Gądno : the role of urban-rural cooperation in becoming a smart village

Purpose: The purpose of this text is to present an insignificant part of the field research (2021-2022), about the reality of a small border village (Gądno), located in the West Pomeranian Voivodship, which (without knowing it) has partly and unconsciously joined the smart village path, implementing only some assumptions of the smart village concept and leaving others without attention. Design/Methodology/Approach: The manuscript presents a small part of field study activity of the Szczecin University stuff and students; research is based on an explanatory case study method, questionaries, and the desk-research method. The text is organized as follows: in the first part, a general picture of the actual state of agricultural land is outlined; then the literature review underlining the concept of partnerships and modern village organization is presented. In the next section, the methodology stressing the case study method has been placed. Then, there is a description of the village Gądno as a research results section followed by the discussion section. At the end of the work, the conclusion and practical implications are provided. Findings: The results of the case study contribute in the cognitive sense to the role of urban-rural smart village concept. There is proposed Gądno-village profile that combines information and communication technologies, social infrastructure and local and regional institutions which are dynamizing its economic, social, environmental, and cultural development. As well the role of trust between residents and the person who is the leader and village head is emphasized. Also there is mentioned, that Gądno-village is missing the need for cooperation and inclusion in the EU structures of smart villages. Practical Implications: List of the essential benefits of implementing the smart villages concept that Gądno may realize from the urban-rural cooperation, which can provide this village in the structure of EU smart villages. Each point is accompanied by the indicator whether Gądno currently utilizes or not a similar approach. Originality/Value: The results contribute in the cognitive sense to the smart village concept; shows an example of small village which (without knowing it) has partly and unconsciously joined the smart village path. They also show the importance of socio-economic and spatial research in discovering the hidden, socio-cultural advantages of a village, that is not depopulated and has no problem with unemployment. The obtained results may be of interest to representatives of the public sector, as well as private entities seeking cooperation with local and regional authorities in the realm of smart village development.