The article presents the results of the sociological study (survey) of the reputation of Russian governors. Reputation is considered as a resource of regional governance and internal political consolidation. The study aimed at identifying the features of the real and ideal reputational ‘portraits’ of governors based on the model ‘center–periphery’ at the intra-regional level (perception by residents of regional centers and districts — urban and rural areas). The survey revealed a predominantly positive orientation of the real reputation of governors with even more positive perception by the residents of the periphery, and the unity of characteristics that constitute both real and ideal portraits of governors. The ideal reputational portrait compared with the real, mosaic one is more integral in terms of the presence of significant characteristics. The author identifies the most important of them, which constitute the governors’ reputation core in the regions under study. The article considers the value gaps between the real and expected combinations of reputational elements focusing on the population’s request for an ‘ideal’ governor; and shows the differences in the perception of governors’ reputation in regional centers and districts. Thus, the study provides some reference points for a more effective governors’ reputational management — as based on the public opinion and expectations.

Governor’s reputation, reputation features, reputation core, reputation portrait, real/ideal governor, value gap, region, ‘center-periphery’, public opinion.

Nina N. Rozanova, PhD (Pedagogics), Associate Professor, Department of Management, Smolensk State University; Przhevalskogo St., 4, Smolensk, 214000, Russia.
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The article describes the lifestyle of rural residents in the steppe part of Southern Siberia on the example of the Volchikhinsky district of the Altai Region. The approach applied is inspired by the book by O. P. Semenova-Tyan-Shanskaya The Life of Ivan which presents a ‘portrait’ of the typical, ‘collective’ villager. The authors identify a number of characters reflecting the typical social groups of the village. Local population was formed mainly by the peasant migrations of the Stolypin era (Russians) and by the deportation of the Volga Germans during the Great Patriotic War; the number of Germans was also influenced by the wave of resettlement to Germany, which had begun after the collapse of the Soviet Union. The destruction of closed communities and their resettlement in the Russian settlements of Altai led to the rapprochement of these groups and to the blurring of the ethnic-cultural boundaries between them. The authors identify differences in the lifestyle of the district center and its villages. The main employers in Volchikha are the brewery and public sector; most residents do not keep livestock; thus, they have free time. For residents of other villages, personal subsidiary farming mainly based on a cow is the main source of livelihood, which almost deprives them of free time. However, the ways for spending free time are similar for all residents of the district. The weekly market in Volchikha serves as a place for both trade and social interactions for the entire district. The authors conclude that the contemporary differences in the lifestyle are determined by the level of urbanization and the age of the settlement rather than by ethnic differences.

Rural area, lifestyle, Altai Region, Southern Siberia, peasant activities, Russian Germans.

Oleg E. Prusikhin, Bachelor’s Student, Department of Economic and Social Geography of Russia, Faculty of Geography, Lomonosov Moscow State University; Leninsky Gory, 1, Moscow, 119991, Russia.
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Evgeny D. Zhukovsky, Bachelor’s Student, Department of Economic and Social Geography of Russia, Faculty of Geography, Lomonosov Moscow State University; Leninsky Gory, 1, Moscow, 119991, Russia.
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Oleg D. Krutov, Bachelor’s Student, Department of Economic and Social Geography of Russia, Faculty of Geography, Lomonosov Moscow State University; Leninsky Gory, 1, Moscow, 119991, Russia.
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Alekseev Alexander I., DSc (Geography), Professor, Department of Economic and Social Geography of Russia, Faculty of Geography, Lomonosov Moscow State University; Leninsky Gory, 1, Moscow, 119991, Russia.
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The article focuses on the current demographic development of the urban settlements network in the Jewish Autonomous Region under its ongoing deindustrialization and the revision of the strategy of its social-economic development. Based on the results of the All-Union census of 1989, data of the All-Russian censuses and special surveys, the author describes the demographic crisis of all urban settlements in the region: 2 cities and 12 workers’ settlements. The high dependence of settlements on the local city-forming industrial enterprises and their insufficient infrastructural development in the Soviet and post-Soviet periods determined the current demographic crisis. During the period under study, the population in 8 workers’ settlements decreased by more than a third (in each), in 4 — by more than a half. The population of the city of Obluchye decreased by a third, of the capital city Birobidzhan — by 15%. Today, this demographic crisis is determined by the sustainable trends of the natural population decline and by the out-migration in the 1990s–2010s, which the region will not be able to overcome on its own in the coming decades. Despite the attempts of the regional authorities to implement new development strategies, regional settlements continue to experience a demographic crisis.

Far East, Jewish Autonomous Region, urban history, urbanization, cities, urban population, Birobidzhan.

Breslavsky Anatoly S., PhD (History), Senior Researcher, Laboratory for Historical Geography and Regionalistics, Tyumen State University; Lenina St., 23, Tyumen, 625003, Russia.
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The current social-economic situation in Russia poses new challenges for industries, agriculture, and services. One of these challenges is the search for alternative sources of food supply in regions and the strengthening of food security under the import substitution policy. In agriculture, the emphasis is placed on the development of both main branches and those previously considered additional. At the same time, there are attempts to diversify economies of the single-industry regions in order to ensure their ‘sustainable’ development. One of the regions representing all the above trends is the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Region. Federal and regional authorities strive to reduce its budget dependence on the oil and gas rent and to invest in the traditional sectors of polar agriculture such as reindeer breeding and fishery. The article is based on the results of the author’s field studies in the summer of 2021 and describes the social-economic situation in Yamal. The author pays particular attention to agriculture and indigenous peoples of Siberia, to the history and main trends in the development of the nomadic and semi-nomadic groups of Yamal — to identify promising directions and main barriers for the development of regional agriculture.

Regional development, human geography, Siberian indigenous nations, migration, oil-producing regions, agriculture, reindeer breeding.

Gusakov Timur Yu., Researcher, Center for Agrarian Studies, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration; Vernadskogo Prosp., 82, Moscow, 119571, Russia.
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The permanent transformation of the Russian local self-government comes to its logical end. The trend of management centralization including the ‘upward’ transfer of the powers of local authorities, combined with a decrease in their financial resources, determines the transition to the system of ‘single public authority’ as declared in the new version of the Constitution of the Russian Federation. The author’s description of these changes’ impact on the organization of everyday rural life and rural development challenges is based on semi-formalized interviews with representatives of local authorities in three regions of Siberia. According to the respondents, the redistribution of power resources in favor of the regional level and the reduction of the local self-government powers threaten the ability to effectively solve local tasks, primarily those of the rural development. The not always justified transfer of urban (corporate) management standards to rural areas inevitably leads to manipulations with statistical reports and data which serve as the basis for decisions on the distribution of budgetary funds. Administrative reforms did not solve but rather exacerbated both the direct financing of the local authorities work and the allocation of resources for rural development projects. The co-financing of initiative projects by the population and local businesses did not deliver the expected results. ‘Digitalization’ of management activities by uniform patterns which ignore local features rather creates an additional burden on local administrators than saves costs or increases decisions’ efficiency. The identified trends determine new significant risks for rural life and development. To reduce such risks to reasonable limits, we need deep, carefully thought-out and well-balanced changes in the rural self-government institutions.

Local self-government, municipal government, rural development, reforms, formal and informal institutions, Omsk Region, Altai Region, Tomsk Region.

Fadeeva Olga P., PhD (Sociology), Senior Researcher, Institute of Economics and Organization of Industrial Production, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences. 630090 Novosibirsk, Academician Lavrentieva St., 17.
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The article presents the results of the assessment of Russia’s food security in 2020–2021 based on the available statistical data and sociological monitoring of the population’s ‘food well-being’ conducted since 2015 by the Center for Agro-Food Policy of the RANEPA. The authors believe that the pandemic risks for Russian agriculture were limited, and agricultural production ensured a high level of food self-sufficiency. Although the physical access to food remained at the same level, the economic access has deteriorated; however, Russian families managed to keep their usual diet by redirecting the money saved due to the pandemic restrictions to food consumption. Rising food prices have become the most important problem under the crisis, and to solve it, the Russian government has used a wide range of measures — from reducing duties on food imports and temporary bans on food exports to setting marginal retail prices for certain food products. The sociological assessment of the population’s ‘food well-being’ (the all-Russian telephone survey) showed that the families’ requirements to the access to food are rather modest due to the huge credit of patience and sustainable practices of adaptation to the objective social-economic restrictions. Given the achieved indicators of Russia’s food self-sufficiency according to the Food Security Doctrine, the state should shift its focus from food self-sufficiency (and increasing exports) to the economic access of the population to food.

Food security, food well-being, self-sufficiency, economic and physical access to food, pandemic, statistical and sociological data.

Shagaida Natalia I., DSc (Economics), Head of the Center for Agro-Food Policy, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. 119571, Moscow, Vernadskogo Prosp, 82.
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Trotsuk Irina V., DSc (Sociology), Professor, Sociology Chair, RUDN University; Senior Researcher, Center for Agrarian Studies, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. 119571, Moscow, Vernadskogo Prosp, 82.
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Throughout the history of the state, marginal groups have been a challenge for its effective functioning and development. One of the most widespread and numerous marginal groups in the world is an ethnic group of Gypsies. For many centuries, they live with other peoples but remain cut off from the state and its social institutions. However, under globalization and the Gypsy emancipation, the situation is changing. In some countries, social stigmatization and discrimination of the Gypsies still exclude them from social processes, but there are cases of their successful social integration (for example, in post-Soviet countries). The article considers the current situation of the Gypsies on the Crimean Peninsula, reasons for their social isolation, and features of their interaction with the society. The author also analyzes the Gypsy migrations in the region, factors of their resettlement, and features of their social-economic integration into the Crimean society.

Gypsies (Roma), migration, sedentarization, nomadic lifestyle, social stratification.

Gusakov Timur Yu., Researcher, Center for Agrarian Studies, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. 119571, Moscow, Vernadsky Prosp., 82.
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The authors systematize the types of circumstances which explain the objective change in rural (in particular farmer) generations of new Russia. Farming is considered in the double linguistic perspective — as a general definition and as a name of agrarian economic practices in their historical evolution. The authors examine the specific form of the legislative consolidation of the concept of farming, which directly indicates its transitive social-cultural mission; analytically assess the potential of the generational approach to the study of farming; suggest some key features of the new farming world and the ways of life which the next generation of farmers would choose. The authors conclude that the existing farming ‘society’ has accumulated a potential of changes which have already passed the initial approbation and can ensure the development of various, including very promising, activity models, forms and patterns for the future.

Farming, generational approach, generation, peasant economy, farmer, rural world, rural areas, everyday life practices.

Vinogradsky Valery G., DSc (Philosophy), Leading Researcher, Center for Agrarian Studies, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. 119571, Moscow, Vernadskogo Prosp., 82.
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Vinogradskaya Olga Ya., Researcher, Center for Agrarian Studies, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. 119571, Moscow, Vernadskogo Prosp., 82.
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In the presentation at the scientific seminar “Agrarian reform in the former USSR countries” of the Center for Agrarian Studies (Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration) on November 24, 2021, the author presented the results of the comparative studies of agrarian reforms in the post-Soviet countries. Based on an extensive analysis of scientific research and international and national statistics, the presentation explains changes in the reforming of the agrarian sector in various post-Soviet countries, identifies factors that determined changes in the initial tasks of reforms, and results achieved so far, some of which can be considered quite paradoxical. The author emphasizes the importance of both the institutional political paradigm as a basis of reforms and the prevailing branches of the agrarian economy, which inevitably determine an optimal economic direction for the development of the agrarian sector. The empirical analysis conducted by the author raises some questions that remain open, for instance, whether reforms can help to skip over a step in the agrarian evolution, or how sustainable are those economic forms that develop within a specific national economy.

Results of agrarian reform, post-Soviet countries, results of land privatization, reorganization of collective farms, role of farms.

Martin Petriсk, PhD, Professor, Dean for Academic Affairs, Justus-Liebig-University Giessen (Germany); Visiting Researcher, Leibniz Institute of Agricultural Development in Transition Economies (IAMO) (Halle, Germany), Institute of Agricultural Policy and Market Research, Senckenbergstraße 3, Zeughaus 35390, Giessen, Germany.
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Ovchintseva Lyubov A. (translater), PhD, leading researcher, Center for Agrarian studies, The Russian Presidental Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA). 82 Vernadsky Prosp., p. 1, Moscow, 119571.
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The article considers European initiatives and development programs for mountainous areas, and also changes in the approaches to the development of rural areas in the international debates. The author examines the structure and tasks of the EU rural development strategies and programs, the macro-regional and state mountain policies. The author suggests a typology of the national mountain policies’ development in European countries, and provides references on the contemporary development programs for mountainous areas focusing on the main factors of rural transformation. The article also presents a list of projects in mountainous rural areas of the EU by country.

Rural areas, mountainous areas, development programs, strategies, European experience, Europe, mountain policy, rural policy, transformation, sustainable development, rural revitalization.

Ershov Alexey M., Master’s Student, Department of Economic and Social Geography of Russia, Moscow State University, 119991, Moscow, Leninskie Gory, 1.
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