The News
The latest articles and news relating to rural living...
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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Keeping It Rural 2019 in the Books!
Keeping It Rural, our biennial conference focussing on issues of importance to rural and First Nations citizens was held on October 7th and 8th in Kelowna. An outstanding lineup of presenters tackled topics ranging…
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Keeping It Rural 2017
The second biennial Keeping It Rural conference was held in Kelowna, June 2017. Attendees from Northern BC to the US border, from Vancouver Island to the Rockies took in two days of inspirational speeches by…
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Social Enterprise & Community Development
Social enterprises are increasingly a tool in the community development toolbox. In November 2018, Drs. Natalie Slawinski and Blair Winsor from the Faculty of Business Administration at Memorial University of Newfoundland and the Harris Centre…
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Keeping It Rural Conference Coming in October!
Struggling to attract and retain young people to and in your rural community? Wondering how to convince doctors to stay and practice in your town or region? Do you wish your hometown had the capital…
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Workforce & Resident Attraction Strategies Webinar
Do you live in a beautiful, unique spot in B.C.? Or maybe your community has a budding industry or development opportunity and you’re finding it hard to get the word out there or to attract…
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From Conflict to Collaboration: the Tla’amin — Powell River Experience
The coastal town of Powell River shares several similarities with other rural communities in BC. Powell River was established and grew next to a historical First Nations community – in this case on the traditional territory of…
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Webinar: First Nation-Municipality Collaboration — the Tla’amin Nation & Powell River Experience
Webinar: Tuesday, June 25, Noon Pacific The coastal town of Powell River shares many similarities with other rural communities in BC. Powell River was established and grew next to a historical First Nations community – in…
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Tla’amin Nation & Powell River: Government to Government Collaboration on BC’s Sunshine Coast
The coastal town of Powell River shares several similarities with other rural communities in BC. Powell River was established and grew next to a historical First Nations community – in…
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Indigenous Tourism in BC — Welcoming Visitors, Preserving Culture, Growing Businesses
From the arid climate of Osoyoos in the south central part of British Columbia, to the misty shores of Kitimat on the central coast, the landscape of the province is full of exhilarating and…
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Aboriginal Business Success Stories
From the desert vineyards of Southern British Columbia, to the frozen tundra high above the Arctic Circle; from the urban centre of Winnipeg to the rocky shores of Newfoundland, First Nations, Inuit, and Métis are…
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Future Food: Getting Beyond the Energy Blindness of Techno-Utopianism
(The following is adapted from The Future is Rural: Food System Adaptations to the Great Simplification, by Jason Bradford. How’s this for a party-stopper: Contrary to the forecasts of most demographers, urbanization will reverse…
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One Maine Town Tees Up New Economic Development
Biddeford, Maine, saw a dramatic economic turnaround after the Orton Foundation’s Community Heart & Soul program helped shape the town’s Master Plan. Biddeford’s Economic Development Director, Daniel Stevenson, talks about how having a solid road…
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