In The Geography of Property Rights: Land Concentration, Irrigation Access and Rural Poverty Under Climate Change in Chile, Eduardo Villavicencio-Pinto (Law, University of Kent, England) examines the relationship between land concentration and rural poverty in Chile. The article argues that land concentration increases the likelihood of poverty primarily in communities with limited water access.  

In Feed it to the Ocean: The Federal Approach to Decommissioning in Alaska Native Climate Adaptation Project, Sophia Tidler (University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa Law) highlights the importance of decommissioning existing infrastructure when planning relocation, managed retreat, and protect-in-place (RMP) projects for environmentally threatened Native communities in rural Alaska.

In Catching Nutrients in a Net: Collective Action, Institutional Impediments, and the Mississippi River Watershed, Jonathan Rosenbloom (Albany Law School) investigates the role of local governments in the regulation of pollution in the Mississippi River Watershed. In his analysis, Rosenbloom goes beyond the traditional “tragedy of the commons” explanation for local government action and instead looks to the dynamics of federal and state regulations that preempt local governments.

In Know Your Rights! A Field Experiment on Legal Knowledge, Property Rights, and Investment in Kenya, Adam Aberra and Matthieu Chemin (both Economics, McGill University, Montreal) illustrate the impact of legal trainings regarding property rights on landowners in Kenya and emphasize that this low-cost intervention increases security in property rights and promotes economic development.

In Legal Deserts and Spatial Injustice: A Study of Criminal Legal Systems in Rural Washington, authors Lisa R. Pruitt (University of California Davis Law), Jennifer Sherman, and Jennifer Schwartz (both Sociology, Washington State) delve into the criminal legal systems across several rural counties in eastern Washington to understand the problems these communities face and how those problems impact legal representation for indigent defendants.

In A World-Threatening Feeling: Grief, Moral Injury, and Institutional Loss in Rural Courts, author Michele Statz (Minnesota Medical School and Minnesota Law) examines how technologies first implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic continue to reshape rural judicial systems. Statz argues these tools contribute to a loss of connection between rural judges, attorneys, court staff, and parties which further undermines the sense of purpose many rural practitioners once felt in their work.

In Rural Geography I: Why Should Rural Geographers ‘Care’?Susanne Stenbacka (Human Geography, Uppsala University, Sweden) explores the existing literature discussing the concept of care and its intersection with rural geography. Stenbacka encourages rural geographers to incorporate care theory into their research, arguing that care can be used both as a tool and a lens through which to view the challenges faced by rural spaces.

In Natural Resource Policy and Collaborative Processes, Crystal M. Callahan and Katherine M. Himes (both Public Policy Research, University of Idaho) advocate for introducing collaborative governance to the natural resource policy process. The authors explore several successful Idaho case studies in which collective governance was utilized to address “wicked problems” plaguing Idaho’s natural resource policy.

In The Dark Side of the Balloon: Restrictions on Foreign Investment in US Farmland, Sarah Everhart (Delaware Law) argues that legislators should shift their focus from preventing foreign ownership of US farmland to supporting domestic farmers’ access to farmland.

In Rural Politics in the United States, authors Trevor E. Brown and Suzanne Mettler (both Government, Cornell University) survey recent literature on rural politics and recommend a broader lens to better understand the impact of place on voters. They discuss the current state of rural politics literature, how to measure place and rurality, the role of public opinion, and recommend a comparative approach for future rural studies.

In Women smallholders build an agroecology food system: the construction of empowerment and food sovereignty, Chukwuma Ume, Ernst-August Nuppenau, Stéphanie Domptail (all Agricultural Policy and Market Research, Justus-Liebig University Giessen), and Stefan Wahlen (Consumer Research, Communication and Food Sociology, Justus-Liebig University Giessen) investigate the relation between women smallholder farmers food systems and the global industrialization of agri-food systems.

In Provincial Diffusion, National Acceptance: The Transfer of Conservation Easement Policy in Canada, author Forrest Hisey (Geography, Geomatics, and Environment, University of Toronto) surveys the development of conservation easement (CE) legislation development in Canada to understand the state of CE policy as well as policy diffusion methods leading to this development.