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The purpose of the paper is to provide an analysis of the adoption of Rural Development Policies (Rdp) as the result of entrepreneurial behaviours carried out by family farms with a focus on the Lazio Region of Italy. Family farming is the backbone of the European model of agriculture. Rdp provide family farms with a set of opportunities which, if well exploited, could drum up farm’s development.

An empirical analysis of a data base provided by the Lazion region of Italy on the adoption of Rdp by family farms in the Lazio region for the period of 2007-2013. Cluster analysis is the main analytical tool used.

The results evidence significant differences in the adoption of rural policy on the basis of family life cycle and the composition of the family farm. The empirical analysis underlines the low degree of coherence by farms located in rural areas.

Farmers’ success in accessing funds requires them to be proactive and take a strategic perspective to convince funders that they have a coherent strategy which meets the requirements of the particular Rdp which they are trying to access.

In terms of policy, a more nuanced understanding of the entrepreneurial nature of some practices in a rural setting and how they require multi-agency investigation.

The paper is unique, in that it considers the consumption of policy by farmers who are entrepreneurial in their vision. By consumption of Rdp, we mean the farmer’s strategic capability to obtain funds from regional funding pots for rural development.

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the role of female entrepreneurs in the development of sustainable tourism in marginal rural mountain areas. This role is studied with reference to two focal points: female entrepreneurs’ involvement in the creation and management of tourism/hospitality services characterized by elements of authenticity, experientiality and innovation (Focus 1) and their willingness to create or participate in local stakeholder networks (Focus 2).

Exploratory research was conducted in mountain areas where tourism development is still marginal. In depth face-to-face interviews were conducted with 11 businesswomen in Trentino (Italy), who agreed to take part in this study.

Female entrepreneurs play a very important role in the development of sustainable mountain tourism. Elements of authenticity, experientiality and innovation are shown to be characteristic of female entrepreneurship, as is women’s propensity to create and foster local stakeholder networks (directly or indirectly) linked to their own businesses.

In the light of the exploratory nature of this study, a small convenience sample was used.

This research highlights specific features of female entrepreneurship related to the sustainable development of marginal rural areas and contributes to the academic debate on the topic. This topic is under-researched with regard to developed countries.

Purpose: The aim of the chapter is the analysis of the processes of inclusion and/or exclusion experienced by Italian and immigrant students who live in rural areas. This chapter specifically focuses on the forms of belonging that they develop in their districts and at school.

Study approach: The analysis is based on a mixed methods study that was carried out in a middle school of a rural town in Central Italy. For the research, a focus group was first carried out with middle school students, then a semi-structured questionnaire was administered to the students. Privileged witnesses (e.g., school managers, people working for voluntary associations, social service operators, political actors) were also interviewed. Their interviews provided additional information about the territory under study.

Findings: Findings indicate that school reproduces processes of stigma and marginality for immigrant school students. This is best illustrated through their sense of belonging to the district in which they live and the school where they attend.

Originality: This study analyzes the lives of young migrants and their Italian peers who live in a rural area of Italy. Additionally, it considers the processes that schools play in promoting inclusion and exclusion among young migrants and Italians. This work contributes to the literature on children and youth migrants, as well as the sociology of education. It motivates future research on the experiences of life and schooling among migrants who live in rural communities.

The purpose of this paper is the development of the Cinque Terre, a rural and marginal area until the 1960s, to a famous tourism destination and eventually to a place brand that is attracting tourists worldwide. Since the growth of this small area which winds between the see and the mountain has happened in only 50 years, the place has not been able to prevent the tourism crowd, hence, what was a great tourism opportunity has gradually transformed into a problem. The paper explores how this has happened and the initiatives that have been put in place to manage overtourism.

The case history was examined using economic statistics and territorial marketing methodology, as well as the evolution of the social and economic context. The approach aims to provide a new development perspective with respect to the evolution of the past (past 50 years).

The great development of Cinque Terre as international tourism destination has created a lot of economic benefits to the local economy but, at the same time, has revealed the other side of the coin. Cinque Terre has reached such a saturation level that risks the transformation of its heritage. Once a rural and shy area between sea and mountain, it has become a mass destination with too many visitors. Actions are under consideration not only to simply cool down tourism flows but also to re-address them, to educate tourism organizations to manage tourism in alternative ways and to better appreciate the beauty of the place.

Over-crowding in tourism, or over-tourism, is a new phenomenon caused by the increased flow of tourists worldwide and by their augmented concentration in locations that are not ready or able to host large numbers of visitors. Cinque Terre represents a topical situation in this respect.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the role of a rural‐based, social enterprise organising rural transportation to improve access to remote areas. It highlights the very important impacts of such a service for local residents and describes some of the challenges threatening the long‐term sustainability of this local initiative.

The study includes both quantitative surveys of the service users and in‐depth qualitative interviews with selected passengers and key stakeholders.

Typical services users are shown to be long‐term residents, female, elderly and living alone in isolated rural areas. The benefits of the service to these users include increased independence, reduced isolation and access to health and related care services.

The paper concludes that such services are very vulnerable to fluctuating priorities at the political level and recommends that further research and social return on investment may help to address this.

The paper provides an insight into the important social contribution of social enterprises in peripheral rural locations and highlights the vulnerability of these initiatives in difficult economic times.

This paper examines the challenges associated with rural women entrepreneurs in Oman. The study is based on women living in rural and highland areas who aim to move beyond their traditional roles in the family seeking avenues for growth and development. It identifies several problems encountered by rural women entrepreneurs and the impact on their future business opportunities.

A mixed research approach involving quantitative and qualitative elements was adopted for the study. The research is based on 183 survey responses and personal interviews with 8 rural women entrepreneurs. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was adopted to analyse the quantitative responses and depict a model featuring the intensity of the problems affecting business opportunities. Seven short cases based upon the interviews with rural women entrepreneurs are also detailed.

Several problems experienced by rural women entrepreneurs were identified hampering their business ventures, linked to personality, family, educational, socio-cultural, facilities, legal, financial and economic, organizational and geographical, out of which household, organizational and geographical linked problems were most significant. Entrepreneurial opportunities for rural women entrepreneurs are discussed.

The research suggests that the policymakers should holistically consider how the rural women engaged in informal business for various means can be better supported and sustained by overcoming associated problems, can achieve business opportunities and contribute to regional socio-economic development.

There is a limited literature available on rural women entrepreneurship in an Arab context. The study provides an overview of the challenges and problems experienced by these women and the support areas required to overcome them for their sustainability in this region.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the politics involved in local struggles against forestry extractivism. The forestry sector is dependent on vast areas of land for tree plantations. This creates deep-rooted conflicts between global corporations that seek access to natural resources and locals whose way of life requires the use of the same land.

This study draws on a political ontology frame of reference and storytelling methodology to build on testimonies of three small-scale farmers who actively seek to resist forestry plantations next to their land in rural Uruguay. The stories reveal the impossibilities they face when raising claims in the public political sphere and how they lack the means to organise strong collective resistance.

One of the testimonies reveals how the farmers engage in a form of “politics of place” (Escobar, 2001, 2008) to counter the power of the proponents of forestry and the further expansion of plantations. This form of politics strengthens and politicises the ontological difference between extractive and non-extractive worlds. The farmers seek to build new imaginations of rural living and sustainable futures without the presence of extractive corporations. They fulfil this aim by designing community projects that aim to revitalise ancient indigenous legends, set up agro-ecological farms, and teach schoolchildren about the environment.

The struggles of the farmers indicate the territorial transformations involved in (un)making (non)extractive places and the need to expand the analysis of the politics involved in struggles against extractivism beyond social struggles.

Profiles the WHATT theme issue: “Tourism sustainability in natural, residential and mountain locations: What are the current issues and questions?” with reference to the experiences of the theme editors and writing team.

The author has used structured questions to enable the theme editors to reflect on the rationale for the theme issue question, the starting-point, the selection of the writing team and material and the editorial process.

This paper identifies some of the key challenge for sustainable tourism in natural spaces and mountain areas with reference to the issues that impede sustainability and possible solutions.

The theme issue outcomes provide indicators and action points for tourism industry stakeholders and for teaching and research in sustainable tourism development.

This paper draws on discussion and applies research to identify and assess the scope and scale of action needed to address tourism sustainability in a diverse range of locations, with particular reference to Europe. Taken together, the theme issue collection of articles provides a rich picture of the changes that are needed and key actions for the future.