The Chair of DIaDeRC, Prof Evans Osabuohien joins other globally established scholars in editing Major Reference Work (MRW) for Springer Nature. The MRW project focuses on The Palgrave International Handbook of Rural Studies.
About the Handbook:
The Palgrave International Handbook of Rural Studies aims to examine the state-of-the-art of rural society and its changing context across the world. The fundamental purpose of this handbook is to present a critical and comprehensive overview of rural social, economic, cultural, environmental, political and technological perspectives. Furthermore, based on the 10 different sub-themes, interdisciplinary array, multidisciplinary focus and international scope, this Major Reference Works (MRW) will provide an authoritative account and new directions in rural studies as an independent global academic discipline. With the theoretical, methodological, policy underpinnings and evidence-based research at the local, national and global levels, this handbook will bring together diverse insights on socio-economic perspectives, poverty and inequality, health care, education, Indigenous knowledge, rural livelihood, agricultural practices and land use, governance and policy, gender dynamics and entrepreneurship, climate change, rural development, globalization, technological aspects, digitalization, rural transformation, sustainable development and other aspects related to rural studies across the globe.
This Handbook includes cutting-edge research to advance our understanding of the contemporary and key issues related to rural studies. Notably, the distinguishing features of this book are an interdisciplinary approach, which transcends traditional academic boundaries, global perspectives, a wide array of topics, promotion of rural studies scholarship and a future-oriented agenda. The proposed MRW-based handbook is indispensable in addressing several gaps in existing literature (outdated subject coverage, global perspectives). Due to growing interest in inter-disciplinary and multi-disciplinary research, this handbook is positioned as an entry point into the field who are interested in rural studies.
Sub-Themes (Tentative Outline)
The contributions in the book will include chapters in each section:
– Authors from different countries
– Authors from different regions
– From different levels of scholars (established, early career and mid-career)
– From different disciplinary backgrounds
1. Part I Introduction
2. Part II Conceptualizing Rural
2.1. Conceptualizing the rural development in the 21st century
2.2. Conceptualizing rural society
2.3. Conceptualizing urban society
2.4. Rural Social Life
2.5. Rural Identities
2.6. Structural Change in Rural Community
2.7. Review of Rural Policy
2.8. Urban Perceptions
2.9. Rural Community
2.10. Understandings of rural spaces
2.11. Globalization Impact on Rural Areas
3. Part III Rural Development
3.1 Modernization theory
3.2 Globalization
3.3 Neo-Liberalism
3.4 Liberalization
3.5 Grassroots development models
3.6 Role of the State in Rural Development
3.7 State initiatives
3.8 State lead programmes
3.9 New Horizons in Rural Development
3.10 Sustainable Rural Development
4. Part IV Agrarian Change and Rural Transformation
4.1. Rural transformation
4.2. Agrarian Transformation
4.3. Shifts in agricultural practices
4.4. Land use patterns
4.5. Globalization Impact on Agriculture
4.6. Rural economies
4.7. Technology Impact on Agriculture
4.8. Environmental factors
4.9. Agrarian Transformation post Globalization
4.10. Agrarian Transformation Post COVID-19
4.11. Institutional Change and Economic Growth
4.12. Food Production and Consumption
5. Part V Rural Economy
5.1. Literacy
5.2. Education
5.3. Infrastructure
5.4. Land Reforms
5.5. Employment
5.6. Rural Credit and Banking
5.7. Small-scale industries
5.8. Rural livelihood and its challenges
5.9. Opportunities for rural economies
6. Part VI Environmental Sustainability in Rural Areas
6.1. Understanding the Sustainability of Rural Communities
6.2 Conservation efforts
6.3. Sustainable land management
6.4. Climate change
6.5. Rural environments
6.6. Environmental sustainability practices
6.7. Stakeholders in Environmental Sustainability
6.8. Research and Development
6.9. Drivers and barriers of Environmental sustainability
6.10. Community role in Environmental sustainability
6.11. Collective action
7. Part VII Governance and Policy in Rural Contexts
7.1. Understanding Governance in Rural Contexts
7.2. Governance structures
7.3. Governance institutions
7.4. Role of policies in shaping rural development
7.5. Resource management
7.6. Social equity
7.7. Changes in Rural Policy and Governance
7.8. Research on the good governance practices
7.9. Social innovation in rural governance
7.10. Effectiveness in Rural Governance
7.11. Local Rural Policy Making and Governance
7.12. Measuring Rural e-Governance
8. Part VIII Rural Social Dynamics
8.1. Understanding Dynamics of Rural Society
8.2. Examining social networks
8.3. Examining rural traditions and culture
8.4. Examining rural dynamics
8.5. Community Resilience
8.6. Resilience in rural settings
8.7. Social Dynamics in Rural Community
8.8. The social dynamics of small communities
8.9. The experience of other minorities
8.10. Indigenous peoples in rural communities
8.11. Colonisation and discrimination in rural community
9. Part IX Technology and Innovation in Rural Development
9.1. Adoption of Technology in Rural Development
9.2. Extension system and services
9.3. Rural development and digital technologies
9.4. Digital infrastructure
9.5. Digital divide
9.6. Innovation strategies to enhance rural livelihoods
9.7. Multifaceted Impact of Technology on Rural Development
9.8. Technology’s role in agricultural innovation
9.9. Digital Economy
9.10. Technology and Sustainable Rural Development
10. Part X Rural Livelihoods and Poverty Alleviation
10.1. Poverty in rural communities
10.2. Inequality in rural communities
10.3. Livelihood and Poverty
10.4. Poverty and Gender
10.5. Poverty and vulnerability
10.6. Investigating livelihood strategies
10.7. Rural income generation strategies
10.8. Income generation activities
10.9. Interventions aimed at reducing poverty
10.10. Poverty Reduction Strategies in different parts of the world
11. Part XI Rural Health and Well-being
11.1. Well-being in Rural Communities
11.2. Addressing healthcare access in rural communities
11.3. Sanitation
11.4. Clean Water
11.5. Rural Nutrition
11.6. Public health challenges
11.7. Quality of life
11.8. Health and Employment
11.9. Health and Poverty
11.10. Health and Development
11.11. Rural Women Health
11.12. Rural Children Health
11.13. Rural Adolescents and Youth Health
12. Part XII Research Methods for Rural Studies
12.1. Researching the Rural – Recent trends
12.2. Interdisciplinary and Rural Studies Research
12.3. Data collection tools and techniques
12.4. Qualitative – methods and approaches
12.5. Quantitative – methods and approaches
12.6. Mixed methods– methods and approaches
12.7. Q Methodology and Rural Research
12.8. Ethical Framework
12.9. Field education for rural studies and community engagement
12.10. Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA)
About the Editors
• Rajendra Baikady, PhD
Dr. Rajendra Baikady is currently working as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Social Work, at the Central University of Kerala, India, and a senior Research Associate at the Department of Social Work and Community Development, University of Johannesburg, South Africa. He was a Special Post-Doctoral Fellow and Assistant Lecturer at the Department of the Social Work University of Johannesburg, South Africa, during the academic year 2020-2022. In addition to this, Baikady is a Principal Investigator (Summer Research Fellowship) at the International Socioeconomic Laboratory, Harvard University, United States and a Research Associate at the Water Policy Center in India. He completed his first Post-Doctoral Fellowship at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel (2019-2020), and was awarded Golda Meir Fellowship by Lady Davis Trust at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He was also a recipient of the Taiwan Government’s Short Term Research Award (2018), for academic research at National Chengchi University, Taiwan, and the Confucius Institute Understanding China Fellowship by the Government of China (2018-2019) for academic research at Shandong University, China. He has wide research experience in evaluating best practices of social work education and practice in both local and global contexts. His recent books include The Palgrave Handbook of Global Social Work Education (Palgrave Macmillan; 2020), Social Welfare Policies and Programmes in South Asia (Routledge;2020), Building Sustainable Communities – Civil Society Response in South Asia (Palgrave Macmillan;2020), Social Welfare in India and China: A Comparison (Palgrave Macmillan;2020), The Oxford Handbook of Power, Politics and Social Work (Oxford University Press; 2024), The Routledge International Handbook of Field Work Education in Social Work (Routledge;2022), and The Routledge Handbook of Social Work Field Education in the Global South (Routledge; 2022), The Routledge International Handbook of Social Work Teaching (Routledge; 2024), The Routledge Handbook of Poverty in the Global South (Routledge; 2023), Latin American Social Work in the Justice System (SpringerNature; 2023), Indigenization Discourse in Social Work – International perspectives (SpringerNature; 2023), Social Work in an Unequal World (Oxford University Press; Forthcoming), Social Work Education for and beyond Sustainable Development (Routledge; Forthcoming), Social Work Education in the Global South- Responding to Social Realities (Routledge; Forthcoming), Social Work Education in our Turbulent World (Routledge; Forthcoming), Teaching Social Work in Latin America (Routledge; Forthcoming) and Social Work Education in Multi-Cultural Society- issues challenges and prospects (Palgrave Macmillan; Forthcoming). Baikady’s research interests are in international social work, social change, social problems, social welfare, social justice, human rights, critical social work, social policy and globalization, among others. Ongoing major publishing projects (MRW) by Baikady include: The Palgrave Handbook of Global Social Problems – by Palgrave Macmillan, UK (Editor-in-Chief) and The Palgrave Handbook of Global Social Change – by Palgrave Macmillan, UK (Editor-in-Chief). He is also the founding editor of four book series published by Springer Nature – Springer Series in Social Work and Social Change, SpringerBriefs in Social Work and Social Change, Springer Series in International Social Work, SpringerBriefs in International Social Work and Routledge Series in Social Work and Society. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, London, UK. Dr. Baikady is the Founding Editor in Chief of the Journal Discover Global Society published by Springer Nature, London.
• Koustab Majumdar, MPhil, PhD
Koustab Majumdar teaches Rural and Tribal Development in Ramakrishna Mission Vivekananda Educational and Research Institute (Deemed to be University, Ranchi campus, India). He was a Post-Doctoral (Visiting) Scholar at the International Center for Cultural Studies (ICSS), National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University (NYCU), Taiwan. Dr. Majumdar was awarded a Taiwan Fellowship (2023) by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), China (Taiwan), to conduct his post-doctoral research on Comparative Indigenous Social Welfare Policy at ICSS_NYCU. He worked as a research associate at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences and RKMVERI. Dr. Majumdar became the recipient of tuition fee scholarship (2019) to attend Chula Right Livelihood Summer School (Chulalongkorn University), Bangkok, Thailand. He has been associated with many international journals (Sage, Springer, Palgrave Macmillan) and edited book projects (Living Reference of Palgrave Macmillan) as a reviewer. His recent book includes Indigenization Discourse in Social Work: International Perspectives, SpringeNature, Indigenous Social Welfare Policy: Insights from Selected Countries, Routledge. Furthermore, he is working on the following book projects- Tribal Elderly: An Ethnographic Account, Springer; The Oxford Handbook of Global Indigenous Studies (Eds.), Oxford University Press; Rural Development Policy in the Global South: Approaches, Challenges and Innovations (Eds.), Routledge. The Routledge Handbook of Tribal Studies in India, Routledge; Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) in India: History, Culture and Contemporary Issues, Routledge; Social Work and Social Change: Education, Research and Practice. SpringerNature; Indigenous Women’s Resilience, Leadership and Social Change: Perspectives of Community Organization, SpringerNature. Majumdar’s research interests include rural transformation, environmental education, social work education, international social work, comparative social policy and social welfare, rural and tribal livelihood and participatory research. Dr. Majumdar is the co-guest editor of a special issue (Addressing Poverty in Post-Pandemic Society) in Discover Global Society, Springer. He is also a member of a number of international bodies such as – Development Studies Association, UK; Canada India Research Centre for Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE), University of Guelph, Canada; UNESCO Inclusive Policy Lab.
• Evans Osabuohien
Evans Osabuohien is a Professor of Economics at Covenant University, Ota and the Founding Chair of DIaDeRC (DePECOS Institutions and Development Research Centre), Nigeria. He has two decades of experience and has executed numerous funded projects as an individual and team leader. He is astute in research, resulting in the publication of five books and over 200 scholarly articles. He has participated in conferences/workshops/short courses across the world. He has consulted on many projects for international agencies such as International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), United Nations Agencies (e.g., UNCTAD & UNU-WIDER), African Capacity Building Foundation (ACBF), African Economic Research Consortium (AERC), Council for the Development of Social Research in Africa (CODESRIA), German Institute for Global and Area Studies (GIGA), among others. Prof. Osabuohien was appointed as the Head of Department (HOD) in 2016, emerging as the Youngest HOD in Covenant University. He received a Double Promotion to the rank of a Full Professor of Economics in December 2017, making him the Youngest Professor in the University. In May 2020, he was recognised as ‘One of the 6 Youngest Professors in Nigeria’. He is the Pioneer Chair of the Centre for Economic Policy and Development Research (CEPDeR) and the Pioneer Chair of Regional Centre of Expertise, Ogun State (RCE Ogun). He is a member of many International Learned Societies/Professional Associations. He is a Visiting Professor to Eduardo Mondlane University, Maputo, Mozambique and University of Lusaka, Zambia. He was a Visiting Scholar at University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam (June- December 2020) and Alexander von Humboldt Visiting Professor at Witten/Herdecke University, Germany (2018-2023). He currently serves as a member of the Board of Directors of some companies such as: Covenant Microfinance Bank Ltd (since 2018); Seasoned Researchers and Business Advisors Ltd (since 2021); and OpenBinacle Group (Multinational Technology Company). Furthermore, he is the Founding Chair and Lead Economist for DePECOS Institutions and Development Research Centre (DIaDeRC), where he coordinates the African Scholars Mentorship Network (ASMN) with over 800 members and DIaDeRC HR Solutions (Jobs Portal). He is one of the Global Authors of Global Environmental Outlook 7th Edition (GEO-7), the flagship report of the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP). He is a member of Council for Nigerian Economic Society (NES founded 1957) where he serves as an Associate Editor. He is an Associate Editor for Elsevier (Heliyon-Economics) and Managing Editor for Springer Nature Group (Sustainable Development). He is a fellow of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation (since 2012) and Swedish Institute (since 2009), among many others.
