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The question, whether and how spatial and social disadvantages overlap and what this means in terms of individual achievements is of crucial importance to rural sociology. Empirically, however, only few studies on this topical issue are available so far. The paper presents the conceptual and methodological approach as well as selected findings of a recently completed cross-national, German-Czech research project. Our research focusses on three socially disadvantaged groups: persons experiencing difficulties in the labour market, single parents and elderly persons living alone. They are living in four rural peripheries in Eastern Germany and Czechia, regions which are similar in their distance to metropolitan areas, low population density, weak economic structure and poor accessibility of public and private services. Our main interest is on the question whether social and spatial disadvantages accumulate and lead to a double disadvantage. We conducted 113 qualitative interviews in both countries. Overall, most respondents rate their lives in the four regions positively. Often, they describe a rural idyll, naming for example direct access to nature as important source of their well-being. However, they also point to a variety of everyday challenges due to a lack of services and infrastructures and the need to have access to a car and to travel long distances. They highlight the important role played by rural and small towns (and their supply services) in rural peripheries. Social relationships are also important for well-being. The respondents’ everyday narratives attest to the fact that they have found multiple ways of dealing with spatial constraints. Thus, our results paint a nuanced picture of rural peripheries where social and spatial disadvantages do not necessarily accumulate and people do not inevitably see themselves as disadvantaged – either socially or spatially. Central to this is a high degree of agency, manifesting in a variety of coping strategies. The respondents apply these to meet daily challenges and to live more self-determined lives than the spatial structures of a rural periphery and the conditions of various forms of social disadvantage would initially suggest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, rural residents' participation within their local communities has attracted attention within scientific and political debates that focus on sustaining or improving the quality of life in villages. Retired older people feature centrally in these discussions, as they are perceived to have the time and life experience to participate in various local activities. This paper contributes to the existing literature through an examination of older villagers' participation and non-participation within their communities in a strongly ageing rural area in Germany. Applying mixed methods and using survey data compiled for older residents, we identified six groups differentiated according to four types of participative practices and two main rationales for non-participation within villages in this region, thus introducing nuances and complexity to both sides of the participation/non-participation dichotomy. Our comparison of these six groups, considering their socio-economic characteristics and residential histories, revealed that women were underrepresented in positions of responsibility and that poor health and advanced age were primary reasons for non-participation. There were minor differences in the participation of village stayers and incomers, who accounted for a larger share of non-participants. As strategies to sustain or improve local quality of life should accommodate the interests of all residents, we advocate raising awareness regarding non-participant groups within research and policy contexts. • Around 75% of older people participate in various ways in their local communities. • Health concerns and advanced age are key reasons for non-participation. • Village stayers and incomers equally accept responsible positions. • Large proportions of non-participants are incomers and women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents a reconstructive analysis of village research conducted in Germany between 1952 and 2015. For more than 60 years, information was gathered to document socioeconomic and demographic developments in ten West German villages. In the early 1990s, four East German villages became part of that trend study as well. While the material (e.g., surveys, statistics, and field notes) is fragmented and heterogeneous, it nevertheless provides a unique opportunity for reflection on the changing latent concepts, ideas and motives at work in rural research throughout the years. In this paper, we want to reconstruct changing perspectives on the topos 'village' by focussing on three issues: (i) concepts of and attitudes towards village life, (ii) the roles assigned to the inhabitants in developing the village, and (iii) the role of science in providing policy advice. We can show how over time, the focus of the research shifted from an infrastructure-oriented perspective, overcoming 'rural backwardness' to focus on the village by asking about distinct local practices and identities. Concomitant to the changing view on the inhabitants' agency, perspectives on development strategies and policy recommendations changed from exogenous to endogenous approaches. The trend study in retrospect highlights how local development in its complexity is often beyond political steering or researchers' predictions. • Analysis of over 60 years of village research in Germany. • Concept of "village" has gained complexity. • Farming-families' position changed tremendously. • Perspective changes from urban-normativity towards the normality of the village. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within just a few years, land-use conflicts have become considerably more acute in Germany, mainly due to recent changes in the national energy policy. Land users have become much more aware that land is a limited resource, and this has led to competition among the following land-use sectors: settlements/transportation, agriculture, forestry and conservation. To tackle the conflicts and to develop measures for multifunctional land-use, it is necessary to know about the conflicting issues. Stakeholders involved in land-use decisions are an important source of information that can be used to explore these conflicts. This paper shows and explains recent land-use conflicts based on stakeholder interviews and notes the central land-use conflicts in Germany on national and regional levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Social capacity building for natural hazards is a topic increasingly gaining relevance not only for so-called developing countries but also for European welfare states which are continuously challenged by the social, economic and ecological impacts of natural hazards. Following an outline of recent governance changes with regard to natural hazards, we develop a heuristic model of social capacity building by taking into account a wide range of existing expertise from different fields of research. Particular attention is paid to social vulnerability and its assessment, as well as to risk communication and risk education as specific strategies of social capacity building. We propose to distinguish between interventionist and participatory approaches, thus enabling for a better understanding of existing practices of social capacity building as well as their particular strengths and weaknesses. By way of conclusion, we encourage more research on social capacity building for natural hazards in the European context which at present is highly diverse and, at least in parts, only poorly investigated. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This study examines the changing demography of the Spanish city of León, and aims to explore the manner in which its urban fabric was reshaped by processes of reurbanization, a dynamic whereby the inner city becomes more attractive to a wide variety of household types and social groups. We draw on sociodemographic analyses of municipal census data, as well as a customized questionnaire survey of local residents. Empirical evidence is provided both for the city as a whole and two inner-city districts, Casco Antiguo and El Ejido. Among other findings, it is argued that, although the contiguous built-up area of the city is clearly losing its inhabitants through out-migration and aging, there are a series of small-scale migration flows that increasingly concentrate "nontraditional" households in and around the city center. This is accompanied by an increasing trend toward "city-mindedness" as a residential choice and housing preference among both in-migrants and the long-time residential population. Overall, the evidence points to the emergence of a spatially fragile, fragmented reurbanization process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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