SURDIM · Sustainable Rural Development and International Immigration in the Pyrenees
Horizon 2020 — Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
- Duration
- 2021-11-01 → 2024-05-30
- EU contribution
- €172,932
- Participants
- 1
- Scheme
- MSCA-IF
Lines connect the coordinator with its partners.
Results in brief
Sustainable Rural Development and International Immigration in the Pyrenees
International migration towards rural areas which is increasingly present in Europe have prevented (or slowed down) depopulation in some rural areas. Immigrants have played a critical role in agricultural restructuring and economic transformation in rural societies. The EU-funded research project titled “SURDIM. Sustainable Rural Development and International Immigration in the Pyrenees” has focused on the positive impacts (economically and socially) of international immigration in rural municipalities (fewer than 2000 inhabitants) of the Pyrenees. In doing so, SURDIM project has aimed to contribute to improving territorial relations and integration in rural territories. The overall objectives of the project are (i) Analyse migrant pathways of labour/economic incorporation in selected French and Spanish Pyrenean municipalities to identify sustainable economic projects managed/supported by immigrants, and present successful experiences in terms of rural development, and (ii) Study settlement processes of immigrants in French and Spanish municipalities, analysing challenges for social incorporation in rural communities, and exploring issues on wellbeing and inter-cultural aspects. Our results are important to society in the sense that they show a relatively unknown reality (international immigration in rural mountain areas) with potential for rural development. The SURDIM project finds that the interviewed immigrant entrepreneurs usually fit themselves into the economic sectors dominant in the area (farming and tourist-oriented activities). Their success partially relies on the variety of capital they possess, including human and social capitals. International immigrants occasionally play a key role in the creation and introduction of innovative products in very specific market niches that had been little explored in mountainous rural areas. Yet the companies they create are generally family-run, and they usually produce a slight impact on local development and job creation. Our results also indicate that immigrants show sensitivity when it comes to putting into value local, social, cultural and landscape or natural resources, which, in fact, are sometimes the reason why they decided to migrate into the "countryside”. In this way, immigrants help to strengthen positive values on sustainability, community, and sense of place. This is quite relevant in municipalities with aging and depopulation processes ongoing.
Data: CORDIS, © European Union
Project objective
International immigration is a scarcely studied phenomenon in rural Europe, even immigrants may prevent depopulation and ageing in rural areas. Filling this gap, the project studies the role of international immigrants in supporting local economies, bringing in new ideas on sustainability and revitalising the social fabric of Pyrenean municipalities with fewer than 2.000 inhabitants in four areas with contrasting economic structures in France and Spain. In line with Horizon 2020, the project helps to identify major economic opportunities for innovative companies and contribute to the Union´s competitiveness and employment in rural areas.The research objectives are: 1) conduct a critical theoretical exercise of international immigration in rural settings; 2) analyse immigrant pathways of labour/economic incorporation in selected French and Spanish Pyrenean municipalities to identify sustainable economic projects managed/supported by immigrants, and present successful experiences in terms of rural development; 3) study settlement processes of immigrants in selected municipalities, analysing challenges for social incorporation in rural communities, and exploring issues on well-being and inter-cultural aspects; 4) continue updating and extending to other parts of Spain and France the existing Geographical Information System (GIS) in order to contribute to policy and societal debates on immigration in rural areas. Objective 1 will be achieved through comprehensive desktop research to collect and analyse scientific and policy literature relevant to locate pertinent concepts and theoretical frameworks. O2 and O3 will be attained through primary qualitative data analysis collected in semi-structured interviews with immigrants and key informants, and complemented with participant observation. Through statistical compilation and fieldwork for O2 and O3, statistical data and photo material at a local level will be incorporated into an open-access GIS (O4)
Original text from CORDIS.
Participants
- UNIVERSITAT AUTONOMA DE BARCELONA · Cerdanyola Del VallesCoordinatorSpain
Links
Data: CORDIS, © European Union