The CORA online workshops sensitised and inspired the attendees, provided them with practical knowledge and concrete guidelines on different topics of the digital transformation in rural areas in the North Sea Region.

The attendees met and exchanged with experts and stakeholders and gained knowledge on practical ways of approaching the digital transformation in a municipality. The workshops were free and open to everyone interested.

Workshop 1: Integrated Strategy, KPIs and Funding (27 October 2022)

This workshop provided guidelines and insight into why a digital transformation strategy for a small municipality is necessary, how it is structured and what an implementation process might look like. Next to a general review of digitalisation and digital transformation, we looked into Key Performance Indicators (KPI) of the digital strategy and explored ways of funding and financing and three good practice examples. The workshop tackled the complete cycle of a digital strategy: from the first ideas to the implementation. Detailed agenda, recording and further information are available at the event page.

Workshop 2: Smart devices and IoT (14 November 2022)

The workshop Smart Devices and IoT for municipalities was to generate insights and inspire municipalities to better understand how these Technologies can be applied in an optimal way to their specific realities. The workshop was cancelled, yet we are working on a written summary of main messages and actions that are relevant for municipalities in this field. Further information are available at the event page.

Workshop 3: Digital skills for employees (9 November 2022)

To not leave anyone behind, a municipality needs skilled employees to support citizens in using more digital services. Therefore, this workshop focused on the importance of digital skills in times of continuous digital change and transformation. Detailed agenda and further information are available at the event page.

Workshop 4: Stakeholder and Citizen Participation (1 December 2022)

This workshop explored how local public authorities can stimulate diverse stakeholders and citizens to actively participate in or even set up initiatives in their neighbourhood. The event especially focused on initiatives facilitated by digital technology or initiatives targeting the deployment and usage of digital technologies. During the workshop, several examples of citizen and stakeholder participation were introduced and the main obstacles as well as possible solutions were discussed. Detailed agenda and further information are available at the event page.

Workshop 5: Digitalisation of businesses (5 December 2022)

This workshop looked into why supporting digitalisation of businesses, particularly in rural areas, is important and examined how they can be engaged. Representatives from municipalities active in this field joined the workshop and shared their experience. Detailed agenda and further information are available at the event page.

Workshop 6: Cyber Security (7 November 2022)

This workshop delivered a holistic experience on Cyber Security for municipalities. The workshop raised awareness among municipalities about security in computer networks and helped better understand how digital and information technologies can be applied to their specific realities in a secure way. Detailed agenda and further information are available at the event page.