibilities encompass the coordination of European advocacy and network development for RURENER. Prior to this role, Salomé gained valuable experience through contributions to a cultural association operating within a rural territory, as well as employment within a rural collectivity, specifically a gathering of municipalities.
Marion ERIKSSON, in charge of supporting territorial transitions
Marion used to work for an ecological non-profit organization in Île-de-France. She is mainly working with Massif Central territories to support them in their transitions’ topics.
Testimonies
