Proceedings of the 2018 International Conference "ECONOMIC SCIENCE FOR RURAL DEVELOPMENT" No 49 Jelgava, LLU ESAF, 9 11 May 2018, pp. 307-315 DOI 10.22616/ESRD.2018.148 1 Corresponding author. E-mail address: ryszard.kaminski@kpodr.pl 307 2 Corresponding author. E-mail address: tomasz.marcysiak@wsb.bydgoszcz.pl 3 Corresponding author. E-mail address: piotr.prus@utp.edu.pl THE DEVELOPMENT OF GREEN CARE IN POLAND Ryszard Kaminski 1 , PhD; Tomasz Marcysiak 2 , PhD and Piotr Prus 3 , PhD 1 Kujawsko-Pomorski Agricultural Advisory Centre in Minikowo, Poland; 2 WSB University in Torun, Poland; 3 UTP University of Science and Technology in Bydgoszcz, Poland Abstract. The article presents research results and evaluation of the pioneering green farms in Poland. The aim of the research was to provide the data which would allow to define the conditions the farms must meet in order to provide green care services, while taking into account the local socio-economical characteristics at the same time. The study involved the qualitative methods such as the free-form interview, and the participant observation (a week-long stay combined with working on the “Kociewie Tuscany” farm). Altogether the authors visited 15 pioneering farms, and conducted 34 interviews with the people who provide green care services, representatives of the authorities and green care beneficiaries. The general conclusions are very positive: without a doubt Poland offers favourable conditions for the growth of green care farms, which are developing successfully. However, a serious concern is looming in the distance which might lessen the enthusiasm of would-be green care farmers: what will happen when the funding of the project has ceased? Unfortunately, there is no definite answer to this question yet. Currently, however, the major objective is to create the appropriate training schemes and the effective evaluation methods. Key words: green care farms, green care, qualitative research methods. JEL code: I30, Q12, Q13, Z10 Introduction The unfavourable demographic trends, especially the increasing proportion of the elderly citizens group within societies, pose a considerable challenge for the contemporary European and non-European states (Fonseca M.L., 2008; Kuijsten A.C., 1996; Lesthaeghe R., 2010; Malnar D., Malnar A., 2015; Reher D.S., 2007; Sackmann R. et al., 2014). Poland has one of the fastest- ageing population in the European Union (Krzyzowski L., 2011; Mucha J., Krzyzowski L., 2010; Richert-Kazmierska A., 2015; Rosochacka-Gmitrzak M.R., 2014; Sobolewska-Poniedzialek E., 2016). There have been numerous warnings by different analyses that the undesired shape of the population pyramid is not only a threat to the efficiency of the pension system but it also generates increased demand for medical and social services (Arai H., et al., 2012; Spillman B.C., Lubitz J., 2000; Weiner D.E., 2007). Another negative consequence of the ageing process of a society is the diminishing labour resources (Bookman A., Kimbrel D., 2011; Borsch-Supan A., 2003; Muramatsu N., Akiyama H., 2011; Niewiadomska A., 2016). It is estimated that the number of people aged 65 or over in Poland will grow from the current 15 % to 24.5 % by 2035, and the figure will reach 32.7 % by 2050. With regards to the number of 80-year-olds, compared to the current 3.9 %, the figures will reach 7.8 % and 10.4 % respectively (Sytuacja demograficzna …, 2014). Depending on factors such as tradition, culture, patients’ needs and available funding, different countries developed a range of methods aimed at providing help for the elderly and the people who need assistance in everyday life. This help takes the form of care services, which are may be provided by public, private, commercial and non-profit institutions and their success and efficiency is the derivative of successful cooperation between the government and non-government sectors. However, as far as the strength of bonds between representatives of different generations are concerned, considerable cultural differences were observed among European regions. It is a common belief in many North-European countries that the elderly care should be guaranteed by the state, while citizens of the south-European countries believe otherwise, i.e. that this responsibility should rest on the families of the elderly relatives (Kujawska J., 2015). In Italy for example, the so-called “social farming” (L’agricoltura socjale) has been flourishing for a dozen or so