Youth Expectations as a Component of Public Sentiment in Sustainable Rural Development Strategies: Evidence From the Siberian Federal District, Russia

Elena V. Matveeva; Anna E. Shilova; Ekaterina S. Churkina

doi:10.15826/csp.2026.10.2.392

Elena V. Matveeva Kemerovo State Institute of Culture, Kemerovo, Russia http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7001-6935
Anna E. Shilova Kuzbass State Agricultural University, Kemerovo, Russia http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1887-2275
Ekaterina S. Churkina Kuzbass State Agricultural University, Kemerovo, Russia http://orcid.org/0009-0006-1172-3855

DOI: https://doi.org/10.15826/csp.2026.10.2.392

Abstract

This study investigates youth expectations regarding rural development in the medium- and long-term perspective, based on case studies from selected regions of Russia’s Siberian Federal District (Novosibirsk Oblast, Kemerovo Oblast–Kuzbass, Altai Krai, Republic of Tyva, and Irkutsk Oblast). Youth expectations are considered as a component of public sentiment that may influence the effectiveness of sustainable rural development strategies across different territorial, national, and ethnocultural contexts. The study relies on an integrative framework combining systems analysis and Vladimir Kvint’s concept of strategizing, with empirical data drawn from a 2025 cross-regional, comparative study of focus groups of university students in the Siberian Federal District. The findings reveal a pattern indicating a correlation between the socioeconomic development level of regional economies (including funding, territorial scale, demographic characteristics, and human resources) and young people’s willingness to live in rural areas for personal and professional development. The analysis shows predominantly negative assessments of social infrastructure across the surveyed regions, reflecting the limited attractiveness of rural areas and lifestyles for young people. The main conclusion is that the dominance of either the primary or secondary economic sector is a key determinant of rural attractiveness for young people in the medium- and long-term perspective.

Author Biographies

Elena V. Matveeva, Kemerovo State Institute of Culture, Kemerovo, Russia

Elena V. Matveeva, Dr. Sci. (Political Science), Associate Professor, Professor of the Department of Cultural Studies, Philosophy and Art History, Kemerovo State Institute of Culture, Kemerovo, Russia. Her research interests are regional political process, political culture, civil society.

Anna E. Shilova, Kuzbass State Agricultural University, Kemerovo, Russia

Anna E. Shilova, PhD in Economics, Associate Professor of the Department of Management and Agribusiness, Kuzbass State Agricultural University, Kemerovo, Russia. Research interests: human capital, values, expectations of the rural population, agricultural sector.

Ekaterina S. Churkina, Kuzbass State Agricultural University, Kemerovo, Russia

Ekaterina S. Churkina, PhD in Economics, Senior Lecturer of the Department of Management and Agribusiness, Kuzbass State Agricultural University, Kemerovo, Russia. Research interests: human capital, expectations of the rural population, agricultural sector.

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