The News
The latest articles and news relating to rural living...
BC Premier to Deliver COVID-19 Address Today
VICTORIA — British Columbia Premier John Horgan is expected to give an update Wednesday on the province’s response to the novel coronavirus pandemic. The premier’s statements will be carried live beginning at 1:15…
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COVID-19 — Information Sources for Rural, Remote, and Rural First Nations British Columbians
These are challenging times for all of us, whether we live in Lombardy or London, Bhutan or rural British Columbia. Access to the best possible information regarding COVID-19 is crucial. Which is why we have…
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First Nations, Rural and Remote Real-Time Virtual Medicine — an Update
In a recent update, Dr. Ray Markham, Executive Director of the Rural Coordination Centre of British Columbia (RCCbc), notes that The Collaborative Centre for Rural and First Nations Virtually Enhanced Care was established last year.…
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Building Capital & Capacity In Our Communities
For over a decade, the BC Rural Centre has researched and advocated for the establishment of community investment fund programs in British Columbia, inspired by successful models in Nova Scotia, Alberta, and the USA. In…
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Community Investment Guide Webinar, March 10
The longer a dollar can circulate within a community, the greater its economic and social impacts. Few know this as well as Eden Yesh, Chair of the BC Community Impact Investment Coalition and Manager…
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We Want to Hear From You!
A major part of our mandate here at the BC Rural Centre is to provide timely information and tools that help rural & remote residents, communities, and First Nations deal with some of…
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Rural Challenges, National Opportunity
This report from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities provides a useful rural Canadian overview in this report, including recent rural-centric Statistics Canada data, and topics ranging from rural housing to broadband; from connecting to global…
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Rankin MacSween’s “Keeping It Rural” Keynote
Rankin MacSween, who gave an amazingly inspirational keynote speech at our 2015 Keeping It Rural conference, one that people still talk about, followed that up with an equally inspiring address at our most recent Keeping…
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Imagination, Co-Operation Help Secure Future in Atlantic Canada’s Small Towns
Luck and pluck. For some small towns in Atlantic Canada the path to survival has been just that: one of luck and pluck — or should that be the other way around? After all, the…
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Preserving Critical Rural Business Sevices
Many rural communities are experiencing the closure of retail businesses like grocery stores, hardware stores, and service stations that provide important services to their residents. From the newsletter put out our good friend and colleague,…
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Healthcare in Rural BC Gets a Closer Look
Overview In 2017, the Joint Standing Committee on Rural Issues (JSC) tasked the Rural Coordination Centre of BC (RCCbc) with visiting every Rural Subsidiary Agreement (RSA) community between 2017 and 2020. These visits will connect…
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First Nations Health Authority and Rural Coordination Centre of BC sign Memorandum of Understanding
The First Nations Health Authority (FNHA) and the Rural Coordination Centre of BC (RCCbc) signed a Memorandum of Understanding in late 2019 at the FNHA’s Northern Regional Gathering in Prince George. The MOU formalizes the…
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$50M available from B.C. government to improve rural Internet
The Province is now ready to accept applications from rural communities wishing to access some of the $50 million earmarked in the spring of 2019 to be used to connect rural, remote, and indigenous communities…
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Rankin MacSween of Cape Breton’s New Dawn Enterprises, on Community Development
Rankin MacSween, who gave an amazingly inspirational keynote speech at our 2015 conference, one that people still talk about, followed that up with an equally inspiring address at this year’s Keeping It Rural conference. For…
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Akbal Mund & Sheldon Louis: First Nation-Rural Community Partnerships
Akbal Mund of the City of Vernon, and Sheldon Louis of the Okanagan Indian Band provided some interesting historical and current background and information regarding the relationship between these two neighbours. …
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Blanca Surgeon — Small Places, Big Successes
Blanca Surgeon, based in New Mexico, is the Building Rural Communities Training Coordinator with the Rural Community Assistance Corporation (RCAC). Blanca has worked with rural communities and Native American Nations across the western U.S. on…
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A Look Back at 2019
2019 was a successful — and important — year in the BC Rural Centre’s evolution. Perhaps most significantly over the past 12 months, we’ve succeeded in implementing a new governance structure, creating an Advisory Committee…
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Akbal Mund & Sheldon Louis: First Nation-Rural Community Partnerships
Akbal Mund of the City of Vernon, and Sheldon Louis of the Okanagan Indian Band provided some interesting historical and current background and information regarding the relationship between these two neighbours.
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Attracting Young People to Rural Communities
Many rural BC communities find themselves growing every greyer. The need to attract young, urban, entrepreneurial newcomers to communities facing a demographic crisis looms as increasingly important. In this presentation, BC Rural Centre communications director…
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Rural Health Care — Issues and Prospects
Dr. David Snadden, UBC Chair in Rural Health, leads a session on the current state of healthcare in rural British Columbia — and where it might evolve in future.
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The Forest Sector & Rural Communities
BC Rural Centre Executive Director Gordon Borgstrom and BC Community Forest Association Executive Director Jennifer Gunter discuss trends, challenges, and opportunities of importance to forestry-dependent rural BC communities and First Nations in this presentation. …
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BCRC Submission to the BC Provincial Government’s Interior Forestry Revitalization Engagement Process
The most recent downturn in the forest sector is creating significant challenges once again for many rural communities and families. Unfortunately, these most recent layoffs and closures add to an over twenty-five year trend of…
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Common Interests, Common Purpose
Splatsin First Nation councillor George William and Lumby mayor Kevin Acton discuss how their respective communities came together to create the Monashee Community Forest — and in the process began to build a greater awareness…
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Rural Islands Economic Forum a First!
“This is a critical and essential time for our rural islands and First Nations communities to come together to collectively address long-term community economic health all within the context of climate change.” …
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