Rural Areas – Living Space: Regional Differences in the Perceptions of Representatives of Rural Municipalities in Czechia Regarding Rural Areas

Abstract

This article seeks to contribute to discussion concerning the concept of countryside in geographical sciences. In the first section it discusses selected approaches for assessing rural areas and presents key stimulants from the new regional and cultural geography (rural areas as a socio-spatial process and as living space). The second section presents examples of empirical findings from a field survey, the respondents to which were mayors of rural municipalities – with up to 3,000 inhabitants – in Czechia. We empirically explore the truthfulness of a thesis concerning the existence of several distinct types of rural areas in Czechia: rural areas with differing development potential and diverse problems, calling for the use of different instruments in overcoming the problems in question. The results of the survey make it possible to assess the territorial differences of so-called soft factors of ruralmunicipality development (perceptions regarding rural areas, inhabitants’ relationship to the territory of their municipality, local pride, the conditions and indicators of a successful municipality).

Problems of Transforming Military Training Areas in a Post-Communist Space: Local Community Perceptions and Policy Implications

“…Length of life spent in the municipality might have a signifi cant impact on the response structure -but none of the categories deviated signifi cantly in our research. Although the MTAs close to country borders are located in the former Sudetenland (Boletice, Hradiště, Libavá) and were repopulated a er the expulsion of its original German population a er World War II, this fact is losing its importance nowadays (Chromý et al, 2011). Local residents without historical ties to the area have already built a relationship to it or have moved elsewhere.…”

Children’s perceptions of local religious sites in rural central Europe: case studies in the Czech-Polish and Polish-Slovak borderland

“…The presence of new religious communities can be seen in the emergence of new, often visually distinct, places of worship which transform urban space. Large cities tend to be more secularised and their religions more diversified than rural areas (due to a more liberal atmosphere, rationalisation, less social control, more options for leisure activities, more personal approaches to spirituality - Chromý, Jančák, Marada, Havlíček 2011;Potančoková, Berghammer 2015). Moreover, the religious landscape of Czechia, Slovakia and Poland is in many ways unique (Očovsky 1995;Bilska-Wodecka 2006;Havlíček, Hupková 2008), at least in a European context.…”

Factors Affecting Development of Rural Areas in the Czech Republic: a Literature Review

“…Thirdly, there is neither consensus on which of the mentioned factors are suitable for characterizing the rural development (Clark et al, 1997) and whether to use weights to distinguish importance of factors. Chromý et al (2011) identified two approaches to define a rural area, broad and narrow. In broad approach, whatever is not urban is considered rural.…”

“…These rural areas also differ in socioeconomic, sociocultural or institutional environment. On the other hand, the narrow approach defines rural areas as areas with low population density and predominant primary sector (Jančák, 2003and Blažek, 2004In Chromý et al, 2011.…”

“…While the researcher use the above mentioned basic factors in a lesser or greater degree, there are often disagreements about other factors and indicators that should characterize rural development. Chromý et al (2011) consider key factors of rural development to be the size of municipality and its position within the region (see also Binek et al, 2007or Hampl, 2005. Also the tradition of local community, quality of regional milieu and adaptability of key rural actors (e.g.…”