Romania

Romania is a country of peasants, with a long deep history of peasant agriculture and a strong cultural link to the land. This has survived despite the efforts of past empires and communist regimes to destroy it. Today, peasant culture remains the bedrock of the Romanian people in a changing time. Unfortunately, across Romania, land and natural resources have become the object of speculation and massive investment. Regardless of the resource exploited, the lands of small-scale peasant farmers’ are being grabbed and transformed, with far-reaching effects. The purpose of these grabs is multi-layered – agriculture, mining, energy, tourism, water resources, speculation – and the process is weakening rural economies and limiting the access to land for young and future farmers.