While many rural areas continue to experience depopulation and economic decline, others are facing rapid in-migration, as well as employment and income growth. Amenities and Rural Development explores the paradigmatic shift in how we view land resources and the potential for development in amenity-rich rural regions.

Contents: 1. Introduction 2. The Supply of Natural Amenities: Moving from Empirical Anecdotes to a Theoretical Basis 3. Rural Amenities Policies: Future Stakes 4. Equity within Institutional Arrangements for the Supply of Rural Amenities 5. The Supply and Demand for Natural Amenities: An Overview of Theory and Concepts 6. Out-Migration from the Northeast US: The Relative Roles of Economic and Amenity Differentials 7. Amenities and Change in the Well-Being of Nonmetropolitan Localities 8. The Role of Wilderness and Public Land Amenities in Explaining Migration and Rural Development in the American Northwest 9. Regional Economic Growth with a Focus on Amenities 10. Impact of Outdoor Recreation Facilities on Remote Rural Income Growth 11. Recreation, Amenity Migration and Urban Proximity 12. Resident-Employed Photography as a Tool for Understanding Attachment to High-Amenity Places 13. Seasonal Residents: Members of Community or Part of the Scenery? 14. Evaluating the Effectiveness of Land-Use Planning Policies in Rapidly Growing High-Amenity Communities in the Rocky Mountain States 15. Managing Growth and Development in a Natural-Amenity-Rich Landscape: Landowner Attitudes Toward Planning in Northwestern Wisconsin 16. Raising the Gangplank: A Defense of Localism Aimed at Resource Protection 17. Amenity-Led Development of Rural Areas: The Example of the Regional Action Pilot Programme in Germany 18. Rural Policy Issues 19. Amenities and Rural Development: Policy Implications and Directions for the Future Index

'Overall, the book offers something for both academics and policy makers seeking to understand the complex issues of social change and governance facing amenity-rich areas. Its primary value for researchers is its account of the many challenges to empirical work in this area. Decision makers will see their own situations reflected in the case studies, and gain a greater understanding of the forces driving the different types of amenity-led development.'