Communities, collaboration, cohesion and centralization: contemporary insights from rural Ireland

Abstract

The Republic of Ireland’s recent experience of profound economic, social, cultural, and political change and its remarkable journey from relative poverty to boom and then bust have been well documented. While much of the commentary on contemporary Ireland’s development trajectory focuses on national actors and institutions — the celebrated and the maligned — insufficient attention has been paid to development efforts and experiences at the local level. This chapter looks at the model and dynamics of rural development that have emerged in contemporary Ireland. It considers the changing institutional, resource, and political contexts in which rural development operates. It looks in particular at the interfaces between local bodies, the state, and the EU, and it assesses the current opportunities and challenges facing rural development actors in Ireland.