High nature value farming: environmental practices for rural sustainability - Transition Pathways towards Sustainability in Agriculture: Case Studies from Europe - page 101

HNVF from the multi-level perspective
In the MLP, the niche is considered the locus of radical innovations. The niche is created by
actors at the local level and initiates various innovations that change the domina nt
(incumbent) regime (see Darnhofer, this volume). Therefore, we explored the interaction of
HNVF initiatives (in space and time) with the dominant regime and sub-regimes.
In the transition process, the socio-technical landscape pressures the regime to alter
practices where persistent problems exist, thereby creating windows of opportunity that
might be used by niches. In the case of HNVF, we observed the strong and direct influence
of the socio-technical landscape on niche development. Support instruments at national
and/or regional levels associated with HNVF classification can be interpreted as one of the
pressures at the regime level, which is strongly connected to the trends in EU CAP
instruments and reforms towards multifunctionality and post-productivism, as described in
previous sections. Therefore, the HNVF approach is considered (mostly) as a top-down
approach and thus the socio-technical landscape creates 'windows of opportunity' for the
niche to 'break through' the regime and to encourage niche-regime interaction. To some
extent, this challenges the theory of transition, the foundation of which is that the transition
has to happen through bottom-up initiatives. Despite being a top-down approach, HNVF
inspires bottom-up initiatives 5 such as adopting environmentally-friendly land and
landscape management practices for HNV grassland, biodiversity protection and nature
conservation in HNV areas in Europe, whilst at the same time promoting rural
development.
Regional context of HNVF and transition
The case studies
The areas studied are the Bessaparski Hills in southern Bulgaria, the Saint Amarin Valley
in eastern France, and the Baixo Alentejo in southern Portugal (Fig. 7.1). Case studies in
each region varied in terms of size of area, actors involved, time span and sectors
concerned. The Bulgarian initiative focuses on an individual protected area (Natura 2000
zone). The French case focuses on a valley in a Regional Nature Park (RNP) in the Vosges
Mountains. The Portuguese initiative focuses on three municipalities - Mértola, Barrancos
and Almodôvar - within which there are several protected areas (including Natura 2000). In
Bulgaria the initiative began following the implementation of a project by the Bulgarian
Society for the Protection of Birds (BSPB) aimed at conserving important grasslands and
encouraging farmers to adopt land management practices that conserve and maintain
existing biodiversity and habitats. The French initiative is undertaken by new entrants in
farming to bring abandoned farmland back into use and to conserve agri-pastoral areas in
the St Amarin Valley. The Portuguese initiative started with the project 'Valuing
Mediterranean wild resources' coordinated by the Municipality of Almodôvar and
promoted by the Association for Mértola Heritage Protection (ADPM). A key driving force
was the Programme for the Economic Value of Endogenous Resources (PROVERE), a
5 It was mentioned that the French case is a bottom-up initiative but it was possible after the CAP reform in 1992.