The Citizenship Lab designs collaborative projects for territorial cohesion in Betancuria

The Government of the Canary Islands, through the Area of Presidency and the Directorate General of Transparency and Citizen Participation, has presented the Laboratory of Citizenship for Territorial Cohesion ‘Betancuria Experimenta’, a project to revitalize citizen participation and territorial cohesion to be launched this September in this municipality of Fuerteventura.

The general director of Transparency and Citizen Participation, Carmen Delia Alberto, presented the program to the group of neighbors, along with the mayor of Betancuria, Enrique Cerdeña, which aims to meet the 2030 Agenda, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and advance the development of local communities.

Alberto expressed his department’s commitment to fostering a more active and committed society in decision-making in public affairs, where greater participation contributes to strengthening relations between citizens and public administrations. “To achieve this objective -he pointed out- it is necessary to count on the complicity of the city councils, given their proximity to the citizens, incorporating the culture of citizen participation in their policies”.

In this sense, the general director thanked the municipal corporation, represented by its mayor, for the predisposition and support of the City Council to host this initiative.

For his part, Mayor Enrique Cerdeña thanked the choice of Betancuria as the setting for this project and stressed that this project represents a perfect complement to the efforts that the council has been making in favor of citizen participation.

The objectives of this laboratory include providing innovative tools to local political and technical decision-makers, mobilizing citizens, generating spaces for constructive meetings and raising awareness of the importance of territorial cohesion and interdependence between rural and urban environments, based on the value that each brings.

The laboratory’s approach is based on innovation, sustainability and the scientific method. It will use methodologies contrasted in other territories and will involve citizens from beginning to end, always guided by values of equality, inclusion and diversity.

The laboratory will be coordinated by the company TajeaLAB, with a scientific and collaborative approach, from the eco-systemic analysis, will work on the design of collaborative networks and the implementation of sustainable solutions.

Citizenship Labs

The Citizenship Laboratories are a tool to design and implement projects to achieve some SDGs within the framework of the 2030 Agenda, to improve the situation of the population in municipalities of less than 20,000 inhabitants.

On this occasion, Tijarafe and Valsequillo will join Betancuria to address the challenges of these territories from the collaborative work and experience of groups of people who live together and make their resources and possibilities available for a common goal.

For its part, the municipality of Tegueste in Tenerife was the precursor project of these laboratories, with the fundamental objective of cohesion between urban and agricultural territory, with a high level of citizen participation.