A scientific approach referring to the reseach network development with the following objectives: • improvement of the degree of integration/involvent of the research-develop-ment-innovation (RD1') units in Romania with concerns in the field of rural development into the European research...

Rural Studies is a network initiative between ten Finnish universities. This paper discusses Rural Studies as an innovative approach for pulling together the limited national resources of academic rural expertise. There are many background factors for the establishment of Rural Studies network,...

The paper presents an initial stage of a modest empirical study of the web sites run by a set of Polish self-governmental authorities of a definite level. The study, which is an on-going effort, is carried out according to the standard WAES methodology. The region, for which the study is being...

The statistical analysis of rural change is traditionally based on classifications of administrative regions, like municipalities or provinces. These classifications do not allow fine-grained interregional analysis of rural change. Especially in sparsely-populated countries, like Finland, the...

Sustainable development of agriculture and rural areas is a complex issue. Therefore, identifying the needs for sustainability, study the stage of its conceptualization, developing methods and implementation instruments, require the involvement of different scientific fields. Their role varies...

Knowledge flow systems are an essential component of Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation Systems (AKIS). A traditional view of a knowledge flow system would include research as a source of knowledge, extension and education as knowledge and information channels, and agricultural entrepreneurs...

Due to the increasing priority orientated towards more integrated policy concepts, such as rural development policy, there is a growing need to address the concept of multifunctionality for policy assessment. In particular, the dependence of the various tasks and services provided by agriculture...

The main objective of this paper is the diagnosis and evaluation of ICT use in farming. The area of research presented in the study covers the region of Mazovia, which represents different types of rural areas and diverse forms of agriculture. Mazovia region is characterised, on the one hand, by...

In Hungarian rural areas the low level of population density and income, the unfavourable age structure and the other economic conditions signifi - cantly differ from urban areas; and the differences among micro-regions are also increasing, which results in different standards of living and...

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...