GRIDET is the Research Group on Territorial Development of the Universitat de València, which was set up by the Sociology and Social Anthropology Department of the Faculty of Social Sciences and proposes an approach to the phenomenon of local development from a multidimensional perspective, bringing together not only the academic side (from the participation of professors from the aforementioned department and the Institute of Local Development -IIDL-. The professional aspect (from the participation of Employment and Local Development Technicians and Agents -AEDL- from ADLYPSE (Federation of Technical Personnel in Local Development Management of the Valencian Community). With this triangulated vision of reality, for GRIDET, development is not a possibility but a territorial need, and as such it is necessary to act. So much so that the conception of the territory-population binomial as a whole - integral vision -, which requires each and every one of the resources present in it - integrated vision - and which aims to achieve synergic effects - integrating vision - are the main characteristic features of the work carried out by this group.
GRIDET provides a vision of local development that relies on the territory as a physical support for the implementation of actions but takes into account the people who live there as the ultimate recipients of any intervention in this respect. It provides a vision that is not present in the majority of the Institute's research groups, which are more focused on territorial actions. It is also made up of professionals who provide an applied vision that allows for the continuous transfer of all its activities to the territory.
GRIDET is committed to providing a vision of territorial development from a socio-economic perspective, based on knowledge of the reality of the territory and the local development model in place, and which seeks to propose actions, instruments and methodologies that are useful for public actions to achieve their objectives, to improve the reality of the territory and its population. Local development processes that are currently underway to ensure that each territory is aware of and competent in terms of its capacity (resources, actors and dynamics) to face the future with guarantees, in order to tackle processes of socio-territorial innovation to develop the territory. GRIDET aims to help territories make this transition.
- AEDL
Analysis and study of the professional performance of the AEDL (Employment and Local Development Agents). As an essential element in the process of implementing public policies for socio-territorial intervention, the AEDLs have become the central figure in the local development model, whereby knowing their reality, activity and problems are aspects of great scientific interest that can greatly help in determining the actions to be undertaken. Knowing who is carrying out the actions in the territory also provides a guarantee that these actions will have one result or another.
- Local development
Analysis and study of the local development model implemented in the territory as a framework for the implementation of actions that allow the improvement of the territory and its population. Analysis and study of the effects that public actions have had on the territory since this model was implemented in the 1980s. What has been its evolution, what aspects require improvement in order to favour processes of integral development of the territory. The search for answers to questions linked to the effectiveness and efficiency of the resources invested makes this line of work strategic for the future of the territory and its population.
- Socio-economic territorial innovation
Analysis and study of the socio-economic processes that occur in the territory. Socio-territorial innovation as an element that allows territories to face local development processes is a matter of interest for any public administration with competences in this area. Even so, this social innovation suggests the need for each territory (local, regional, provincial, etc.) to be able to determine what its territorial singularities are, i.e. those aspects that enable it to face the future with guarantees. This has a lot to do with whether a territory can be considered as a competent territory, i.e. whether it has sufficient resources, whether it has actors who implement these resources and whether, as a result of this, active dynamics are generated so that these singularities allow local development processes to be articulated.
Contributors
- Mónica Bou Pastor - Federación ADLYPSE VC (Valencia)
- José Domingo Martínez Valencia - Diputació de València
Tarongers Campus
Av. dels Tarongers, 4
46021 València (Valencia)
