How does community evolve in rural areas? The volume brings different perspectives on the social proximity of village, island and region in the German-Dutch border area into discussion. The focus is on civil society and socio-spatial structures that shape social cohesion: Civic engagement, community organising initiatives or the prevention of group-based misanthropy reveal fractures, but also new approaches to cohesion. The German-Dutch perspective unites the joint search for resources for successful change in rural areas.

Prof. Dr. Sylke Bartmann, Professorin für Soziale Arbeit mit dem Schwerpunkt Soziologie, Hochschule Emden/Leer Prof. Dr. Elles A. M. Bulder, Professorin für Living Environment in Transition, Research Centre for Built Environment NoorderRuimte, Hanzehogeschool Groningen Morten M. Gloy, Soziologe und wissenschaftlicher Fachreferent