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A special issue of Energies (ISSN 1996-1073). This special issue belongs to the section "A: Sustainable Energy".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2021) | Viewed by 27488
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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Paweł Chmieliński

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Guest Editor

Department of European Integration, Institute of Rural and Agricultural Development, Polish Academy of Sciences (IRWiR PAN), Nowy Świat 72, 00-330 Warszawa, Poland
Interests: food systems, institutions, policy analysis; political economy; rural development; governance; community development

Prof. Dr. Mariantonietta Fiore

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Guest Editor

Department of Economics, University of Foggia, Via da Zara, 11, 71122 Foggia, Italy
Interests: food waste and loss; rural development and landscape; food innovation and health; food systems management and safety
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Rural areas provide food and resources that contribute to jobs, growth, and prosperity and help to maintain cultural heritage. They are also home to a wide variety of flora and fauna, wildlife, and natural environments. Above all, they are places where local communities live and work and are sources of innovation and social and economic activity. Modern rural policies must meet important challenges and stimulate a new revolution in order to foster changes in quality of life; boost the efficient use of resources by moving to a clean, circular economy; restore biodiversity; cut pollution; and accelerate our transition to a sustainable food system.

The Special Issue aims to be part of the debate on the future of rural areas and the role they have to play in our society in local economies and in the creation of a sustainable food systems and bioeconomy.

The bioeconomy covers all sectors and systems that rely on biological resources (animals, plants, micro-organisms, and derived biomass, including organic waste) and encompasses the production of renewable biological resources and the conversion of these resources and waste streams into value added products, such as food, feed, bio-based products, and bioenergy (European Commission, 2018)

The goal of the (bio)circular economy is to change philosophies and lifestyles fostering a cooperative-community user (using and re-using product value and function), which is in contrast to a consumer culture (only using physical products) (Korhonen et al., 2018).

In the framework of the EU Green Deal, the EC (2019) made public the "Farm to Fork strategy”, which intends to address the challenges related to the sustainability of food systems, recognizing the connections that bind the health of individuals, societies, and the environment. This strategy is based on six macro-objectives, which deal with the sustainability of food production, food safety, sustainability of processing and supply chains, promotion of sustainable food consumption, reduction of food losses and waste, and the fight against fraud in food supply chains.

In order to reach these new challenges, the youth population plays a crucial role in transforming food systems and rural areas in a dynamic way. Therefore, investing in young people can deliver significant results in terms of poverty reduction, improvement of rural areas, employment generation, inclusive engagement, and food and nutrition security.

The LEADER approach is also proving its value as a versatile tool for rural policy, offering the chance to involve local communities and authorities in positive transformation. Regional policies offer an opportunity to prepare well-tailored solutions, taking into account bottom-up initiatives.

We invite articles that creatively analyze the potential of rural areas, document the transformation of human and technical resources, and contribute to the debate on public policy instruments that reflect the directions of change in Europe, especially in light of the ambitious objectives to be climate neutral by 2050. We also welcome articles on rural development pathways and modern policies in different regions of the world.

Prof. Dr. Paweł Chmieliński
Prof. Dr. Mariantonietta Fiore
Guest Editors

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Keywords

rural policy analysis
food systems
sustainable and circular business models
bioeconomy development and policy
clusters, networks, communities
digital revolution in rural areas
new (bio) rural generation
smart and e-agriculture
rural smart communities and lands
governance and policy coherence
stakeholder involvement
regional and local development
economic and social impact analysis
demand and consumption patterns
value chain analysis
European Green Deal
EU Farm to Fork Strategy
long-term vision for rural areas

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Published Papers (9 papers)

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Research

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16 pages, 1169 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Which Stakeholders’ Sector Matters in Rural Development? That Is the Problem

by Tomasz Kusio and Mariantonietta Fiore

Energies 2022, 15(2), 454; https://doi.org/10.3390/en15020454 - 10 Jan 2022

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 2034

Abstract

In the age of COVID, the regaining of economies appears mostly imperative, and rural areas could play a crucial role in this framework. The question of inhabitants’ dispersion and low density, and the exodus of rural people to bigger urban centers have determined an adverse effect on rural development. Rural isolation rises to be a higher order good, delivering a higher degree of security in the pandemic context for those seeking refuge from gatherings of cities. Rural areas provide food, natural environments, and resources that help occupations, development, and wealth trends and preserve cultural heritage. Consequently, rural spaces are vital for several motives and thus it is essential to focus on issue of rural development, especially since lacking rural development does not allow dialoging about development in a regional and/or national perspective. This paper investigates the stakeholders’ impact on rural development, by considering the increasing role of stakeholders as well as the specificity of the diverse objectives pursued by these groups. As there are several stakeholder groups, attention was sweeping, defining them in a sectoral way to corporate, sciences, public administrations, and society. Where there was a need to distinguish among these sectors groups of stakeholders in a more detailed way, such identification took place, for example, in relation to social leaders. The analysis of the results of the questionnaire survey performed in 2020 aimed to accomplish the identified purposes of the paper. The online survey using the CAWI method was conducted in southeastern Poland among people representing all stakeholder groups. The outcomes of the investigation indicate the great prominence of business in the development of rural areas being able to generate added value and influence the increase of entity potential. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Public Policies for Rural Development: Circular Deals, Digital Revolution, and Inclusive Engagement)

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27 pages, 3415 KiB

Open AccessArticle

What Makes the Difference Is the Size and Proximity to the Centre: A Research Approach and Results of Territorial Cohesion Assessment at the Local Level

by Marcin Gospodarowicz and Paweł Chmieliński

Energies 2022, 15(1), 38; https://doi.org/10.3390/en15010038 - 21 Dec 2021

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2302

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to assess the territorial cohesion of municipalities (gminas) in Poland using quantitative data and non-parametric modelling techniques. The full population of 2174 Polish municipalities divided into rural and urban-rural municipalities was examined. The time interval of the study, i.e., 2005–2017, allows us to capture the changes stimulated by the implementation of the cohesion policy, i.e., the programme of socio-economic transformation in Poland, implemented in the programming period 2007–2013. Using the DEA approach, a general decline in the cohesion index value over time was recorded in the period of analysis. The results of estimating autocorrelation measures indicate a progressive tendency to build spatial clusters, where the size of the local administrative unit (municipality), measured by the population potential and spatial location of the municipality significantly affect the cohesion level. It was also found that there are limits of positive influence of the EU income on the possibility of achieving a high level of cohesion, hampered by a limited resource of own funds. The research method in this paper has been empirically validated and can be applied to territorial cohesion studies in other EU countries. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Public Policies for Rural Development: Circular Deals, Digital Revolution, and Inclusive Engagement)

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25 pages, 3362 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Towards Climate Neutrality in Poland by 2050: Assessment of Policy Implications in the Farm Sector

by Adam Wąs, Vitaliy Krupin, Paweł Kobus, Jan Witajewski-Baltvilks, Robert Jeszke and Krystian Szczepański

Energies 2021, 14(22), 7595; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14227595 - 13 Nov 2021

Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2881

Abstract

Climate neutrality achievement in the European Union assumes the necessity of efforts and transformations in most economic sectors of its member-states. The farm sector in Poland, being the second largest contributor to the country’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and in the top fifth of farm sectors in the EU-27 countries, needs to undergo structural and technological transformations to contribute to the climate action goals. The article assesses the potential impacts of Poland’s climate neutrality achievement path on the domestic farm sector in terms of its structure, output, income, and prices of agricultural products. The approach is based on complex economic modelling combining computable general equilibrium (CGE) and optimisation modelling, with the farm sector model consisting of farm, structural, and market modules. While the modelling results cover three GHG emission-reduction scenarios up to 2050, to understand the transformation impact within varying policy approaches, the study for each scenario of farm sector development also outlines three policy options: carbon pricing, forced emission limit, and carbon subsidies. Results in all scenarios and policy options indicate a strong foreseeable impact on agricultural output and prices (mainly livestock production), shifts in the production structure toward crops, as well as changes in farm income along the analysed timeframe. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Public Policies for Rural Development: Circular Deals, Digital Revolution, and Inclusive Engagement)

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23 pages, 910 KiB

Open AccessArticle

EU Rural Policy’s Capacity to Facilitate a Just Sustainability Transition of the Rural Areas

by Barbara Wieliczko, Agnieszka Kurdyś-Kujawska and Zbigniew Floriańczyk

Energies 2021, 14(16), 5050; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14165050 - 17 Aug 2021

Cited by 14 | Viewed by 3378

Abstract

The sustainability transition of rural areas is a must due to rapid climate changes and biodiversity loss. Given the limited resources of rural communities, policy should facilitate a just sustainability transition of the EU rural areas. The analysis of EU development policies, past performance and the envisaged scope of reform, presented in this study point to a serious inconsistency between the declaration and implementation of relevant policies. Namely, the marginal role rural areas perform in common agricultural policy and cohesion policy; a result of the lack of a complex approach to rural development. The analysis was based on the concept of good governance and took a multi-level perspective. It advocates territorial justice as an approach that should be at the core of creating a comprehensive policy for rural areas in the EU, including their diversity and empowering local communities to choose the transition pathway that is most in line with their current situation and development capacity. This analysis fills a gap in research on the evolution of the rural development policy in the EU. This research can inform the reprioritization and intensification of efforts to create equitable policies for EU rural development. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Public Policies for Rural Development: Circular Deals, Digital Revolution, and Inclusive Engagement)

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23 pages, 1277 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Socio-Economic Heterogeneity of Rural Areas: Towards a Rural Typology of Poland

by Monika Stanny, Łukasz Komorowski and Andrzej Rosner

Energies 2021, 14(16), 5030; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14165030 - 16 Aug 2021

Cited by 32 | Viewed by 4177

Abstract

The paper aims to identify the significant heterogeneity of socio-economic rural development in Poland by identifying different types of rural areas and clarifying the existing diversity. This objective requires the following: (1) defining the rural development in Polish conditions, (2) abandoning the urban–rural continuum concept, and (3) conducting an analysis involving data aggregated from the local administrative units (2173 gminas/communes). The approach is exploratory and is limited to two questions elaborating the main problem related to the scale and character of rural variety: What socio-economic types of rural area are found in Poland? How are they distributed spatially? The statistical procedure is based on Diday’s dynamic clouds typological analysis. This yielded seven types of rural areas that exhaust their diversity. The main indicator of the character of the different types is related to the level of deagrarianisation of the local economy. The authors argue that the a priori urban–rural continuum model should be abandoned in favour of a more open approach. Typologies based on local administrative unit data, which avoid a priori assumptions concerning rurality, provide an excellent insight into the heterogeneity of rural areas. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Public Policies for Rural Development: Circular Deals, Digital Revolution, and Inclusive Engagement)

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23 pages, 2948 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Boosting the Potential for GeoDesign: Digitalisation of the System of Spatial Planning as a Trigger for Smart Rural Development

by Marcin Wójcik, Karolina Dmochowska-Dudek and Paulina Tobiasz-Lis

Energies 2021, 14(13), 3895; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14133895 - 28 Jun 2021

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 2654

Abstract

This article sought to present a process of abrupt transition where technological innovation is concerned. The matter taken up in particular was accelerating digitalisation, in the wider context of digital transformation, and in this case, in reference to spatial planning issues. This article offers an assessment of the level of digitalisation and digital transformation of spatial planning, with this, in turn, making it possible to define the potential at the disposal of rural areas, as they seek to bring in the idea of smart rural development. The empirical analyses present herein are founded upon secondary statistical data as well as our own primary data on the subject of geoportals and their functionality in rural parts of the Łódź region (Poland). The assessments of both planning coverage and geoportal functionality reported herein provide insight regarding the potential for rural areas to implement the concept of GeoDesign, as an integral part of “smart rural development”. The research carried out made it clear that only a fifth of rural gminas in the region are of high potential where GeoDesign is concerned, while every third gmina has only very low potential. A further key conclusion is that rural gminas heading along the path of “smart development” may break out of a spatial order existing thus far on the basis of disparities, and a division of regions into a centre and peripheries. This is of major significance in the context of the diffusion of innovation that digitalisation and digital transformation represent. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Public Policies for Rural Development: Circular Deals, Digital Revolution, and Inclusive Engagement)

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22 pages, 6454 KiB

Open AccessArticle

What Solutions for Waste Management? Issues of Flows and Governance Exemplified by the Łódź Agglomeration (Poland)

by Damian Mazurek and Konrad Czapiewski

Energies 2021, 14(12), 3366; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14123366 - 8 Jun 2021

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2279

Abstract

This article seeks to propose a waste-management model based on qualitative and quantitative research. Specifically, an analysis of the flow of municipal waste was carried out, with the case involved being that of the biodegradable waste generated in households of Poland’s Łódź Metropolitan Area, which is heterogeneous from the points of view of both settlement structure and land use. The analysis of flows of waste then served an evaluation of the system of waste management in the study area, while also representing an important input into a process of identification of problems and possible solutions via so-called PULL (“Peri-Urban Living Lab”) workshop methodology. Indeed, the research detailed here was participatory throughout (from the stages of problem identification through to conclusion-drawing). All of these stages to the work were kept cohesive through the use of an advanced tool allowing for both analysis of the given area and the devising of strategies by which circular economy could be developed. Specifically, GDSE (GeoDesign Decision Support Environment) programming—devised within the framework of the REPAiR Project—offered opportunities for flows of different kinds of materials and raw materials across space to be identified. It also served in the implementation of Eco-innovative solutions (EIS), as were developed jointly in cooperation with participants of the PULL workshops. The article offers a synthetic presentation of the results of different stages to the research, along with a synthesis relating to the waste-management context, with particular account taken of the development of the circular economy. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Public Policies for Rural Development: Circular Deals, Digital Revolution, and Inclusive Engagement)

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30 pages, 1583 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Role of Local Investments in Creating Rural Development in Poland

by Agnieszka Kozera, Małgorzata Dworakowska-Raj and Aldona Standar

Energies 2021, 14(6), 1748; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14061748 - 22 Mar 2021

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2757

Abstract

Poland’s rural areas are characterised by a significant degree of development diversity, especially in the case of communes—the smallest territorial units. For development to take place, the entity responsible for its creation must incur the necessary investment expenditures. By implementing the public tasks assigned to them, communes are responsible for ensuring sustainable local development, which indirectly affects regional development and shapes the development of the entire country. Therefore, this article aims to assess the level and diversity of rural commune investment activities and their impact on the development of Poland’s rural areas. The empirical research conducted was aimed at verifying the following hypothesis: “The highest investment activity can be observed primarily in rural communes located in Eastern Poland”. The Regions of Eastern Poland are characterised by their peripheral location, both in the country and all of the EU. The research covered the 2007–2018 period due to a particular increase in local investment projects thanks to such factors as obtaining EU funding, as well as others. The research included one- and multidimensional analyses of the phenomenon examined with the use of the TOPSIS method to obtain the value of the synthetic measure of the rural commune investment activity level. The designated investment activity classes were the basis for the analysis of their links with their location within the macroregion, as well as their socio-economic status. The research has shown that the most pro-investment municipalities are located primarily in the Southern and Eastern Macroregions while those spending the least on investment projects are situated in the North-Western and Northern Macroregions. Thus, the research hypothesis put forth in the article has been confirmed. This delimitation is due to additional state resources being provided to the less developed eastern areas of Poland. Citizens living in these regions can not only take advantage of the funding provided as part of the Regional Operational Programmes, but also the Eastern Poland Programme dedicated to helping them. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Public Policies for Rural Development: Circular Deals, Digital Revolution, and Inclusive Engagement)

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Review

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15 pages, 1954 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperReview

The Knowledge Based Agricultural Bioeconomy: A Bibliometric Network Analysis

by Christina-Ioanna Papadopoulou, Efstratios Loizou, Katerina Melfou and Fotios Chatzitheodoridis

Energies 2021, 14(20), 6823; https://doi.org/10.3390/en14206823 - 19 Oct 2021

Cited by 22 | Viewed by 2963

Abstract

The last ten years have witnessed an increase in publications focusing on bioeconomy as a proposal to confront the global challenges of climate change, depletion of non-renewable resources and ecosystem degradation. This paper investigates the scientific literature on issues related agricultural bioeconomy by applying a bibliometric network analysis. Bibliometric analysis is applied to the publications of the Scopus database during the period 2010–2020 in order to provide an overview of the main aspects that characterize agricultural bioeconomy. The results showed that out of a total of 1100 scientific papers, only 2.45% were published in 2010, while the corresponding share in 2020 was 20.81%. In the five years of 2016–2020, cumulatively, 70.63% of the publications were made, showing the dynamic evolution of bioeconomy. In addition, out of 85 countries in total, Germany and Italy are the two countries with most publications, while the fragmentation of research is evident with the creation of two main nodes, the European and the American. Moreover, keyword analysis showed that biomass and sustainability are two main recurring concepts, confirming that, currently, bioeconomy operates at three different levels: energy demand, land demand, and governance. It is apparent that to boost the development of agricultural bioeconomy, the following aspects should be assessed: the effective use of resources, an understanding of the key drivers of agricultural bioeconomy, and a clear perception of their associations. There is still no consensus as to which are the key factors that will accelerate its sustainable development. Our pursuit is to use the tools of bibliometric analysis to reach more critical conclusions regarding the agricultural bioeconomy, rather than approach it in a static way. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Public Policies for Rural Development: Circular Deals, Digital Revolution, and Inclusive Engagement)

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