Foreword and acknowledgements

Rural economies are facing significant changes. Increasing global competition is transforming the nature of production, and rural entrepreneurs and businesses have to adapt quickly to maintain their competitive edge. Rapid technological change is offering new growth opportunities, but this requires investment from businesses, the reorganisation of production processes, more advanced skills, and access to markets. Although the impacts have been uneven, the legacy of the economic crisis for many rural areas is lower growth and productivity and fewer job opportunities for local people. Governments are also facing fiscal pressures, given declining revenues and higher costs due to population ageing and rising unemployment.