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Innovative Strategies for Rural Development: Advances in Sustainable Agriculture and Responsible Agritourism

A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Agriculture".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 14 February 2026 | Viewed by 1543

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Department of Law and Enterprise Management in Agribusiness, Faculty of Economics, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Wojska Polskiego 28, 60-637 Poznań, Poland
Interests: agritourism; tourism; ecoagritourism; rural development; agriculture progress; economic diversification; rural revitalization; entrepreneurship growth

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Guest Editor

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Guest Editor
Department of Law and Enterprise Management in Agribusiness, Faculty of Economics, Poznań University of Life Sciences, Wojska Polskiego 28, 60-637 Poznań, Poland
Interests: entrepreneurship development in rural areas; development of rural tourism and agritourism; local heritage (culinary heritage, local and traditional products); short food supply chains

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Innovative strategies for rural development are transforming traditional agricultural practices and local economies by integrating advances in both agriculture and tourism.

Agritourism is the combination of agriculture and tourism. Thus, responsible agritourism promotes sustainable agriculture and creates opportunities for economic diversification by immersing travelers in farming practices, experiencing local culture, enjoying farm-to-table dining, engaging in hands-on agricultural activities, and supporting local communities.

These initiatives generate additional income streams and foster a deeper appreciation for rural lifestyles and the natural environment.

This emerging approach encourages rural communities to adopt eco-friendly farming techniques, utilize renewable energy, and implement precision agriculture technologies that optimize resources while minimizing environmental impact.

This Special Issue explores the intersection of agriculture and agritourism, focusing on innovative strategies that promote sustainable growth in both sectors, while also addressing potential conflicts and negative impacts. The topic of agritourism has recently gained momentum due to its potential to enhance rural economies, promote cultural exchange, and ensure environmental conservation.

Dr. Jarosław Uglis
Prof. Dr. Gniewko Niedbała
Dr. Anna Jęczmyk
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • rural development
  • sustainable agriculture
  • regenerative agriculture
  • rural and agritourism
  • responsible agritourism
  • regenerative agritourism
  • ecoagritourism
  • farming tourism
  • rural revitalization
  • animals in tourism

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

26 pages, 1929 KiB  
Article
Socio-Economic Determinants of Climate-Smart Agriculture Adoption: A Novel Perspective from Agritourism Farmers in Nigeria
by Ifeanyi Moses Kanu and Lucyna Przezbórska-Skobiej
Sustainability 2025, 17(12), 5521; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17125521 - 16 Jun 2025
Viewed by 520
Abstract
The existing body of scholarly work on the adoption of Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) in Africa and Nigeria has predominantly concentrated on the experiences and practices of smallholder farmers. While these studies offer valuable insights into the general factors that influence the adoption of [...] Read more.
The existing body of scholarly work on the adoption of Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) in Africa and Nigeria has predominantly concentrated on the experiences and practices of smallholder farmers. While these studies offer valuable insights into the general factors that influence the adoption of CSA practices, their findings may not be fully applicable to the burgeoning agritourism farmers in Nigeria. This study presents a novel perspective on the socio-economic determinants of CSA adoption among the nascent agritourism farmers in Nigeria. The data were collected through a well-structured questionnaire administered to 436 agritourism farmers in Nigeria. The five mutually inclusive endogenous variables that capture the impact of CSA practices were agroforestry system, improved livestock management, organic farming, crop rotation/intercropping, and farmer field schools. While the agritourism farmers possess moderate experience and education, significant gaps exist in access to critical resources like credit, climate information, extension services, and membership in agritourism cooperatives/associations. The multivariate probit (MVP) model revealed that agritourism farming experience significantly boosts crop rotation/intercropping adoption. Education enhances organic farming uptake but negatively impacts improved livestock management. Similarly, extension services access promotes farmer field schools while discouraging organic farming. Significant negative covariance matrix between CSA practices suggests overlapping demands for limited farm resources. Full article
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28 pages, 8091 KiB  
Article
Research on the Evolutionary Game of Quality Governance of Geographical Indication Agricultural Products in China: From the Perspective of Industry Self-Governance
by Guanbing Zhao and Kuijian Zhan
Sustainability 2025, 17(8), 3414; https://doi.org/10.3390/su17083414 - 11 Apr 2025
Viewed by 570
Abstract
Clarifying stakeholder demands and establishing an efficient quality governance system are key to geographical indication development. Current frameworks focus on government oversight, neglecting industry self-governance through associations. A four-party evolutionary game model—production organizations, governments, associations, and consumers—was developed to explore the impact of [...] Read more.
Clarifying stakeholder demands and establishing an efficient quality governance system are key to geographical indication development. Current frameworks focus on government oversight, neglecting industry self-governance through associations. A four-party evolutionary game model—production organizations, governments, associations, and consumers—was developed to explore the impact of self-governance on quality. Results show association-led self-governance reduces government burdens and improves efficiency. Its success depends on government support and fair interest distribution. Additionally, the evolutionary system exhibits two optimal equilibrium points at different stages of geographical indication development. Even under relatively relaxed supervision by local governments, the governance system remains functional during the mature development phase. Lastly, a reputation mechanism incorporating consumer participation can effectively shape the decision-making processes of production organizations, while the costs associated with governance participation and complaints play a critical role in influencing consumer strategy choices. Full article
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