Special Issue "Sustainable Rural Development and Land Use Planning"

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

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 October 2021.

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Gema Cárdenas
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Art and Territorial Sciences, University of Extremadura, 10071 Cáceres, Spain
Interests: rural development; rural tourism; local development; Geographic Information Systems; geographical information technologies
Prof. Dr. Ana Nieto Masot
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Art and Territorial Sciences, University of Extremadura, 10071 Cáceres, Spain
Interests: human geography; rural development; demography; geographic information systems
Special Issues and Collections in MDPI journals
Prof. Felipe Leco Berrocal
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Art and Territorial Sciences, University of Extremadura, 10071, Cáceres, Spain
Interests: human geography; rural development; agrarian landscapes; rural tourism

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The European Rural Development Policy and, specifically, the LEADER Approach, are key tools in the endogenous, local, participatory and sustainable development of the rural environment and in its planning as an inhabited territory withneeds. Throughout its 30–year history, they have been rethought several times, with 2021–2027, according to the usual community operation, being the sixth programming period. During all these stages, the importance and repercussions of the method for the

European rural environment and for those territories that have taken it as an example, are unquestionable, and perhaps even more so today due to the demographic and socioeconomic reality faced by the different entities and public administrations that manage the funds.

We are interested in papers that study and investigate, both from theoretical and normative points of view as well as quantitative and statistical, the history of the Rural Development Policy and LEADER from its character of “community initiative” with specific funds assigned by the European Commission for each State Member until its consolidation, in 2007, as an axis of action of the EAFRD (European Agricultural and Rural Development Fund). In addition, it is necessary to investigate the new approaches for the future period 2021–2027 and the implementation of similar models in other regions of the world, that is, the future of public action policies designed to achieve greater and better rural development and not only at the European level, but also in other rural territories with the same needs, even more so in the current context of clear political and economic uncertainty.

We consider this an important multidisciplinary problem in which numerous researchers are involved. We encourage authors to submit contributions in the following priority areas to this Special Issue of Sustainability:

  • Strategies with which to alleviate the demographic and socioeconomic problems of the rural environment and to contribute to sustainable land use planning.
  • New models of sustainable rural development for land use planning.
  • Approaches of rural development and their evolution in the world, e.g., European policies and rural development programs and strategies to diversify the rural economies.
  • Rural partnerships and their roles in the development and stability of the rural economy and population.
  • The past, present, and future of rural development policy in Europe and its influence on other rural areas in the world.
  • Transnational cooperation for rural development.
  • Gender perspective in rural development policies.

Prof. Gema Cárdenas
Prof. Ana Nieto Masot
Prof. Felipe Leco Berrocal
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 papers will be 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 1900 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

  • sustainable rural development
  • sustainable land use planning
  • rural development programs and strategies
  • participatory local development strategies
  • rural development and land use planning
  • LEADER approach and local action groups
  • local development and rural areas

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

Article
An Ex Ante Analysis of the Planned Transportation Network in the Region of Extremadura (Spain) by Using Physical Parameters
Sustainability 2021, 13(11), 5947; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13115947 - 25 May 2021
Viewed by 774
Abstract
Some relevant transport infrastructures are expected to be built in Extremadura, a Spanish region. Future investments could transform the regional transportation system and therefore could act as an important lever for economic and social change. The text describes the current situation and also [...] Read more.
Some relevant transport infrastructures are expected to be built in Extremadura, a Spanish region. Future investments could transform the regional transportation system and therefore could act as an important lever for economic and social change. The text describes the current situation and also the planned infrastructures, and an ex ante study is developed. The research has set the deficiencies of Extremadura in terms of transportation network, but current planning proves that the rail and airport infrastructures in Extremadura are set to involve a significant change of model. Moreover, the importance of taking into consideration the transport planning documents of neighboring countries in the transport analysis of bordering regions and the negative consequence of designing national and regional transport plans without considering the neighboring plans have been described. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Rural Development and Land Use Planning)
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Article
Enabling Factors for Better Multiplier Effects of the LEADER Programme: Lessons from Romania
Sustainability 2021, 13(9), 5184; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13095184 - 06 May 2021
Viewed by 491
Abstract
LEADER is an EU development method that aims to stimulate local actors to cooperate and co-produce ideas and projects that otherwise would not be possible. Therefore, the Local Action Groups (LAGs) should not only focus on implementing the Local Development Strategies but also [...] Read more.
LEADER is an EU development method that aims to stimulate local actors to cooperate and co-produce ideas and projects that otherwise would not be possible. Therefore, the Local Action Groups (LAGs) should not only focus on implementing the Local Development Strategies but also to actively contribute to the development of their territory. The aim of the present paper is to underline the most important tangible indirect multiplier effects produced by the LAGs in Romania in the 2014–2020 Programming Period and to identify the enabling characteristics and conditions for maximizing such effects in future LEADER actions. The study was conducted using the structured interview as a primary method for collecting data. The results were analyzed using the Principal Component Analysis and Hierarchical Cluster Analysis. The most important multiplier effects were the amount of non-LEADER grants that LAGs managed to attract and the innovation level of the projects supported from LEADER funding. The results show that the performance of LAGs is linked to the size of their team, their experience, and the involvement of their partners. However, not all LAGs managed to generate significant multiplier effects, suggesting that they still lack the experience necessary to successfully implement the method in their territories. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Rural Development and Land Use Planning)
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