On 23 October 2025, in the village of Ličiūnai, Vilnius district, a scientific-practical conference entitled „Increasing the vitality of rural regions“ was held, organised by the team implementing the BASCIL project („Innovative Solutions for the Rural Food Production Sector to Diversify into Sustainable Culinary Tourism Services (BASCIL)”) in Lithuania. The event brought together experts in rural development, tourism and social innovation, local leaders and policymakers for a joint discussion on how tourism, community initiatives and innovative solutions can become a driving force in revitalising Lithuanian regions.
The aim of the conference was to bring sectors together and promote partnerships
Conference participants from the Lithuanian Centre for Social Sciences, the Lithuanian Rural Tourism Association, the Klaipėda Region Association, Vytautas Magnus University, municipalities and local communities discussed how to strengthen the economic and social potential of rural areas through culinary tourism, short food supply chains and social innovation.
Opening the conference, Dr. Agnė Vaitkuvienė, Viktorija Paldauskė and Dr. Rasa Melnikienė emphasised the importance of cross-sectoral cooperation in ensuring that the vitality of rural areas is based on local initiatives, sustainable entrepreneurship and social responsibility.
The expert discussion „How can tourism inspire life into rural areas?“ raised questions about the challenges of cooperation and the factors for success. Participants sought answers as to why cooperation initiatives often fail to take root in Lithuanian regions and what could encourage small tourism businesses to join networks, creating real added value.
The experts participating in the discussion – Olga Gončarova (Agency Travel Lithuania), Prof. Dr. Vilma Atkočiūnienė (Vytautas Magnus University), Lina Noreikaitė-Rimkienė (Pociūnėliai Community) and Albertas Barauskas (Kretinga District Municipality) – shared examples of how successful partnerships between business, science, local government and communities can create sustainable tourism clusters.
Scientific insights and practical examples
The results of the BASCIL project and other examples of European initiatives – the ESIRA and GRANULAR projects – presented at the conference revealed how social innovation and universal design can be applied in rural development.
Dr. Vitalija Simonaitytė, Dr. Rita Lankauskienė, and Dr. Živilė Gedminaitė-Raudonė gave a presentation „Creating a food tourism ecosystem: the Lithuanian experience“, in which they analysed how food tourism ecosystems can become a model for sustainable regional development, connecting producers, service providers and tourists into a common network. The experience of the BASCIL project revealed that culinary tourism is becoming not only an economic but also a cultural source of vitality for rural areas.
Dr. Rita Lankauskienė, Dr. Vitalija Simonaitytė, Dr. Živilė Gedminaitė-Raudonė, and Dr. Dalia Vidickienė gave presentation entitled „The potential of local communities in implementing social innovations: The case of Druskininkai Municipality“ based on the results of the ESIRA (Enhancing Social Innovation in Rural Areas) project, the presentation discussed how social innovations help rural communities address local challenges, strengthen their self-governance and create new formats for cooperation.
Dr. Monika Belhaj and Dr. Živilė Gedminaitė-Raudonė gave a presentation on „Universal design for increasing rural vitality: The experience of Ignalina district“, in which they presented and discussed the results collected during the European Horizon project „Giving Rural Actors Novel Data and Re-Useable Tools to Lead Public Action in Rural Areas (GRANULAR)“.
With its activities coming to an end in late 2025, the BASCIL project marks an important step towards more vibrant, resilient and collaborative rural areas. The project team hopes that the experience and partnerships gained will serve as a springboard for new joint actions with interested organisations in the future.
More information about the project: https://interreg-baltic.eu/project/bascil/
The project is implemented by:
Dr. Živilė Gedminaitė-Raudonė (project manager in Lithuania) tel. (8 5) 261 7978, e-mail: zivile.gedminaite@ekvi.lt ;
Dr. Rita Lankauskienė, e-mail: rita.lankauskienė@ekvi.lt;
Dr. Vitalija Simonaitytė, e-mail:vitalija.simonaityte@ekvi.lt .
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