In recent decades, following the clear trend towards a massive growth of urban areas, inequalities of rural areas compared to urban areas have strongly increased.
Such a situation, potentially even a factor of social destabilisation, calls for a European response that could guarantee a regionally balanced and inclusive development through the implementation of social, spatial and economically inclusive policies.
Keeping this in mind the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) launched the project "More Europe Locally" which consists of a series of public meetings with the aim to discuss issues at the root of unbalanced territorial development between urban and rural areas.
Issues tackled include isolation, remoteness, population density, level of development and mass rural exodus.
These debates will also serve to identify possible impacts of key EU policies on rural development in the context of different local conditions.
The whole project is closely linked to the opinion "Towards a more balanced territorial development" (CESE 5165/2013) that the Committee adopted in 2014.
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