The demographic challenge requires inter-administrative coordination to make the allocation of available resources and funds more efficient. Provincial governments, in their role as guarantors of solidarity and intermunicipal balance, can play a key role due to their proximity to the territory and their priority attention to smaller population centers. In the case analyzed, however, the results show budgetary and territorial governance limitations. This conclusion has been reached by combining quantitative (economic and demographic) and qualitative information, especially from the interview of twenty-five informants who have been key to the construction of a conceptual map reflecting the causes and complexity of the problem, identifying at the same time several vicious circles that emphasize the competitive difficulties of the territory as the ultimate cause of population loss.

This paper examines the determinants of organic olive farming adoption in Andalusia, a region where spatial disparities in uptake persist despite overall growth. Using a complete 2024 census of olive plots, linked to administrative records and spatial indicators, we estimate a multilevel logistic regression model that accounts for the hierarchical structure of the data (plots nested within farms and municipalities). The analysis reveals that adoption is strongly associated with plot characteristics (e.g., plot size, cultivar type, slope, soil quality, and distance to the nearest village), farm structure (e.g., farm size, land tenure, and farmer’s proximity to the plot), and territorial features such as institutional capacity and Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) payment structures. By clarifying the agronomic, structural, and institutional drivers of adoption, the results provide a foundation for targeted policies to expand organic farming in underrepresented areas.

El reto demográfico requiere coordinación interadministrativa para hacer más eficiente la asignación de los recursos y fondos disponibles. Los gobiernos provinciales, en su papel de garantes de la solidaridad y el equilibrio intermunicipal, pueden ser una pieza clave por su cercanía al territorio y la atención prioritaria a los núcleos de menor tamaño poblacional. En el caso analizado, los resultados muestran, sin embargo, limitaciones presupuestarias y de gobernanza territorial. A esta conclusión se ha llegado combinando información cuantitativa (económica y demográfica) y cualitativa, especialmente a partir de la entrevista de veinticinco informantes que han resultado claves para la construcción de un mapa conceptual donde se reflejan las causas y complejidad del problema, identificando al mismo tiempo varios círculos viciosos que ponen el acento en las dificultades competitivas del territorio como causa última de la pérdida de población.

La participación de los gobiernos en las actividades de innovación no se limita exclusivamente a la implementación de políticas de apoyo a la I+D. Dado que los avances tecnológicos se desarrollan en un marco institucional y de negocios determinado, en última instancia, un papel clave de los gobiernos en este proceso consiste en la creación de un entorno adecuado que promueva los incentivos necesarios para que la generación de conocimiento sea posible y que, posteriormente, los desarrollos científicos derivados sean adoptados eficazmente por parte de las empresas. En este contexto, este artículo busca contribuir a la literatura sobre las relaciones entre instituciones e innovación mediante un análisis bibliométrico para el período 1990-2021. Los resultados muestran cómo, aunque el contexto institucional ha recibido cada vez más atención, quedan aún por desarrollar líneas de investigación relevantes, particularmente las relacionadas con el papel de las instituciones informales como posibles moderadoras de estos procesos.

Olive growing is a millennia-old activity in the Maghreb countries, but recently is changing due to the spread of prosperity and the opening of new niches in internal markets. The aim of this paper is to understand how the development process affects agriculture. The methodology used combines the analysis of quantitative data available from international and national bodies, the information obtained from our field work, and the data extracted through the content analysis of 60 in-depth interviews conducted with farmers, entrepreneurs, academics, consultants and policy makers in 2019, 2020 and 2022 in the main regions devoted to olive growing. The results show that newcomer farmers adopt novel organizational and productive models. Knowledge, innovation and the use of water are the key elements for modern agriculture. New actors are entering the sector and displacing traditional forms of cultivation. However major economic, social and environmental challenges are looming on the horizon.

The participation of governments in innovation activities is not limited exclusively to the implementation of R&D support policies. Since technological advancements take place within a given institutional and business framework, ultimately, a key role of governments in this process consists of creating a suitable institutional framework that promotes the necessary incentives for knowledge generation to be possible and, subsequently, for the resulting scientific developments to be effectively adopted by companies. In this context, this article aims to contribute to the scientific literature on the relationship between institutions and innovation through a bibliometric analysis for the period 1990-2021. The results show that, although the institutional context has received increasing attention in the literature, relevant lines of research remain to be developed, particularly those related to the role of informal institutions as possible moderators in these processes.

Agri-food industrial complexes have undergone rapid transformations in recent decades, resulting in significant territorial impacts in the regions where they are concentrated. Economic and social globalization has given rise to a global consumer class with increasingly homogenized habits, driving up demand for certain agri-food products—both for direct consumption and as inputs in intermediate stages of the value chain. Technological advancements have further intensified crop yields, making agricultural investments more attractive to financial capital. This paper explores this process through two paradigmatic cases: soybean cultivation in the Pampas region of Argentina and olive farming in the southern Iberian Peninsula. These cases illustrate how agribusiness is reshaping traditional agro-industrial complexes, affecting economic, financial, technological, and institutional structures. Despite these transformations, production remains primarily geared toward international markets. The methodological approach used is the case study, framed within an evolutionary perspective of endogenous development theories. The analysis of the development of these two monoculture-based agri-food industries highlights how technological innovations evolve within specific institutional and socioeconomic contexts, driving progressive changes that model localized activities.

La expansión e intensificación del olivar se observa por doquier en los países mediterráneos. En Marruecos, Argelia y Túnez encontramos una contrastada convivencia de modernidad y tradición, mientras se implementan políticas públicas que tratan de reforzar este sector productivo. El objetivo del trabajo es analizar los factores de cambio de los modelos de negocio oleícola. La investigación se ha nutrido de fuentes bibliográficas, documentales y trabajo de campo, consistente en la realización de sesenta entrevistas con diferentes actores implicados en estos procesos. Los resultados nos han permitido identificar el avance de las plantaciones de alta densidad regadas y los factores que lo impulsan.

The expansion and intensification of olive growing can be observed everywhere in Mediterranean countries. In Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia there is a contrasted coexistence of modernity and tradition, while public policies are implemented to strengthen this productive sector. The objective of the work is to analyze the factors of change of olive business models in these three countries. The research was based on bibliographic and documentary sources and field work, consisting of sixty interviews with different actors involved in these processes. The results have allowed us to identify the progress of irrigated high-density plantations and the factors that drive it.

En este artículo nos preguntamos hasta qué punto la especialización extrema en el olivar de la provincia de Jaén es capaz de generar actividad y rentas suficientes para garantizar el mantenimiento de la población a largo plazo. La metodología aplicada es descriptiva y el propósito es proporcionar una imagen holística y prospectiva de una realidad compleja. En los resultados se ofrecen estrategias de mejora desde una perspectiva de desarrollo territorial.

Resumen: En la lógica de la especialización regional productiva, el olivar se ha conformado como la principal ocupación del suelo agrícola en Andalucía. En los municipios más rurales, de hecho, las opciones para el mantenimiento de la población están muy condicionadas por la evolución de este sector productivo. Una de las características más interesantes del mismo es el fuerte peso que la economía social tiene en la fase de molturación de la aceituna, de forma que las cooperativas son responsables del setenta por ciento del aceite obtenido. El objetivo de este trabajo es analizar los procesos de innovación que se están desarrollando en estas empresas aceiteras para hacer frente a los desafíos de la competencia y para operar como palanca de desarrollo rural. A partir de entrevistas en profundidad con responsables de cooperativas se presenta un balance de la situación actual, concluyendo que una profundización, mejora y generalización de las transformaciones que están en marcha pueden ser claves para mejorar la capacidad competitiva de los territorios en los que operan. Palabras clave: aceites de oliva, desarrollo rural, economía social, innovación, globalización. Abstract: In the logic of regional productive specialization, the olive grove has become the main occupation of agricultural land in Andalusia. In the most rural municipalities, in fact, the options for the maintenance of the population are highly conditioned by the evolution of this productive sector. One of the most interesting characteristics of this sector is the strong weight that the social economy has in the olive milling phase, so that the cooperatives are responsible for seventy percent of the oil obtained. The aim of this work is to analyze the innovation processes that are being developed in these olive oil companies to face the challenges of competition and to operate as a lever for rural development. Based on in-depth interviews with cooperative managers, a balance of the current situation is presented, concluding that a deepening, improvement and generalization of the transformations that are underway can be key to improve the competitive capacity of the territories in which they operate. Key words: olive oils, rural development, social economy, innovation, globalization.

Andalucía es la mayor productora de aceites de oliva del mundo, una situación derivada tanto de la expansión superficial como de la intensificación productiva, estimuladas por la internacionalización de la economía. Las plantaciones más recientes se caracterizan por su elevada densidad y completa mecanización, en consonancia con los resultados del cambio tecnológico aplicado a la agricultura industrial. En el presente trabajo nos preguntamos qué posibilidades de prosperar tienen estos cambios en áreas donde domina la tradición, como es la provincia de Jaén. Dado que nos encontramos en lo que consideramos primeros síntomas de transformaciones que pueden ser drásticas, en la metodología se ha privilegiado el trabajo de campo. En los resultados se han considerado distintos modelos posibles y su relación fundamental con la disponibilidad de agua. Entre las conclusiones se han destacado diferentes limitaciones y debilidades que este proceso expansivo puede suponer desde una perspectiva territorial.

The COVID-19 pandemic has deeply affected economic activities worldwide. The challenge for territories and companies has been how to cope with mobility restrictions. Even in the case of essential activities such as agri-food industries, the adaptation has been a challenging issue to deal with. The paper aims to show how the wine and olive oil industries in Spain have restructured their activities in order to respond to the confinement and the new normalcy, using new technologies as a strategic tool, but also making the most of new actions to keep their presence in the national and international markets. The research was carried out mostly through qualitative analysis, using the in-depth interview as a main tool to gain strategic information from managers of companies and local policymakers. Results show that when local policy makers and managers cooperate, despite the different perceptions they could have, the outcome is positive for facing competitive shocks and carving out new local initiatives, making firms and the territory itself more resilient.

Territorial development policies facilitate productive diversification and job creation in rural and urban regions, where local actors manage and market local products Thus, the connection of localities through urban and entrepreneurial networks helps the firms' interaction and the development of agrarian, industrial and service products for selling in national and international markets The creation of polycentric territories through new communication systems facilitate the towns and regions accessibility Therefore, bottom-up policies and cooperation in times of post-COVID-19 recuperation reduces poverty and helps fight against inequality, permitting future territorial and social development

Social innovations have been the subject of much academic discussion in recent years and have been approached from multiple scientific perspectives. This work sets out to determine whether innovations carried out by Andalusian olive oil cooperatives can be described in terms of social innovation and if they could run a main role as rural development actors preserving the competitive capacity of farmers and the living conditions in rural Andalusia. Through an analysis of the available literature, the use of municipal statistical data and the conducting of in-depth interviews, we show how cooperatives have been proposed as a solution to the problems that international competition poses for the production activity of olives and olive oil. At present, the most innovative cooperatives are undergoing a slow process of incorporating innovations, above all organisational and management ones, which reach beyond the entities themselves, given the social character that they have in the region, where they are considered a public good. Despite the problems that olive oil cooperatives have historically had in competing in the market, they can contribute to maintaining the population in the rural environment and improving the quality of life in the region, justifying the need for government support.

Nowadays, sustainability is an omnipresent concept in our society, which encompasses several challenges related to poverty, inequality, climate change and so on. The United Nations adopted the Agenda 2030, a plan of action formed of universal Sustainable Developments Goals (SDGs) and targets, which countries have to face in order to shift the world toward a sustainable future. One of the most relevant SDGs since the onset of the financial crisis in 2007 has been the so-called reduced inequalities, which consists of dealing with the inequality of opportunities and wealth between and within countries. However, reducing inequalities depends on many heterogeneous aspects, making it difficult to make a proper analysis that evaluates the European Union (EU) countries performance of this goal. In this study, we introduce a novel approach to evaluate the inequalities in EU countries based on a sorting a multi-criteria decision-making method called AHPSort II. This approach allows to obtain a classification of the EU countries according to their achievements in reducing inequalities to subsequently carry out a deep performance analysis with the aim of drawing conclusions as to the evolution of inequality in them along the years. The results are consistent with the main international organizations' reports and academic literature, as shown in the Discussion Section.