Supporting Rural and Remote Economies: What Canada Must Do Now

Rural, remote, and northern regions are important and should be supported, not just because of their economic contributions (they contribute to over a quarter of Canada’s GDP) but because people in all parts of Canada should have similar levels of well-being. This is fundamental to our nation’s territorial cohesion. Accordingly, there is a lot of…

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A New Hotline for Rural BC!

The BC Rural Centre has a new direct phone number to call when you need to talk to someone about Rural Issues, Challenges, Opportunities, and Inquiries. Over the past few months, the BC Rural Centre has been adjusting to a few key changes, new staff, including a new Executive Director and a revisit of the…

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Future Food: Getting Beyond the Energy Blindness of Techno-Utopianism

Future food

(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 course as globalization unwinds during the 21st century. The eventual decline in fossil hydrocarbon flows, and the inability of renewables…

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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 map opened the door for $78 million in new projects downtown, including a hotel, new businesses, apartments, and shops.  …

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Experiential Tourism?

Experiential tourism?

A conversation with Dana Blouin of Between a Lake & a High Place.   Not every rural citizen is a fan of tourism as an economic driver. But most rural folks would agree that the sort of experiential tourism advocated by Dana Blouin and her husband, François — tourism that respectfully celebrates local culture, talent,…

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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 economic base for the town and surrounding East Kootenay region. In this BC Rural Centre podcast, Brian Fry, the co-founder…

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ABCDE, a la Peter Kenyon!

asset based community development with 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 boost, here are some primers, courtesy one of the world’s leading asset-based community development advocates, Australia’s Peter Kenyon.    …

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Small Towns Refuse to Die

Small towns fight back

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 Financial Post article. Jay Patel decided about four years ago he wanted to buy a motel. He was living in…

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Rural Innovation & Youth Attraction

Attracting youth to rural places is vital!
BC Rural Centre
BC Rural Centre
Rural Innovation & Youth Attraction
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If rural communities are to survive — let alone prosper — in the 21st century, they need to innovate. And through that innovation, attract a new wave of creative, entrepreneurial Millennials to our small towns and rural regions. This audio version of a BC Rural Centre webinar features two inspiring advocates of rural innovation —…

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