The News
The latest articles and news relating to rural living...
Rural Health Initiatives in BC
Introduction Providing adequate — let alone excellent — health care in rural and remote BC communities, regions, and First Nations presents a set of unique challenges, including vast distances, lack of transportation infrastructure, staffing…
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Leslie Carty Discusses RCCbc
Leslie Carty, Executive Manager of the Rural Coordination Centre of BC (RCCbc), discusses the organization, its mandate to improve rural health care in British Columbia, and some of its initiatives in this conversation, recorded at…
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Dr. Ray Markham — a Conversation
Dr. Ray Markham is a Valemount, BC-based doctor, and the Executive Director of the Rural Coordination Centre of BC (RCCbc). The RCCbc is focused on improving rural health education in British Columbia, and generally working…
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A Conversation with Dr. Granger Avery
Dr. Granger Avery is one of Canada’s most distinguished rural health advocates. A past president of both the Canadian and BC medical associations, Dr. Granger is a clinical professor at the University of British Columbia,…
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Gabriola Islanders Make a Healthy Choice!
The community of Gabriola Island was selected for the Rural Coordination Centre of BC’s 2018 BC Rural Community Award at the BC Rural Health Conference in Nanaimo, BC, on May 12, 2018. The community…
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Rural Coordination Centre Tackles Rural Health Issues
Health care is a complicated business at the best of times. Effective, appropriate health care delivery in rural and remote places can be particularly challenging. Scattered populations, vast distances, sketchy infrastructure, and often unique socio-economic…
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Gabriola Island DIY Health Centre
Gabriola Island (pop. 4,000) is a remote community just off of Nanaimo, British Columbia. After years of patch-work health care, community members determined the need for reliable medical care that wouldn’t require helicopters or ferries…
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Rural Health — Challenges & Innovations Webinar
Rural health challenges in BC — what are they & what can we do to address them? No rural issue is more pressing than the challenge of ensuring every British Columbian — no matter…
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Columbia Lake Tech Centre — the Podcast
As many rural communities struggle to reinvent their economies in the wake of wrenching change, the small BC town of Canal Flats has embraced new & emerging technologies as a means of establishing a new…
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ABCDE, a la Peter Kenyon!
“Shift the development mindset from needs and deficiencies to assets and capacities — from consumer, customer, and client, to co-producer, co-owner, and citizen.” Peter Kenyon If your rural or remote community can use a…
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Small Towns Refuse to Die
Some small towns offer $1 lots, tax breaks and guaranteed loans to win over newcomers for a chance to prove they are islands of growth that matter to Canada’s future, says Joe O’Connor in this…
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Rural Connectivity an Issue for Every Canadian
Cybera is an Alberta not-for-profit, technical agency that helps the province advance its IT frontiers. It operates through a strategic investment by its members and the Ministry of Alberta Economic Development and Trade. The following report…
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Tech Jobs to Rural Places
Tech jobs — a path toward rural renewal? Nick Roseth explores this question in the following thoughtful TED talk.
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Technology Boosts Rural Life
Is it true that technology boosts rural life? Conventional wisdom has it that the rural economy is in decline due to seismic shifts in the modern economy. Traditional rural industries are shrinking, or are…
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Canal Flats Welcomes New Rural Tech Centre
Canal Flats welcomes new rural tech centre, as highlighted in this article by Kootenay Association of Science & Technology’s Tracey Connery. It’s a new era and the Village of Canal Flats, a small community…
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Investment Co-op Lets You Bank on Your Community
Investment co-ops are coming to the Kootenays, as reported in this recent article by Claire Paradis, appearing in the December 13, 2018 edition of the Valley Voice. If you’re putting your money into GICs,…
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Peter Kenyon to BC?
Peter Kenyon, Australian-based founder of the Bank of I.D.E.A.S and renowned rural development leader, has made a lasting impression on scores of rural BC stakeholders over the past couple of years. BC Rural Centre Executive…
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Deep Roots 2 — the Harrop-Procter Community Forest Story
Of the over 50 community forests in British Columbia, only one — in tiny Harrop-Procter, located on the rugged eastern shore of Kootenay Lake’s West Arm — has its own mill. With its emphasis on…
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Deep Roots 1 — the Harrop-Procter Community Forest story
Harrop-Procter Community Forest, located on the rugged eastern shore of Kootenay Lake’s West Arm, is one of Canada’s most innovative — and intriguing — community forest operations. Harrop-Procter Community Forest’s 11,300 ha community forest tenure comprises…
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BC First Nation turns residential school into resort
A B.C. First Nation near Cranbrook has turned a former residential school into a cultural tourism destination, reports Global News’Aaron McArthur.
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BC Forestry Trade Mission Heads to Asia
More than 40 senior forest sector representatives are heading to Asia from Dec. 5 to 14, 2018, to grow markets for B.C. wood products. They will explore opportunities and strengthen relationships in China, Japan and…
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Looking Back On 2018
Looking back on 2018, we’re proud to have greatly expanded the extent and breadth of our online — and live — efforts to help inform and inspire rural British Columbians and First Nations. We look…
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Agri-Tourism Succeeds in the Central Okanagan!
The Challenge For the past 30 years, the Central Okanagan Economic Development Commission (COEDC) has faced challenges common to many agricultural communities, including higher production and land costs. Farmers were forced to supplement farm income with off-farm employment. By 2011,…
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