The role of land market and contextual characteristics in shaping farmland abandonment patterns.

MSc. Maxim Gorgan

Doctoral thesis

Abstract:

Despite the looming issues of land scarcity and competition for land resources, farmland abandonment is a widespread phenomenon globally. In Europe, recognized a global hotspot of abandonment, uncultivated agricultural land represents an opportunity to enhance local food production or reset the "land-use clocks” by offering diverse land use possibilities, including options for rewilding and alternative uses beyond traditional agriculture. The abandonment of farmland is a complex issue driven by various often overlapping factors and drivers that differ across diverse regional contexts. Understanding the determinants of abandonment patterns, and especially how their influence varies across broad geographic extents, is crucial for designing sound, coherent and evidence-based policy responses. Most often mentioned groups of drivers and factors of abandonment are the bio-physical (or environmental), socio-economic and structural. While the connection between land tenure, land markets and land abandonment is often alluded to, it is seldom explored in detail. Therefore, the aim of this thesis was to explore the problem of farmland abandonment from these perspectives. Using the example of post-Soviet Armenia, the study evaluated the role of land markets, land tenure, and contextual factors in the relationship to farmland abandonment. Additionally, through the example of North Macedonia, the study analysed the role of land consolidation as an instrument to overcoming the structural problems in agriculture and developing land markets. The applied behavioural economics approach facilitated a better understand of the perspectives of landowners and farmers regarding land market, their interest and willingness to participate in land consolidation, suggesting ways to motivate and engage landowners.

Keywords

land policy, land market, farmland abandonment, land consolidation, land management instruments

Jazyk práce: English

Datum vytvoření / odevzdání či podání práce: 16. 4. 2024

Obhajoba závěrečné práce

• Vedúci: doc. Ing. Miroslava Bavorová, Ph.D.
• Oponent: Zdeněk Opršal, externi, Jose Maria Garcia Alvarez Coque, DiS., externi, Alexander Prishepov, externi

Czech University of Life Sciences Prague

Faculty of Tropical AgriSciences

Doctoral programme / odbor:
Agricultural Specialization / Sustainable Rural Development in the Tropics And Subtropics