Institutional weakness and the lack of territorial management instruments and mechanisms is one of the main problems faced by local , departmental and national governments in Latin America in the field of management and development of rural territories. To face this situation, initiatives to be taken must necessarily include research on management and territorial development mechanisms at municipal level, the dissemination of good management practices of territorial development and mostly the diffusion of new ideas and postgraduate training under a pragmatic pedagogical approach focused on action and case studies.
EARTH project addresses the lack of skilled human resources and to the weakness of training programs in HEIs related to rural development management and planning. Overall objective is to capitalise the experience of EU partners, in view of enhancing the management, governance, teaching, research and outreach capacities of PC HEIs’ to reinforce their role in the promotion and management of processes of local rural development. This will allow to better align PC HEIs research and teaching activities with pressing local socio-economic challenges and key national development goals related to rural development and to become better integrated into their external environment and be better positioned to contribute to local economic growth of the rural sector.
These objectives will be realized also through an online library, a white book summarizing and presenting a repertory of good practices, a method manual, online workshops and international courses for putting in common educational programs, quality assurance procedures, teaching materials, and to improve them with input from society in terms of required skills and jobs in rural development topics.
As a result, the promotion of homogenization dynamics affecting educational patterns will improve international cooperation ability and effectiveness supporting the efforts played at national and regional levels.