Rural proofing helps ensure that the needs, opportunities and realities of rural areas are considered throughout policymaking. Rather than being a final check once a policy has been designed, it works best when integrated across the policy cycle – from agenda setting and policy design to implementation, monitoring and evaluation. Recent Rural Pact and OECD exchanges have explored how rural proofing can be applied in practice. Drawing on the OECD Rural Principles Series, a

Connect on What Matters to Rural Areas. The Rural Pact Community Groups are online spaces where civil society, researchers, public authorities and citizens exchange experiences and explore solutions on topics including energy, tourism, culture, depopulation, youth, and Smart Villages. Discussions are in English but automatically translatable into any EU language. Join a group, share your work, and connect with stakeholders across Europe.