Search results
1 – 10 of over 5000Marcello De Rosa and Gerard McElwee
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…
Abstract
Purpose
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.
Design/methodology/approach
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.
Findings
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.
Practical implications
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.
Social implications
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.
Originality/value
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.
Details
Keywords
Umberto Martini, Karin Malacarne, Silvia Pederzolli Giovanazzi and Federica Buffa
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…
Abstract
Purpose
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).
Design/methodology/approach
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.
Findings
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.
Research limitations/implications
In the light of the exploratory nature of this study, a small convenience sample was used.
Originality/value
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.
Details
Keywords
M. Akhter Hamid and Mohammad Alauddin
Bangladesh has experienced a rapid expansion of shrimp farming in the coastal regions in recent years. The increase in both area and production has been influenced by the…
Abstract
Bangladesh has experienced a rapid expansion of shrimp farming in the coastal regions in recent years. The increase in both area and production has been influenced by the financial profit motive of rural farmers coupled with high international demands for shrimps and ecological congeniality for shrimp aquaculture. In the past the traditional farming systems in the coastal belts of Bangladesh centred around rice crop. In contrast, the introduction of shrimp aquaculture on a larger/commercial scale has developed shrimp‐based farming systems. Shrimp farming itself is less labour‐intensive than rice cultivation, especially when extensive methods of shrimp culture are practised. Hence, it has reduced on‐farm employment opportunities for rural landless. Nevertheless, shrimp production requires a substantial volume of labour in off‐farm ancillary activities, namely shrimp fry collection, shrimp feed collection, and shrimp processing and packaging for export. Most of this off‐farm work is performed primarily by rural women. This process has engendered a major shift in rural employment and occupational structure in the shrimp belt. Shrimp production has enabled rural women to earn more cash income and to become more active income‐earning members in rural households. While they used to contribute to their share of agricultural work in the homestead before the shrimp cultivation was introduced, now they work mostly outside their homes. This has forced them to stay outside of their homes for longer hours, which limits their time for household duties, more specifically looking after children. All these factors together have implications for the socio‐economic changes in the rural society. The findings that emerge indicate that a range of factors including rural power structure, centre‐periphery issue, rural‐urban migration determine the pattern and extent of employment. It is unclear whether greater employment opportunities for rural women have empowered them or have helped extricate them from various forms of discrimination and exploitation.
Details
Keywords
Mauro Giardiello and Rosa Capobianco
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…
Abstract
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.
Maria Della Lucia and Umberto Martini
The emerging challenges of the tourism market determine a strategic and urgent need to introduce the sustainability paradigm into destination planning in order to pursue balanced…
Abstract
The emerging challenges of the tourism market determine a strategic and urgent need to introduce the sustainability paradigm into destination planning in order to pursue balanced development and achieve or maintain a long-term competitive advantage. This chapter focuses on destination governance to build projects on the principles of sustainability by involving local stakeholders in decision making. The discussion on the application of an embedded governance model relates to marginal rural areas of Central European countries (Italy, Austria, Germany, the Czech Republic, Poland, and Slovenia), where the European Project Listen to the Voice of Villages leverages sustainable tourism to improve the welfare and quality of life of local communities.
Details
Keywords
Charalambos Kasimis and Apostolos G. Papadopoulos
A series of changes have taken place over the past 20 years that have transformed the face of rural Greece. At the heart of these changes have been the rural farm household and…
Abstract
A series of changes have taken place over the past 20 years that have transformed the face of rural Greece. At the heart of these changes have been the rural farm household and the European agricultural and rural development policies.The processes of de-agriculturalization and rural restructuring in the early 1990s have been accompanied by ‘rurbanization’ and socio-economic integration of rural populations. These interrelated processes have internally transformed the rural areas, thus forming a ‘new rurality’ characterized by contraction of agriculture, expansion of tourism and construction, increased pluriactivity, increased employment of international migrant labour and the reorganization of farm family labour and operation. However, in the environment of economic crisis, the conditions of the ‘new rurality’ have been affected by falling incomes, contraction of public services and by a ‘back to the land’ movement. This ‘reverse mobility’ has the elements of both modernity and tradition: engagement with new methods of organization and work and rediscovery of traditional crops, products and cultures.The chapter will discuss the characteristics and dynamics of the changing physiognomy of rural Greece in the past 20 years focusing upon three paths: the de-agriculturalization of the countryside, the perplexity of rural mobilities and rural resilience during the economic crisis. The chapter moves from a theoretical analysis of these paths to a detailed account of secondary sources on the transformation of agriculture and the countryside in Greece before it discusses the implications of the crisis upon the population movements and the ‘rediscovery’ of the economic, social and cultural values of rurality.
Details
Keywords
Dimitris Skuras, João Castro Caldas, Nicola Meccheri, Dimitris Psaltopoulos and Lourdes Viladomiu
The paper presents results from four surveys of rural businesses in mountainous and less‐favoured areas of Southern Europe. Institutional support to rural businesses is extensive…
Abstract
The paper presents results from four surveys of rural businesses in mountainous and less‐favoured areas of Southern Europe. Institutional support to rural businesses is extensive and delivered through the traditional instruments of capital subsidies, training and assistance to financial and technical management. Strategic orientations vary among case study areas and businesses. Results show that institutions should design and implement de‐centralised, flexible policies of business support in the less favoured areas of the European Union.
Details
Keywords
Wealthy rural areas, or rural areas in wealthy regions, have a specificity that should be taken into consideration both in empirical and theoretical research. In most of the…
Abstract
Wealthy rural areas, or rural areas in wealthy regions, have a specificity that should be taken into consideration both in empirical and theoretical research. In most of the cases, rural development in these areas depends not only on the capacity of rural communities to mobilise endogenous resources, but also to be able to link endogenous resources with outside networks. In Italy this approach has widely been put into practice through strategies centred on the link between local food and its place of production. To explore the implications of this link, the paper will explore the implication of an adoption of the concept of ‘terroir’. Terroir can be seen as a mix of a set of localised invariants in the space related to natural, cultural, and social spheres. It is highly specific of a place, as it is produced and reproduced through localised processes. The peculiarity of the ‘terroir’ is that it is embodied into the product, which means that it is the source of local products’ identity and specificity. Local products are then a component of a broader socio-technical system, and product and terroir co-evolve. What are the mechanisms that make local products keys to rural development in a neo-endogenous perspective? In a neo-endogenous perspective, valorisation of local products is mainly related to its capacity to be recognised and evaluated by outside observers as different (and possibly better) from others. This capacity is embodied into what Bourdieu calls symbolic capital. Symbolic capital becomes a thread linking ‘terroir’ and the product to external observers, and convey to them meanings like notoriety, reputation, and trust. In order to be able to create, maintain, and increase symbolic capital, rural communities activate communication practices within and outside themselves. This may generate conflicts as well as strengthen identities and alliances. Three case studies will show the network building processes related to the creation of symbolic capital and its mobilisation into food production and marketing. The Cutigliano case shows how a small community borrows symbolic capital from the outside to enhance its capacity to sell a local cheese outside the area. The Colonnata case shows the risk that neo-endogenous strategies generate interlocal conflicts, hampering its competitiveness as a whole. The Chianti case shows an internal conflict over the use of the symbolic capital with both positive effects on the public debate and potential negative effects on the cohesion of the area. All the three cases make possible a reflection on governance, and especially on the role of the state (or the regional administration) in the governance of these processes.
Sophia Stathopoulou, Demetrios Psaltopoulos and Dimitris Skuras
The present work provides an integrated view of rural entrepreneurship and sets the agenda for future research in the area. Rurality defines a territorially specific…
Abstract
The present work provides an integrated view of rural entrepreneurship and sets the agenda for future research in the area. Rurality defines a territorially specific entrepreneurial milieu with distinct physical, social and economic characteristics. Location, natural resources and the landscape, social capital, rural governance, business and social networks, as well as information and communication technologies, exert dynamic and complex influences on entrepreneurial activity in rural areas. Rurality is viewed as a dynamic entrepreneurial resource that shapes both opportunities and constraints. Rural entrepreneurship is depicted as a three‐stage sequential process highly influenced by specific territorial characteristics. The proposed research agenda addresses issues related to theoretical studies concerning entrepreneurial processes in rural areas and more applied issues concerning the formulation of integrated and competent policies supporting entrepreneurship in such areas.
Details
Keywords
Mary O'Shaughnessy, Enda Casey and Patrick Enright
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…
Abstract
Purpose
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.
Design/methodology/approach
The study includes both quantitative surveys of the service users and in‐depth qualitative interviews with selected passengers and key stakeholders.
Findings
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.
Practical implications
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.
Originality/value
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.
Details