Beyond the agricultural sector in Latin America: territorial approaches for rural development

A recent transition in the field of agrarian economics theory for rural development is the move from a narrow agricultural sector approach, to one which adopts broader territorial vision. This passage seeks to interpret interactions between urban and rural worlds in a more comprehensive manner.This relatively new theoretical perspective is of particular interest to academics and politicians in Latin American countries where, since the mid 1990s, the concept of new rurality has been seen as the source of a new approach to rural development. Therefore the theoretical purpose of this research is to clarify the analytical signposts of the new rurality theme in Latin America and to identify the differences between sectoral and territorial approaches considering the socio-economic, institutional and environmental aspects involved. The transition from sectoral to territorial approaches also means, from an operative point of view, the recognition of homogeneous areas for the suggestion of rural development strategies. The operative purpose of this research consists in proposing a methodology to identify these areas with an application in the Maule Region in Chile. The conclusion underlines some critical elements that should be considered in the definition of territorial rural development strategies.sectoral and territorial approaches, rural development policy, new rurality, Latin America, Chile, cluster analysis

Who are Rural Students? How Definitions of Rurality Affect Research on College Completion

Given a revived national discourse about rural populations, more educational research on rural students is necessary, including ways that rural students transition to college and the success (or lack thereof) that they experience once there. However, the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) has changed the definition of rurality used in each iterative dataset over the last few decades, casting doubt on the consistency of what is meant by the term rural. The purpose of this study is to: (a) communicate to the educational research audience various ways of defining rural students, and specifically how NCES has changed their definition of rurality over their last three major data collections; (b) demonstrate how conclusions about rural students’ and their college degree completion may differ based on these alternate NCES definitions; and (c) discuss how this specific example using NCES data relates to the wider landscape of research on rural students. Results show that conclusions about college degree completion change depending on the definition of rurality used for analysis. Therefore, the education research community should consider the options for defining rural students, report transparently about the choices made, consider the sensitivity of results to the definition of rurality, and ultimately build a more robust body of literature concerning rural students’ college success. Gaining definitional clarity will be beneficial, particularly for those who wish to translate their research into practical action for the benefit of rural students

Rurality, productivity and skills in the East Midlands: final report

This report sets out the findings of research into the relationship between rurality, skills and productivity in the East Midlands. The report has been prepared by the Enterprise Research and Development Unit (ERDU) at the University of Lincoln on behalf of the East Midlands Development Agency (emda)

Voices of girls with disabilities in rural Iran

This paper investigates the interaction of gender, disability and education in rural Iran, which is a relatively unexplored field of research. The responses of 10 female students with disabilities from Isfahan indicated that the obstacles they faced included marginalization, difficulties in getting from home to school, difficulties within the school building itself, and discrimination by teachers, classmates and school authorities. The data collected for the study contain a wide range of conservative gendered discourses, and show how traditional gender beliefs interact with disability to aggravate the problems faced in education by young women with disabilities. It is hoped that the findings will raise awareness among policy-makers of the many formidable obstacles that make it difficult for young women with disabilities to achieve their full potential in education

The relationship between rurality, skills and productivity in the East Midlands: final report

This report sets out the findings of research into the relationship between rurality, skills and productivity in the East Midlands. The report has been prepared by the Enterprise Research and Development Unit (ERDU) at the University of Lincoln on behalf of the East Midlands Development Agency (emda)

The relationship between rurality, skills and productivity in the East Midlands: summary

This summary report sets out the findings of research into the relationship between rurality, skills and productivity in the East Midlands. The report has been prepared by the Enterprise Research and Development Unit (ERDU) at the University of Lincoln on behalf of the East Midlands Development Agency (emda). The full report, which includes the detailed data analysis that underpins the findings set out in this report, is available separately

Regional Concentration and Specialisation in Agricultural Activities in EU-9 Regions (1950-2000)

Both traditional (von Thünen) and modern (Hayami & Ruttan, Krugman) theories on land use suggest that productions with a high value added per unit of land tend to be located near urban centres. In this article it is tested to what extent these theoretical findings are confirmed by empirical data on agricultural land use and production for the EU-9. The focus is not only on the degree of concentration and specialisation, but also on their development over time. Growth and decline of agricultural productions are here related to the degree of rurality. It is found that high value productions indeed tend to be located in urban regions. It is also found that most specialisation patterns that already existed in 1950 are even stronger in 2000

'Country life'? Rurality, folk music and 'Show of Hands'

This paper examines the contribution of folk music to understanding the dynamic, fluid and multi-experiential nature of the countryside. Drawing from literature on the geographies of music, it examines the work of 'Show of Hands', a contemporary folk band from Devon in England. Three areas are studied. First, the paper examines the musical style of Show of Hands in order to explore how hybridised, yet distinctive, styles of music emerge in particular places. Second, it demonstrates how Show of Hands' hybrid musical style has become closely associated with the Southwest of England. Finally, within these spatial and hybrid contexts, attention is given to the ways in which their music represents the 'everyday lives of the rural'. Taken together these themes assess the relevance of music in the understanding of rurality as hybrid space. © 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Rurality, Locality and Industrial Change: A Micro-scale Investigation of Manufacturing Growth in the District of Leominster

Geographers have recently sought to understand countryside change by examining economic restructuring and its impact on local social coherences. However, despite renewed interest in the locale, many investigations of the rural economy have been at a macro-scale. It is argued that this broad brush approach has neglected many important aspects of rural restructuring and, in particular, the importance of social and cultural constructions of change. This paper considers manufacturing growth in rural areas and focuses on western Hereford and Worcester. Based on the findings of a micro-scale investigation of a rural industrial estate, it examines the causes of manufacturing growth and assesses its impact on job creation, local restructuring and in-migration. Copyright © 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd

Rurality or distance to care and the risk of homelessness among Afghanistan and Iraq veterans

INTRODUCTION: To date, no studies have examined the relationship of rurality and distance to nearest VA facility to risk of homelessness. METHODS: We examined differences in the rate of homelessness within a year of a Veteran's first encounter with the VA following last military separation based on rurality and distance to the nearest VA facility using multivariable log-binomial regressions. RESULTS: In our cohort of 708,120 Veterans, 73% were determined to have a forwarding address in urban areas, 59.2% and 86.7% lived within 40 miles of the nearest VA medical center (VAMC), respectively. Veterans living in a rural area and those living between 20+ miles away from the nearest VAMC were at a lower risk for homelessness. CONCLUSIONS: Our unique dataset allowed us to explore the relationship between geography and homelessness. These results are important to policy makers in understanding the risk factors for homelessness among Veterans and planning interventions