Rural depopulation, social resilience and context costs in the border municipalities of central Portugal. Dichotomies of social reorganization vs absence of public policies

Abstract

The border territories of the central region of Portugal with Castilla y Leon and Extremadura in Spain have been experiencing, during the last decades, depopulation dynamics and socioeconomic reorganizations that transformed the forms of work, the models of social organization and occupation and land use. The aim is to analyze and reflect on the demographic trajectories and their territorial implications, tackling depopulation with sustainability strategies. The local government initiatives have been unable to reverse trends of depopulation and the progressive abandonment of the settlements, agriculture and traditional industries, resulting in the loss of identit.

Spatial Analysis of the Rural-Urban Structure of the Spanish Municipalities

“…Another case is Portugal, a territory where the fall in the birth rate, the increase in life expectancy, and the emigration caused by urbanization processes have contributed to the demographic decline in rural areas, but there are also differences between some areas. These processes are much more pronounced in the rural areas bordering Portugal with Castilla y León and Extremadura (Central and Alentejo regions), than in other rural areas in the south in the Algarve (benefiting from tourism) or in the north (proximity to more industrial areas such as Oporto) [84,85].…”

Moravian–Slovak Borderland: Possibilities for Rural Development

“…Areas that are becoming borders can also become a periphery [14]. Peripheral regions are often characterized by depopulation, unemployment, lagging infrastructure, lack of investment and, ultimately, a deterioration in the quality of life of the local population.…”

Condiciones de las redes interorganizativas para la innovación en áreas rurales

“…Las condiciones para la formación de redes buscan las articulaciones con otros eslabones de la cadena, por ejemplo, a través de alianzas con otras organizaciones (Hoffmann et al, 2017). La constitución de relaciones del tipo alianzas, que es uno de los tipos de relaciones descriptas por Grønning & Afshin (2019), conlleva la necesidad de intercambiar recursos, considerando que estos recursos sean complementarios (Schermerhorn, 1975;Oliver, 1990;Poeta Fernandes, 2019;Dias et al, 2019), pero también con el objetivo de compartir costes (Grønning & Afshin, 2019). Por lo tanto, la noción de recursos está implícita en las motivaciones determinantes para la formación de redes.…”