Rural development. The case of two communities

Cristina Tomescu; Alin Casapu; Mihai Pitel

doi:10.35782/JCPP.2022.4.5

Cristina Tomescu Senior Research II, Research Institute for Quality of Life, Romanian Academy,
Alin Casapu Scientific Researcher III, Research Institute for Quality of Life
Mihai Pitel Assistant Researcher, Research Institute for Quality of Life

DOI: https://doi.org/10.35782/JCPP.2022.4.5

Keywords: rural community, development, social inclusion, education, employment, social services

Abstract

The article was elaborated within the MarginalRural project, a grant of the Romanian Academy, carried out between 2019 and 2022. The purpose of the grant was to collect data from several rural and small urban communities and analyze the demographic data but also data regarding infrastructure, health and education services, sources of income, local employers and more. The analysis included different perspectives, respectively an institutional one (through the opinions of representatives of public institutions), an entrepreneurial one (through the reflected opinion in interviews with local entrepreneurs) and that of vulnerable groups (through the opinions of interviewed disadvantaged people). The objective of the project was to analyze the phenomenon of rural development/underdevelopment and reveal the factors that influence development or marginalization.