Multifunctional land use: is it a key factor for rural development?

The sustainable development of rural areas nowadays faces the challenges of global changes. This paper aims to review the concept of land use and landscape multi-functionality in order to help adapting land and landscape use to the new social, economic and ecological demands. In this respect, the paper utilises the findings of a case study conducted in Bulgaria.The authors illustrate that multi-functionality as a qualitative characteristic combines economic with ecological principles in production and improves the end economic results in the given rural area. In addition, the authors indicate the following findings: on micro level in rural areas, multi-functional land use is a synonym of horizontal diversification in agriculture in forestry and tourism, it is observed that land and landscapes have been successfully used multi-functionally under the influence of the rural development policy, it is possible to transform all rural areas, with farms becoming multifunctional enterprises by utilising land and other natural resources through multi-functionality, these enterprises will provide new products and services while also protecting local natural landscape the mentioned enterprises will also create new regionally specific products, develop rural tourism and ecological agriculture, use renewable natural resources and try to develop on new markets multi-functionality can have a significant impact in terms of food security The document concludes that multifunctional land and landscape use have a key role for sustainable development of rural areas.