The project has six main research objectives:

1. To identify the key causes and effects of economic restructuring currently affecting Europe's rural areas in both NIS and established market economies.

2. To explore the consequences that 'Globalisation' processes have had and will have upon the development trajectories of rural areas in NIS and compare those with the experience of the UK and Greece.

3. To identify sources of entrepreneurship (new, existing and potential).

4. To evaluate the extent to which the existing institutional, social and technological environment and infrastructure encourages and facilitates entrepreneurship.

5. To analyse the nature and type of work created through entrepreneurial activity.

6. To assess the appropriateness of existing policy approaches and instruments and to identify initiatives which could have wider application in Europe's rural periphery.