On 9 May 2022, EUROCROWD took part in a webinar organised by the Asturian Network of Rural Development (READER), in which Mauricio O'Brien, EUROCROWD’s Head of Regional Development, explained how crowdfunding is an alternative financing tool compatible with other existing methods in rural areas.

'Rural-collective financing: crowdfunding' webinar gave an overview of an alternative financing tool compatible with the application of different aids that even the European Union promotes among public administrations, as explained by Mauricio, who outlined the different options and projects that are working under this umbrella.

Mauricio O'Brien started by presenting the basics and different types of crowdfunding, the benefits provided by this mechanism, differences with other financing methods, and the challenges of this tool applied to the rural context.

He also explained the characteristics of match-funding and showed that any project must analyse what its financing needs are, taking into account the community and the communication even before starting the project, three pillars for the success of the campaign.

But what happens in rural areas? The social impact refers to the collective return or an impact on the SDGs beyond the product or service, "and this is where we talk about civic crowdfunding with those projects more focused on a social impact".

Mauricio O'Brien finished his intervention by presenting some projects developed in the Asturias region. One of the largest projects that began last year is La Benefica, in the municipality of Piloña. The initiative aims to convert an old factory space into a community place to carry out cultural activities. This campaign also included one of the largest match-fundings in Spain with the participation of a private entity, Primavera Sound, with an amount of €20,000.