The overall objective of CONSOLE is to boost innovation in the lasting delivery of agri-environmental-climate public goods (AECPGs) by EU agriculture and forestry. To achieve this objective, CONSOLE developed a Community of Practice to co-create an empirically validated contractual framework, and to design and support the implementation of effective and efficient contract models. It brings together a range of actors typically involved in the design and implementation of AECPGs contracts, including farmer organisations, regional administrations, consultancy companies, research institutions and water and forest management bodies.
The project involves the development of an operational framework to support the design of contractual solutions for the voluntary provision of agri-environmental-climate public goods, built around four interconnected dimensions: a) context variables related to the farming/forest system; b) contractual features; c) contract’s performance variables; d) process description.
This is complemented by the analysis of ca. 60 case studies of a wide spectrum of contract solutions from within and outside the EU, supported by surveys of around 2 700 land managers and 500 other stakeholders in 12 different countries.
The CONSOLE framework is available online as a web application and includes: a) a catalogue showcasing successful experiences and good practices in AECPGs contracting and cooperation models; b) improved AECPGs contracts solutions and their assessment for different levels of governance; c) a comprehensive guide to the process for the design of AECPGs contracts; d) documentation, training and supporting materials.
