GREEN ENTERPRISE: A Framework for Planning and Implementing Local Level Strategies Serving Sustainable Socio Economic Development
Τhe project Green Enterprise focuses on rational spatial management; taking the Enterprise as a major Actor for sustainable development of the Community, while recognizing the effective management of Environmental Resources as a critical factor for sustainability, the project aims to develop and test a coherent – integrated framework for rational planning and implementation of strategies for promoting and supporting the development of “Environmentally Conscious” and “Socially Responsible” business units. Sustainable, balanced and harmonized spatial development is at the core of the “Green Enterprise” project, which seeks to contribute substantially to planning and implementing such kind of strategies, policies and measures in the ARCHIMED area. Taking Environmental Management as a cornerstone for rational and sustainable Spatial Planning, leading – either directly or indirectly - to significant outcomes at various categories of socio-economic evolution, and considering the need for coordinated exploitation of all resources and means, the project introduces “Green Enterprise” as a critical factor for successfully intervening in the said planning and implementation process and for achieving viable results and impacts. In this frame, enterprises are considered to play key roles in the overall “developmental structure” of a territory, being potentially able to act as a lever of important local forces, while also they are at a great extent responsible for critical aspects of the environmental evolution process. The partnership will move towards elaborating and testing of a rational, flexible and applicable “Green Enterprise Framework”, setting the ground for capacity - building in the field of design and establishment of suitable actions aiming to widen, strengthen and integrate environmental management processes. The axes around which the project action will be deployed (and the relevant goals) are: • Construction of a coherent conceptual Framework that will provide a synthetic, systemic and systematic approach in designing, implementing and managing regional and trans-regional level interventions serving environmental resources’ conservation and management. • Focus on the Enterprise “Social Behaviour”, which is considered to rank among the main routes for effectively implementing strategies, policies and measures in favour of environment and, in general, of sustainable development at local/regional level. • Integration into the framework of the Local Agenda 21 goals and provisions (achieving Sustainable Development through linking Social and Economic Development, Conserving and Managing Resources, Strengthening Participation etc.). • Animation and active involvement of significant local Actors. • Production and testing of effective and applicable tools supporting Enterprises to move towards the “Green Enterprise” status. • Development of transterritorial / transnational cooperation in the frame of a viable Network providing extensive know–how and expertise.