Panel at the Rural History 2017 Conference (Web); Organisers: Jessica Richter and Ulrich Schwarz (Institute of Rural History, St. Pölten)

Time: 11-14 September 2017
Venue: Leuven, Belgium
Proposals by: 10 October 2016

While scholars can draw upon rich research on poverty in rural areas in pre-WW I Europe, historical studies on the twentieth and twenty-first centuries are comparatively rare, particularly for continental Europe. In most cases, historical research on poverty and social exclusion has adopted a focus on certain countries or regions. Few researchers, however, focussed on differences, interdependencies or similarities between rural and urban contexts.

Recent data published by the European Commission indicates a higher risk of poverty and social exclusion for EU citizens living in rural areas. This study adds to the constantly repeating media reports on increasing poverty in wealthy European states, affecting particularly women, elderly people, manual workers, or lone mothers and families. The recent financial crisis, moreover, has resulted in a widened poverty gap in Europe, dividing especially countries of the European south and north. But already long before the crisis, wealth disparities between European regions had been a well-known problem. Read more and source … (Web)