The image of the country appears increasingly divided. On the one hand, major urban centers are being pushed to their limits, with Athens and Thessaloniki facing an explosive rise in rents, traffic congestion, and the overloading of essential public services. On the other hand, vast areas of the countryside, particularly in mountainous and border regions, are gradually emptying out, leaving behind abandoned houses, underutilized land, and aging communities.
Vasilis Kostakis, professor at Tallinn University of Technology, places this imbalance at the center of a broader discussion about social cohesion and the country’s productive base. The concentration of population and resources in metropolitan centers is not a neutral choice. It affects food self-sufficiency, weakens the periphery, and reinforces a model of development that leaves large parts of the territory behind.
In this context, the social cooperative enterprise "The High Mountains", based in Demati, Zagori, seeks to transform a widespread yet often untapped interest in returning to the countryside into actual relocation. The approach is not built on fragmented initiatives or romantic narratives, but on a structured mechanism that connects people and places under concrete and clearly defined terms.
This mechanism is structured around two complementary pillars. At the local level, Population Attraction Offices can operate within municipalities that seek to welcome new residents, mapping available housing, job opportunities, services, and productive needs. At the same time, in major urban centers, Repopulation Offices can reach out to people exploring alternative ways of living, from remote workers and young families to retirees, building communication bridges and facilitating targeted matches with specific regions.
Among these structures, particular importance is currently given to the existing Repopulation Ambassador Network. People with an active and lived connection to mountain villages serve as first points of contact, sharing firsthand experience of everyday life, its opportunities as well as its challenges, beyond the city. This human dimension seeks to bridge the gap between fragmented or abstract information and lived reality.
The approach does not overlook obstacles. Inadequate infrastructure, limited connectivity, and the absence of essential services make relocation a complex decision that requires support. This is where the political dimension of the initiative becomes evident. Repopulation cannot rely solely on individual choices or grassroots initiatives. It requires coherent public policy, targeted investment, institutional backing, and an active role for local government.
"The High Mountains" propose partnerships with municipalities and regional authorities, as well as the strategic use of European instruments, at a time when interest in relocating to the countryside is growing but often fails to find a concrete pathway. What is ultimately at stake is not simply a redistribution of population, but the shaping of a different development model - one in which quality of life, social cohesion, and sustainability stand on equal footing with economic indicators.
The full article can be found at News247.