TY - JOUR

T1 - Integrating rural development and biodiversity conservation in Central Romania

AU - Newig, Jens

AU - Milcu, Andra Ioana

AU - Hartel, Tibor

AU - Mikulcak, Friederike

AU - Fischer, Joern

N1 - We appreciate the time and expertise of all interviewees. The research was funded through a Sofja Kovalevakaja Award by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation to Joern Fischer financed by the German Ministry for Research and Education. Tibor Hartel was supported by an Alexander von Humboldt post-doctoral fellowship. We thank Jan Hanspach for his help with the statistical analysis, Ine Dorresteijn for help with Figure 1 and David Abson for editorial assistance. Comments by three anonymous reviewers greatly helped to improve the manuscript.

PY - 2013/6

Y1 - 2013/6

N2 - Unlike most parts of the European Union (EU), Southern Transylvania (Central Romania) is characterized by an exceptionally high level of farmland biodiversity. This results from traditional small-scale farming methods that have maintained extensive areas of high nature value farmland. Following the post-socialist transition, Southern Transylvania faces serious challenges such as under-employment and rural population decline, which put traditional farming at risk. With Romania's accession to the EU in 2007, Southern Transylvania became part of a complex multi-level governance system that in principle provides mechanisms to balance biodiversity conservation and rural development. To this end, the most important instruments are the ‘Natura 2000’ network of protected areas and EU rural development policy. Structured questionnaires and semi-structured interviews with town hall representatives from 30 villages in Southern Transylvania and local EU experts revealed that EU policies are often poorly aligned with local conditions. To date, the implementation of EU rural development policy is strongly focused on economic development, with biodiversity conservation being of little concern. Moreover, relevant EU funding opportunities are poorly communicated. Bridging organizations should be strengthened to foster the implementation of a rural development strategy that integrates local needs and biodiversity conservation.

AB - Unlike most parts of the European Union (EU), Southern Transylvania (Central Romania) is characterized by an exceptionally high level of farmland biodiversity. This results from traditional small-scale farming methods that have maintained extensive areas of high nature value farmland. Following the post-socialist transition, Southern Transylvania faces serious challenges such as under-employment and rural population decline, which put traditional farming at risk. With Romania's accession to the EU in 2007, Southern Transylvania became part of a complex multi-level governance system that in principle provides mechanisms to balance biodiversity conservation and rural development. To this end, the most important instruments are the ‘Natura 2000’ network of protected areas and EU rural development policy. Structured questionnaires and semi-structured interviews with town hall representatives from 30 villages in Southern Transylvania and local EU experts revealed that EU policies are often poorly aligned with local conditions. To date, the implementation of EU rural development policy is strongly focused on economic development, with biodiversity conservation being of little concern. Moreover, relevant EU funding opportunities are poorly communicated. Bridging organizations should be strengthened to foster the implementation of a rural development strategy that integrates local needs and biodiversity conservation.

KW - Politics

KW - Biodiversitäts-Governance

KW - Gemeinsame Agrarpolitik

KW - Mehrebenenpolitik

KW - Rumänien

KW - Transilvanien

KW - biodiversity governance

KW - Common Agricultural Policy

KW - multi-level governance

KW - Romania

KW - Transylvania

KW - Ecosystems Research

KW - farmland biodiversity

KW - high nature value farming

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84877138595&partnerID=8YFLogxK

UR - https://www.mendeley.com/catalogue/0d660af4-e31b-37ab-a283-6a131288f3bd/

U2 - 10.1017/S0376892912000392

DO - 10.1017/S0376892912000392

M3 - Journal articles

VL - 40

SP - 129

EP - 137

JO - Environmental Conservation

JF - Environmental Conservation

SN - 0376-8929

IS - 2

ER -