Use or protect - environmental capital and regional development in the rural areas of Europe: research findings and experiences from the EU project DERREG

Natural resources such as clean air, water, soil, woods or special landscape features are increasingly recognized as important assets for the development of rural regions and are included in rural development strategies. The case studies presented in this volume are first results of a research project on globalization and rural development (‘Developing Europe’s Rural Regions in the Era of Globalization – DERREG’) that has been funded under the Seventh Framework Programme of the European Union. The main research objective of the DERREG project is thus the integrative analysis of the challenges posed for rural regions by globalization. This research approach takes into consideration that globalisation is a multi-dimensional process with economic, social, cultural, political dimensions. The five case studies on the exploitation and protection of environmental resources and regional development come from four European countries: the Czech Republic, Germany, Ireland and Slovenia. The case studies cover three different general themes: the management of rural landscapes, the forestry sector and energy production.Introduction: Environmental capital and sustainable rural development / Joachim Burdack Conflicts and Opportunities for Regional Development arising from the Designation of Protected Areas – the Example UNESCO Biosphere Reserve Bliesgau / Violetta Frys, Birte Nienaber Rich in environmental capital – weak in regional development: The case of the Pomurska Region in Slovenia / Barbara Lampič, Irena Mrak Perspectives and potential for forestry in Ireland / John McDonagh, Maura Farrell and Marie Mahon Forest management perspectives in the South Moravian Region – quantitative and qualitative analysis / Hana Vavrouchová, Pavel Trnka, Kristýna Novotná and Lenka Jakešová The Oberlausitz Region on the Way to a Sustainable Energy Region – New Energies, New Options, New Conflicts in a Traditional Energy Region / Michael Kriszan Towards the Development of a Rural Eco-Economy in the European Countryside / Michael Krisza