Rural Change and Public Policy

Rural Change and Public Policy: Eastern Europe, Latin America and Australia examines rural change and related public policies in three contrasting areas of the world to identify common problems and gain insight and understanding of the change process. This book is organized into five parts encompassing 15 chapters. Part I provides a conceptual background useful in examining rural development issues in an international perspective, focusing on economic development, usually the central question in public policy deliberations on rural areas. This part also emphasizes the interdependence between rural and urban areas as well as the importance of rural-urban regional inequity considerations. Part II deals with the critical role of government in influencing and directing rural change, while Part III surveys some of the changing attitudes and attitudinal responses of rural residents experiencing social, political, educational, and/or economic change. Part IV considers the broad issue of rural workers and employment opportunities, a critical issue in rural societies. Part V looks into the problems of land utilization and land tenure.