María do Mar Pérez: «The demographic crisis in rural Galicia is not a problem; it is a symptom»
The demographic decline that rural areas of Galicia have been suffering for many decades is one of the most pressing challenges facing our society. Its consequences affect us all and have been palpable for many years.
However, rather than a ‘disease’ afflicting our territory, we must realize that this demographic crisis is a ‘clinical sign’ that responds to a hostile reality. A reality that is being combated, among other things, with effective rural development policies. Something that María do Mar Pérez Fra, our interviewee today, knows in depth.
Her scientific career, focused on the design, development, and evaluation of rural development policies, spans more than three decades of work and dedication that have led her to achieve milestones that have made her one of the most established voices in her field of expertise, such as coordinating the 2007-2013 Rural Development Program in Galicia.
Similarly, her career will always be closely linked to Campus Terra, where she currently serves as a tenured lecturer in the Department of Applied Economics and is a member of the ECOAGRASOC research group.
In this interview, we draw on María do Mar Pérez's valuable experience to learn about the real impact of public policies in rural areas, the importance of promoting citizen participation in decision-making, and the value of figures such as communal forests.
-Throughout your career, you have worked on the design and evaluation of rural development policies. How have the approaches to these policies evolved in Galicia?
-The rural development policy implemented in Galicia is linked to EU-funded rural development policies, given that most of the funds allocated to this area come from the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD), the second pillar of the CAP.
With this in mind, it should be noted that, since the early 1990s, rural development policy has incorporated the concept of integrated rural development into its design, which includes actions related to agricultural development and modernization but also incorporates other types of actions related to a more comprehensive vision of rural areas, such as environmental conservation, diversification of activities, quality of life, etc.
On the other hand, since that time, greater attention has also been paid to the local approach, with programs such as LEADER designed and implemented from a regional perspective. In fact, my thesis was precisely on this approach.
-Your experience as head of planning at AGADER gave you a practical insight into public management. What lessons from that stage did you later transfer to your research and teaching?
-It was undoubtedly a period in which I learned a great deal in many different areas. Normally, those of us who work on public policy planning at university only see one side of the equation, which is related to the design and evaluation of these policies.
Having a position of responsibility in government means gaining insight into the other side, which involves the management and implementation of actions.
This gives you a more comprehensive view of all the processes involved in implementing public policies for rural development.
-You are participating in the European Rustik project, which focuses on rural sustainability. What key contributions does this project aim to make to improve public policies in rural areas?
-This is a highly complex project involving numerous research groups from various European universities. We are currently working closely with the Galician Rural Development Agency. Specifically, we are creating a decision-making tool linked to an intervention instrument defined in the Agricultural Land Recovery Law: the Model Villages.
In Galicia, we have more than 30,000 population entities. Therefore, from our perspective, it was necessary to establish a mechanism to facilitate the selection of areas on which to act. Our tool would then be a system to assist in selecting these areas.
-In Galicia, therefore, could we say that the complexity of your field takes on an even greater dimension?
-The high dispersion of the population presents a significant challenge. The issue of rural development is fascinating, as it requires the integration of elements from diverse disciplines and fields of knowledge.
In the case of Galicia, the fact that we have such a large number of population centres places us in a rather special situation within the Iberian Peninsula (Galicia is similar to other places in central and northern Europe in this respect). Those 30,000 population entities I mentioned earlier account for more than 40% of all the centres that exist in Spain.
This obviously establishes a significant level of complexity when it comes to planning action and also means that more resources are needed to enable people living in rural areas, for example, to access quality public services.
-Much of your work addresses the interaction between agroecology, landscape, and sustainable food. What role do these elements play in the transition to resilient rural models?
-Personally, within the concept of resilient rural models and the challenges they face, I don't like to talk about demographic crises, for example. We indeed have high levels of aging and low population densities in some places, but for me, demographics are not a problem; they are a symptom.
The problem, then, is not the number of people born in rural areas but the number of people leaving them. These areas continue to drive out young population. Why is this happening?
Rural Galicia suffers from demographic weakness because it is perceived as an unattractive place. We have to change this. How? By generating employment and income and, at the same time, living conditions that are appropriate for the 21st century.
On the other hand, agroecology, landscape, and sustainable food are deeply related concepts that point the way toward a transition to a more sustainable model. The importance of this transition is endorsed by the European Green Deal, which is essentially a set of strategies that will guide the transition to more sustainable models throughout the European Union.
The transition is now a duty, and I therefore believe it is essential to plan this process.
-You have supervised several doctoral theses on rural development processes. What emerging themes do you currently see among young researchers in the sector?
-I would highlight two in particular, which also fall within two areas that I find fascinating.
One is the gender perspective. We have to include 50% of the population in the analysis of rural development processes. We cannot forget that women play a fundamental role in rural areas. I am glad to see that it is becoming increasingly natural to include these variables in the analysis of these areas.
On the other hand, I also detect greater interest in the issue of communal resource management, and more specifically in our communal forests. This is essential in Galicia, as 23% of our land is classified as such. We cannot design a rural development process that ignores practically a quarter of our territory.
The use of communal resources was fundamental in the traditional agricultural production model. There is an important field of study in this area, and I think it is something from which we can learn valuable lessons for the future.
-In regard of your mention of communal forests, we would like to refer to projects such as ESMAART or SHERPA, which combine social and environmental approaches. How important is it to integrate citizen participation in the design of rural policies?
-One of the most relevant conclusions we drew from the SHERPA project is that people living in rural areas want to participate in the policies that affect them. This need for effective participation, to be truly heard, is something we discussed at length during this project, which spanned four years and involved a group of representative actors, including representatives from civil society, government, and research.
In this regard, I would like to highlight that SHERPA acted as an advisory service to the European Commission in the design of future rural policies, ensuring that governance and participation played a significant role in the documents produced.
-Along the same lines, as you mentioned, several projects worked on a rural development model based on communal management. What does this model consist of, and what are its main achievements?
-First of all, I would like to remind that in Galicia, we have a large number of communal forests, approximately 3,000. This involves the participation of a very large number of citizens, around 150,000 Galicians, who are involved in the management of these areas.
Communal forests have a wide range of uses, including timber production, livestock farming, industrial estate development, energy production, as well as environmental and recreational purposes.
These economic resources are only part of the equation, as communal forests are real engines for generating social capital, which is precisely one of the scarcest resources in rural areas due to demographic decline.
Therefore, these entities are among the most effective mechanisms for fostering civil society and participation.
-From your international experience, what lessons would you highlight from countries such as Portugal, Brazil, or Ireland for improving the Galician rural system?
-There are many things I saw in these countries that would be very interesting to apply here. Portugal and Ireland, for example, share many common elements, and their political frameworks are also similar. Rural development policy is designed based on the same regulatory framework. It is very interesting to compare the results.
But even from work carried out in places as culturally and geographically distant as Brazil, interesting lessons can be learned. In fact, through collaboration with research groups in that country, we already have two theses on communal management with very interesting results.
Working with research groups from other countries is always enriching. They are professionals who generally have a different background from mine and also come from very different areas of knowledge. This complemented my training and allowed me to cultivate a different, much richer perspective and a greater capacity for analysis.
-Finally, how do you assess the role of Campus Terra as an academic hub for training professionals capable of leading innovative processes in rural areas?
-There is no single rural area; there are very diverse rural areas. The fact that this campus has a body of researchers and teachers from diverse disciplines who conduct research in various areas presents a significant opportunity.
In my particular case, I arrived here in 1996 as an economist with a very specific background. I was already working on rural development issues, but my knowledge was limited and confined to my particular field. Working here meant that I had to get used to working side by side with forest engineers, agronomists, historians, veterinarians... The much-vaunted multidisciplinary approach is a tangible reality at Campus Terra.
We have areas of research that are fundamental to the development of rural areas and their future, but they are approached from very different perspectives. Being so close together forces us to work together, which is very beneficial for us and, ultimately, for society as a whole.