ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the need for alternative channels between state and community to raise economic, social and political productivity. The recognition by the Irish government of the 'considerable community and voluntary effort which can be mobilised to promote economic and social development in rural areas' is increasingly widespread. The contested concept of 'rural development' and the so-called 'new' approach to it emerging are integral to forming understandings, judgements and 'answers' about rural development in Ireland. The concept of contemporary rural governance is however particularly heterogeneous and there is considerable discussion about how the 'transition from government to governance should be conceptualised'. While the term can be often more rhetorical than substantive, G. Stoker suggests that its emergence has come about from a recognition of the limits of government. Direct engagement in local economic development is a voluntary activity for local government, dependent upon co-operation and partnership with state-sponsored bodies, and on funding from the European Union or national sources.
