Leefbaarheid op het platteland: uiteenlopen van idylles en werkelijkheden : Een literatuuronderzoek naar wat we denken te begrijpen van leefbaarheid op het platteland

Summary

In a motion MP Epping asked for a study into keeping the countryside liveable, in view of the relocation of basic facilities to cities. The aim of this study is to indicate the assumptions and knowledge on which government interventions to maintain or enhance the quality of life in rural areas are based, while paying attention to different perspectives, times and knowledge gaps. Basic facilities ensure encounters, and encounters feed the social capital in the community. The symbolic value of basic facilities lies in the status, strength, and vitality that rural residents derive from the presence of a village hall and a supermarket. It gives a sense of pride and confidence when they have remained there. Proximity to public facilities ensures that people meet each other (schoolyard, village hall), as well as care and transport. This proximity forms the basis of a self-reliant society, which has confidence in the collective and government, and can build broad prosperity. Deterioration of quality of life is a self-reinforcing process, caused by the depoliticization of decision-making and a lack of insight into chain effects. The final conclusion is that quality of life should be seen as a foundation and treated as such, on which initiatives for broad prosperity can flourish.