Speaker:   Professor Vanessa Burholt
Venue:     MY124, Áras Moyola,  NUI Galway

Abstract
The combination of declining fertility rates and lengthening of life expectancy has meant that the population in a majority of European countries is becoming increasingly weighted toward older age groups (COM(2006)571; Tinker 2002). Studies predict a strong decrease in Europe’s rural population: from 100 million in 2000 to around 75 million in 2030 and that the ageing of Europe’s population as forecasted will be even stronger in rural areas compared to urban areas. However, there are variations across the EU. In the countries of the recently enlarged Europe, 90 per cent of the territory is rural, and more than half of the total population lives in these areas. It has been noted that ageing and depopulation will affect the viability of rural communities and the UN has recommended that these trends are monitored closely. The attention to rural ageing has also previous been noted by the International Rural Ageing Project.

This presentation reviews international research on rural ageing over the last decade. It compares the research goals identified by the International Rural Ageing Project with progress in this area. It will then examine some of the emerging areas for research which are likely to become important over the coming decade these include climate change and the environment; agriculture and food; and converging technologies. To date, rural studies have centred on the adaptivity or resistance of rural areas to modernity and have not fostered a ‘future orientation’. It is anticipated that the presentation will explore rural development with a focus on rural ageing, taking into account some of the dynamic forces that are expected to change the face of European society in the coming years. In this respect it will promote thinking about longer-term rural futures for older people. It will stimulate debate about the nature of collective opportunities, and solutions for challenges associated with ageing in Europe’s rural areas

All are welcome