Roshtkhar County

Purpose-Local non-governmental organizations (NGOs) being regarded as the clear representation of the participation of people, pave the way for fulfilling the objectives of sustainable development. The main goal of this study is to investigate the circumstances and consequences of local NGOs in empowering rural women in protecting the environment of Roshtkhar County (One of the southern Counties of Khorasan Razavi province). Design/methodology/approach- The data needed for this study have been obtained through semi-structured interviews with a purposive sample of the founding boards and active members of NGOs (n =27). Findings-The results of the current study that utilized the conventional coding process indicating that in the villages studied, NGOs protect and improve the environmental performance and lead to the economic empowerment of the rural women. Research limitations / implications- Similar to other rural research, this research has encountered some general problems that have plagued other rural research in the country. Statistical problems and lack of cooperation and justification of Governmental organizations Originality/value- As the results of most studies show, despite some difficulties and difficulties for the growth and development of such institutions in the country, most of them have an important role in women's empowerment. Although very little research has been done in the country, no research has been done in the study area.

Purpose- Supporting and stimulating agricultural development has a decisive role in rural development and is considered the main basis of rural development. Therefore, the agricultural sector and rural areas in Iran are still far from the real potentials for development. Therefore, this study aimed at the consequences of creative agriculture and its role in the development of rural areas of Roshtkhar County in Razavi Khorasan province.Design/methodology/approach-This research was an applied one, conducted with descriptive-correlation and causal-relational methods. The statistical population of the research consists of all heads of rural households (21,785) in Roshtkhar County, using the Cochran formula, 377 farmers from the heads of households were selected as a sample. The main tools of the research were researcher-made questionnaire, field observations and library studies. Then, the questionnaires were distributed in 20 villages of the study area. SPSS software and structural equation modeling approach were employed to analyze the data.Findings: The results of the fitted model showed that creative agriculture had the greatest effects on economic (0.405) and social (0.370) variables. The results of investigating the status of creative agriculture in the study area showed that more than 60% of rural farmer households stated that creative agriculture has been able to play a significant role in rural development.Limitations/Strategies: The dispersion of the studied villages to fill out the questionnaire depending on the topic at the village level, the lack of awareness of some rural households towards conducting research projects in order to complete the questionnaire, and finally the costs of conducting this research are challenging of this study.Practical solutions: Finally, according to the results, solutions such as the full implementation of modern irrigation systems, changing the cultivation pattern and using up-to-date machinery and tools in the agricultural sector can improve the results and the consequences of creative agriculture and its role in rural development in the villages and the implementation strategies of this solution are considered necessary.Original/value- This study is significant as the recognition of different issues of creative agriculture at the regional level can help to take an important step in order to improve the condition of rural households in different dimensions (economic, social-cultural, institutional-managerial and physical).