First congress of the European Society for Rural Sociology in the Baltics to be held at RSU

Miķelis Grīviņš, a tenured professor at Rīga Stradiņš University (RSU), has been elected to the Board of the European Society for Rural Sociology (ESRS). This is the largest and most important organisation in its field in Europe, and it has been active since the middle of the last century. ESRS is in charge of both the largest congress of rural researchers in Europe and one of the most important academic journals in its field, Sociologia Ruralis.

The newly elected Executive Board of the European Association of Rural Sociologists. Miķelis Grīviņš - first from left

During the 19th biannual congress, RSU was selected as the venue for the upcoming Congress of the European Association of Rural Sociologists. The Congress will take place in 2025 and will bring together scientists from all over the world. This will be the first time that the congress will be held in the Baltics. So far, Poland has been the only post-socialist country to host this event.

The congress in Riga is an important stepping stone for the development of the field of rural sociology in Latvia.

Given Latvia's low population density and vast rural areas, rural research is of particular importance here. This field of research covers topics related to rural development, the provision of social services (such as medicine and education) in rural areas, and the implementation of sustainable practices.

It is currently expected that around 400 researchers from Europe, Australia, Asia, Africa, North and South America will attend the congress.