["Sociologia Ruralis, Volume 66, Issue 3, July 2026. ", "\nABSTRACT\nLand degradation in rural areas is often addressed through technical and economic measures, while the relational and emotional dimensions of governance remain underexplored. This study examines how empathy operates within participatory land governance, drawing on a participatory scenario planning (PSP) workshop conducted in the Târnava Mare microregion, Transylvania, Romania. It is one of Europe's largest high nature value farmland landscapes and exemplifies the social and institutional challenges of post‐communist rural contexts. Using interpretive discourse analysis, the study analyses participants’ narratives to trace the emergence of self‐empathy, mirrored empathy, cognitive empathy and empathic action during collective visioning and backcasting. The findings show that empathy develops through interconnected communicative processes, strengthening group cohesion and grounding land‐use visions in locally embedded values of care and stewardship. It is concluded that PSP can serve as a planning tool and a relational practice that enhances collaborative environmental governance in rural regions undergoing transition.\n"]