Getting Close to the Action: The Micro-Politics of Rural Development

This article identifies and positions micro-politics within rural development practice. It is concerned with the hidden and subtle processes that bind groups together, including trust, power and personal perceptions and motivations. The first section of the article provides a theoretical context for micro-political processes which reveals subtle distinctions from social capital. The section following describes the ethnographic approach that sets the methodological framework for the research. The findings reveal how micro-political processes manifest in a rural development group affect norms and relations both positively and negatively. Finally the causes of and factors affecting micro-politics are considered before concluding with a discussion on how micro-politics may be managed in rural regeneration.

Rural Development Group Politics. A hidden cost?

I challenge the popular notion of European rural development group dynamics and argue for a better understanding of the role of micro-politics as a means of enhancing the performance of these groups. The views are research based and have relevance to the broader rural development and regeneration sector. Micro-politics involves knowledge, power, trust, perceptions, understanding, social networks, values and traits that arise as a result of individuals interacting within a group whilst working on a shared goal, such as rural development. The monetary and time costs to a community of failing to address micro-politics and nurture positive group relations are considerable. These include time spent in unproductive meetings and poorly prioritized—and ultimately unsuccessful—funding applications as a result of failure to agree priorities. Successful groups rely on individuals interacting in a way that achieves a greater social good. Mutual trust amongst the actors lies at the heart of effective group activity. Effective management of micro-politics requires steps to nurture a culture of mutual trust to ensure that rural development actors co-operate rather than play destructive games with one another. A case study example of a relatively straightforward approach illustrates how this might be done in practice.

Factores determinantes del uso de Internet en la comercialización del aceite de oliva. Análisis del sector en Cataluña

Las cooperativas son entidades con una gran presencia económica y social en España, y tienen una gran influencia en la economía rural de las zonas donde están ubicadas. El principal objetivo del presente trabajo es el análisis del uso de las nuevas tecnologías por parte de las cooperativas agroalimentarias, centrándose en las productoras de aceite de oliva para determinar los principales factores que condicionan su comportamiento en la Red. En el presente estudio se analizan sus sitios web y se determina qué tipo de información aporta, tanto datos generales como datos de comercialización. A partir de los resultados obtenidos, se busca la relación que pueda existir entre el tamaño de la cooperativa, su actividad exportadora o la actividad de comercio electrónico con la presencia online, mediante una regresión logística. De esta manera podremos conocer si realmente la implantación de nuevas tecnologías en las cooperativas permite desarrollar una óptima actividad económica.