AbstractsBusiness Management & Administration

Starting from the hypothesis European countries have more experience in addressing problems in their mountain areas, the research was designed as a cross-country study mixed with a casestudy approach. Major European mountain massifs were embraced within the first phase of the research (exploratory-descriptive), indicating how similar problems in Serbian [SMA] and other European mountain areas [EMA] are and how their countries address them. The next task was to present how sustainable development of SMA alone can be enhanced, which was done in the explanatory phase. Multiple source analysis, also known as the triangulation method, enabled evidence cross-checking. In the case of SMA, data was collected from both available sources and interviews conducted in three rounds with experts, authorities and the local population (in four municipalities), while data for other EMA was obtained solely from written sources. Both qualitative and quantitative data were analysed. The research led to identification of five categories of problems: environmental, demographic, infrastructure, economic and management. In this regard, SMA have been shown to be similar to other EMA in terms of environmental and demographic issues, while differing from them in matters of the economy, physical accessibility, infrastructure endowment and management. The Balkan Mountain Massif and the Carpathians showed the greatest similarity to SMA. In contrast, the Alps showed a considerably lower extent of problems because of the length of time already spent on finding solutions for them. The identified problem categories in mountain areas Serbia has been dealt for the shortest period of time, including defining and promotion of principles, instruments and measures. The issues stressed are: Serbia lacks decision-making power below the national level, explicit measures for mountain area problems and their implementation. The greatest gap between EMA and SMA appeared to be in the sphere of management, where Serbia has done the least. The last part of the research argues and suggests the prospects for the sustainable development of SMA, split into three main fields of action - management, infrastructure and the economy, and additionally a couple of actions valuable for all the fields simultaneously – urban-rural dependences and activation of the civil sector and volunteers. Within the management field, active local population participation, responsible realisation of the full cycle of decision making - from research to evaluation – and the special status for SMA are highlighted as inevitable in the enhancement process. In the field of the economy, the suggestions made are economic diversification and the improvement of products and job attractiveness, which are expected to positively affect the dissemination of knowledge, product marketing and accessibility to the market. Finally, the sustainable development perspectives aligned in the field of accessibility and infrastructure are the endowment of roads, modernisation of education and ICT…