The common West European problems are the following: population ageing and proportional (and often also absolute) decline of the labour force. These deficits are partially covered by the East-West migration flows for work, but these labour force movements generate similar problems on the labour...

The sparsely populated northern Sweden has been the main target area for regional policy efforts since the 1960s. A rich variety of regional policy measures have been launched over the years. However, despite this and a heavy expansion of welfare undertakings a significant depopulation has taken...

The theory of path dependency reveals that in the territories, where the population is characterized with worsened structure, the infrastructure is affected by underdeveloped problems and the amenities are not enough evinced, it is difficult to expect designation of activities, creating new...

Rural development processes can be interpreted as the result of an increasingly complex interplay of different driving forces. The 'rural web' concept, developed recently as a theoretical framework, emerges as the intersection of six inter-related dimensions (endogenity, novelty production,...

The aim of this study is to analyze the theoretical fundaments of the social networks and to present some existing rural development networks in the North-Eastern Development Region in Romania. A successful rural development depends to a very large extent on the partnerships. The existence in...

The main directions of rural policy aimed at improving the quality of life and stimulate economic activities in the EU are: improving and developing infrastructure; diversification and development of economic activities; training and education of the population in rural areas. Indicators used for...

Social and economic transformations in Poland had as one of the consequences the fact that rural areas faced a number of difficulties and challenges. In connection with the political system transformation and Poland's accession to the European Union, problems appeared, concerning mainly the...

Our primary focus in the present paper is to research the current state of social infrastructure in rural areas of Ukraine. In addition, we attempt to identify the factors which impact the establishment of appropriate conditions in support of vital social functions and services among the...

This article, devoted to the issue of non-agricultural economic activity in rural areas, reports upon the latest statistical data, as well as material obtained by way of field study. Successive sections acquaint the reader with the contemporary functional structure of rural areas, the areas in...

Resources addressed in this work are human and social ones. They are integral parts of the institutional arrangements domain from the rural web concept. Institutional arrangements are drawn parallel with New Institutional Economics (NIE) in this study. Inside NIE the paper focuses on Social...