Objectives & approach: Improving regional prosperity through better resource utilization on dairy farms and stakeholder cooperation. DAIRYMAN will strengthen rural communities by improving farm resource management in a profitable way. New ways of working and innovations will be jointly demonstrated within NWE networks of commercial pilot farms and Knowledge Transfer Centre’s. There will be cooperation in the development of education programs and interregional exchange of farmers and farm advisors. DAIRYMAN will highlight examples of profitable cooperation between dairy farmers and other rural stakeholders. Public authorities will be shown how to take into account region-specific factors by implementing EU regulations in a transparent way that can be easily verified by the EU. This will in turn reduce the cost of effective regulations, leading to a high degree of acceptance by local farmers. AIM: The aim of DAIRYMAN is to strengthen rural communities in the regions of North West Europe (henceforth NWE) where dairy farming is a main economic activity and a vital form of land use. It will lead to a more competitive dairy sector, stronger regional economies and an improved ecological performance within the rural area. WHY?: The climatic and soil conditions in NWE regions are excellent and they have an extensive market for dairy products close at hand. The downside is that ecological sustainability is generally low:nutrient and greenhouse gas emissions are high due to the inadequate use of fertilizers, feeds and energy. This in turn inhibits the ability of rural areas in these mostly densely populated regions to deliver other services apart from food production, such as producing clean water or providing opportunities for recreation. Moreover, the poor utilisation of increasingly expensive resources threatens the economic viability of dairy farms. HOW?: DAIRYMAN will strengthen rural communities by improving farm resource management in a profitable way. New ways of working and innovations will be jointly demonstrated within NWE networks of pilot commercial farms and Knowledge Transfer Centres. There will be cooperation in the development of education programmes and interregional exchange of farmers and farm advisors. DAIRYMAN will highlight examples of profitable cooperation between dairy farmers and other rural stakeholders. Public authorities will be shown how to take into account region-specific factors by implementing EU regulations in a transparent way that can be easily verified by the EU. This will in turn reduce the cost of effective regulations, leading to a high degree of acceptance by local farmers.