Economic Development of Ultra-Small Peripheral West European Regions (Case of Åland and Faroe Islands)

Abstract

Big -it is magnificent, seductive and fabulousSmall -it is fine, quivering and sensitive Abstract. The aim of the study was identification of ultra-small territories, features of their economic development and modern business status in the context of the classification of small economies. The object of investigation is small economies of West European and Nordic countries as well as ultra-small autonomous territories of Åland and Faroes islands affiliated to Finland and Denmark, respectively. The hypothesis of the article is that ultra-small autonomous territories under consideration are developing as the "competitive subperipheries" due to their special industrial organization, stimulated by the national and, partially, by the EU economic policy supporting the economic growth of both autonomies. The methods of the study comprise analysis-synthesis, historical and logical methods, international comparisons. The main conclusion is that the Åland and Faroes islands are nowadays converting into the transport-logistics, informational, financial bridges among different European regions and countries.

Enterprise and entrepreneurship on islands and remote rural environments

“…The penetration of economic forces and flows to even the most isolated communities means that knowledge transfer and exchange across different development contexts is feasible and desirable. That said, it is also necessary to recognize that ‘island and coastal studies’ cover a wide range of types and sizes: from island states such as Malta, Australia or Iceland to those that examine peripheral island regions within larger territories including, for example, work on Japan’s ‘remote islands’ or on the Faroes and the Ålands in Europe’s northern periphery (Efimova and Kuznetsova, 2012). Rowe (2011), Royle and Tsai (2008) and Royle (2008) among others have analysed the common issues of socio-economic and cultural peripherality across the globe, and similar conditions and challenges can be identified in North Western Europe, Canada’s Atlantic islands (Harling Stalker and Phyne, 2014), Northern Scandinavian and the Arctic region (Danson and Burnett, 2014).…”

Sustainability and small enterprises in Scotland’s remote rural ‘margins’

“…This demands that research on island enterprise and entrepreneurship requires contextualisation and qualification, which often requires embracing the particularities of island regions as ‘peripheral’ within a larger state, as exemplified by research on Japan’s ‘remote islands’, the Faroes and the Ålands in Europe’s northern periphery (Efimova and Kuznetsova, 2012). The following section illustrates some of the opportunities, challenges and complexities faced in establishing an enterprise which intends to utilise the assets of islandness and the unique environment from the outset by aiming at a luxury off-island market.…”