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Danish Centre for Rural Research - CLF

Developing rural branding

As in other countries, rural areas in Denmark are facing a number of challenges in terms of depopulation and economic decline. As a result, rural areas are increasingly trying to 'brand' themselves in order to retain their citizens and attract new citizens, students and tourists. This PhD project has investigated how place branding takes place in rural areas to learn more about how actors can approach place branding in smaller communities.

About the PhD project

 

This PhD project has identified which actors are involved in a branding process and which processes are used. 

Some of the questions the project has answered are:

 

  •  Are the processes top-down or bottom-up?

  • What roles do the different actors play, what is their motivation for being involved, what do they get out of the collaboration and what are the disadvantages of being involved?
  • Which target groups are rural areas trying to reach with their branding?
  • What difference does it make whether one, another or a third type of process is used?
  • How much are residents involved in the process?
  • Or are they one of the target groups?
  • Or are they completely forgotten?

The project started in 2018 and was completed in 2021.

 

Contact person: PhD Barbora Gulisova, bagu@sam.sdu.dk