Our research supports the development of rural businesses

Sustainable land and water use – including forests, fields and pastures, water and other resources – is about taking advantage of the potential of all local resources, including biodiversity. For the local company this includes seeing new opportunities in cooperation with other landowners. To succeed in this, the potential must be made visible and the landowner/entrepreneur need to have both the will and the conditions to take advantage of the new opportunities. Such a journey of change does not happen through the traditional methods that we are used to, instead we need new working methods.

Here, the SLU Competence Center for Advisory Services contributes by developing and implementing new methods that help actors gain insight into and benefit from the local resource base. One such methodology is the Land Use Dialogues, which has attracted considerable attention nationally. This involves, among other things, creating conditions for restoring forests to natural pastures, trying out nature-based solutions and developing plans to support green infrastructure.