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Maarit Sireni

Abstract

This article reports on a study that examines the responses of rural policy-makers to the new land-use planning guidelines set by the Finnish Government. The empirical data are obtained from North Karelian candidates’ answers to questions posed in voting advice applications before the parliamentary elections in 2007 and 2011. A clear-cut majority of the rural policy-makers challenge the planning guidelines, arguing that they compromise the overall (ecological, social and economical) sustainability of the countryside.

Keywords: land-use planning, low-density housing, rural areas, sustainability