The system transformation in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe has entered its mature age. Within the last 25 years their rural areas and agriculture, as well as the respective scientific disciplines such as rural sociology and economics of agriculture, have undergone a fundamental metamorphosis. Therefore, it is only natural to draw up a thorough balance sheet of these changes and to discuss their directions in the near and more distant future.

In order to satisfy certain needs signalled by Polish and foreign readers of the EEC periodical, its editorial team with the help of the Department of Rural Sociology at the Institute of Sociology NCU organizes an international conference which is scheduled by the end of June 2015.

During the conference the current condition of rural areas and agriculture in countries of our region will be defined and discussed. In order to do so, we will analyse changes taking place within social and family agriculture, in the structures of land ownership and other means of production, in institutions functioning within rural areas, especially those which embody the so-called civic society. We will also focus on the processes generating social inequalities, and the systems of values hold by inhabitants of rural areas.

Moreover, we want to find the sources of structural differences and similarities between the condition of various rural areas in the countries of our region: those determined by cultural and historical factors, and those resulting from variations in the course of the system transformation. We want to analyse them from a macro perspective – rural areas within social structure and national economy; from a meso perspective – local communities; and from a micro perspective – various social groups and categories, such as the family, youth, women, farmers. What is more, we will consider their social and psychological ramifications – systems of values, the quality of life, assessments of life opportunities.

In addition, we will ask questions about the future of rural areas in Central and Eastern Europe. We will compare forecasts of their further marginalization and underdevelopment with diagnoses presenting somewhat more optimistic images.

Finally, we will make sure to address the issues connected with the current state of scientific disciplines that explore various social aspects of rural transformations through evaluating the quality of theoretical base supporting the analyses of these complicated problems.

Programme Committee

  • Prof. Christian Giordano, Institute of Ethnology,University of Fribourg
  • Prof. Krzysztof Gorlach, Institute of Sociology, Jagiellonian University
  • Prof. Wojciech Knieć, Institute of Sociology, Nicolaus Copernicus University
  • Prof. Laszlo J. Kulcsar, Faculty of Economics, University of West Hungary
  • Monika Kwiecińska-Zdrenka, PhD, Institute of Sociology, Nicolaus Copernicus University

Organization Committee

  • Monika Kwiecińska-Zdrenka – chair
  • Iwona Lesniewicz – secretary
  • Elwira Piszczek – member
  • Grzegorz Zabłocki – member