Journal of Rural and Community Development
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Greenlandic Perspectives on Offshore Oil and Gas Activities – An Illustration of Changes in Legitimacy Related to Democratic Decision Processes
Get PDFGreenland is a young democracy. Home Rule was obtained in 1979 and Self Rule was introduced in 2009. The three eras covering before, during and after Home Rule have had each a set of formal and factual legitimacy related to democratic decision processes. Three campaigns of offshore oil exploration have been conducted, one during each of the three eras.
This paper describes and analyses the changes in the legislation about the subsurface in relation to the three campaigns of offshore oil exploration and other significant industrial activities during the three eras.
The aim is to further understanding of 1) the shifting conditions for democratic processes and how these shifts have created changes in the legitimacy of the execution of the democratic processes and 2) how pubic legitimacy changes in relation to the industrial activities from era to era.
Keywords: Legitimacy, legislation about subsurface, offshore oil exploration, Greenlan
How Women in Remote and Rural First Nation Communities are Using Information and Communication Technologies (ICT)
Get PDFFirst Nations women have a strong role guiding the success of their family and their community. In the past, women nurtured their family, ensuring their food and safety. These responsibilities are still true today with the added challenges and opportunities of modern day life. In Northern Ontario, many remote and rural First Nation communities are connected to integral services via broadband. The current study explores how First Nations women are using information and communication technology (ICT) and if the technology can address some of their challenges and open up new opportunities. Two hundred and thirty one women living in remote and rural First Nation communities in Northern Ontario completed an online survey, sharing their thoughts and experiences with regard to: ICT use in daily life, ICT for health and wellness, ICT for cultural preservation, and what is needed to support their effective use of ICT. The findings suggest that the women in these remote communities are active users of ICT, using the internet for frequent communication with people living in their own communities along with other communities and elsewhere in Canada. The women are also familiar with telemedicine, use the internet in a variety of ways to preserve their culture, and identified many strategies for supporting their effective use of ICT. Finally, we explore a case-study of how women in Slate Falls First Nation are using ICT
Balancing Communities, Economies, and the Environment in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem
Get PDFBalancing the needs of local communities, their economies, and associated natural
resources is critical to the long-term success of individual communities and larger
regions and ecosystems. This is especially true in mountain communities which are
increasingly susceptible to land use and land cover changes, and where limited
knowledge exists relating to these interactions and the perceptions of local stake
holders and decision makers. The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE), centered
on Yellowstone National Park and extending through parts of Montana, Wyoming,
and Idaho, is an ideal location to study the interrelations of economic growth and
environmental protection due to the region's complex mosaic of private and public
lands, competing natural resource uses, and rapid population growth. The objective
of this study was to determine how residents of three communities within the GYE
perceive, prioritize, and act upon issues of sustainability community development
and natural resource management through key informant interviews.
Keywords: sustainability, social-ecological systems, decision-making, perceptions,
Greater Yellowstone Ecosyste
Assessing Farmer Confidence in Badger Vaccination: Some Findings from a Survey of Cattle Farmers in England
Get PDFBovine tuberculosis (bTB) is a complex animal disease affecting farmed cattle
and badgers in England and Wales. In England, vaccination of either cattle
and/or wildlife is seen as an important long-term policy to help reduce the
impact of bTB. This paper provides an assessment of cattle farmer attitudes
towards badger vaccination, captured via a baseline telephone survey of
farmers in five areas where rates of bTB in cattle are high, including one area
in Gloucestershire where, since 2010, badgers have been vaccinated as part of
the Government's Badger Vaccine Deployment Project (BVDP). The uptake of
badger vaccination is likely to be dependent on farmers' trust and confidence
in the vaccine and those who promote it. The paper argues that measuring trust
in institutions is a good way to assess farmer confidence in badger vaccination.
Using a series of statements from previous research that has examined
institutional trust, the paper shows how farmers surveyed were cautious about
the role of badger vaccination to control bTB in cattle. Levels of vaccine
acceptability or trust in the Government were not high. Further work is needed
to unpack the relationship between trust and confidence in badger vaccination.
Keywords: Bovine TB; badger vaccination; trust; confidence; Englan
What are the Features of Resilient Businesses? Exploring the Perception of Rural Entrepreneurs
Get PDFThe economic importance of the private sector, such as its contribution to GDP or employment creation, is well recognised in research and policy. More recently, positive social and environmental contributions of businesses have been explored and there is a growing body of evidence recognising the potential role of private sector enterprises in contributing to enhanced community resilience. However, the extent to which business owners and their businesses are resilient themselves is not well investigated. In the context of globalization and rapid change, businesses are exposed to external shocks and economic social and environmental changes. Private sector enterprises, which are so important in the overall community development, are therefore forced to adapt to the changing dynamics of their soundings.
Based on an exploratory study of businesses in South Australia, which aimed to enhance our understanding of the role of private sector enterprises in local development, this paper explores how business owners cope with a changing business environment. We question therefore what are the features of resilient businesses? Through in–depth face–to–face interviews with rural business owners, we identify approaches of selected entrepreneurs that enabled them to adapt to changes creating resilient businesses. Findings of this paper present implications for practitioners, researchers and policymakers.
Keywords: Private sector businesses, SMEs, entrepreneurs, resilience, rura
Aboriginal Erasure or Aboriginal Historical Exclusion? Using Video Interviews to Recognize the Role of Aboriginal Peoples on Kitchi-Gami (Lake Superior)
Get PDFA collaborative research project using video interviews documents the rich, mostly Euro-Canadian history of Silver Islet (a mining community later transformed into a cottage community) while also addressing the absence of Anishnabee and Métis peoples' narratives from this region of Northern Ontario. In the discussion and conclusion, we discuss some of the opportunities and challenges associated with conducting video interviews in rural Canada, while also providing solutions addressing Aboriginal erasure.
Keywords: Aboriginal erasure, First Nations, Métis, Lake Superior, video interview
The Role of After School-Programs in Promoting Youth Inclusion in Rural and Small Communities: The Case of the Fusion Youth and Technology Centre, Ingersoll, Ontario
Get PDFRural communities face many challenges including the retention of their youth. Rural youth also face challenges, particularly in comparison to urban youth. Rural youth experience higher levels of morbidity and mortality as a result of risky behaviours, and face a different set of challenges in regard to issues of social inclusion/exclusion when compared to urban youth. One way in which these risks and challenges can be mitigated is through the provision of afterschool programs. This study begins by asking the question what impact does the provision of the Fusion Youth and Technology Centre, a progressive afterschool program, have on rural youth's feelings of social inclusion/exclusion? A qualitative study was undertaken and the results suggest that the provision of an afterschool program does provide an inclusive environment where youth feel cared for and connected, are allowed to explore and develop skills, competencies in a safe and secure environment that they experience as 'their place'. However, they still report feeling excluded from the larger community.
Keywords: rural youth; afterschool programs, social inclusion, social exclusio
Building a High North Growth Pole: The Northern Norwegian City of Hammerfest in the Wake of Developing the "Snow White" Barents Sea Gas Field
Get PDFGlobal oil industries are moving from well-established economic centres to remote areas in the north. This paper addresses regional impacts, and links the analyses and discussions to theories embedded in Keynes inspired ideas from the 1950'ies of state opportunities to build growth poles in peripheries by governing entering industries. The article analyses changes in the North-Norwegian city of Hammerfest for the period of 2002-2008 during which time the Snow White gas field was developed and includes local supplies positions, local employment changes; commuting patterns; demographic shifts; variation in youth attitude concerning future living; vicissitudes in local housing markets; local tax system changes; local welfare; and gender relations changes.
Keywords: global oil industry companies; regional impacts; growth pole strategies; Norwa
Evaluating the Dynamics of Rural Internships in Alberta
Get PDFRural Alberta is decreasing in population with a resulting reduction in services to the people who continue to live outside the metropolitan areas of Calgary and Edmonton. As services within rural communities decline, a commensurate increase in stress occurs for the population that remains.
By delivering a program that matches post-secondary students with non-profit/voluntary sector (NPVS) organizations that are in need of skilled workers, Volunteer Alberta, through its sponsorship of the Serving Communities Internship Program (SCiP), struck upon a plan to provide for rural re-development. Volunteer Alberta worked through Alberta's 21 post-secondary institutions to promote internships that were available throughout the province. During the 2011/12 school year volunteer placements occurred. Throughout the fall of 2012 we conducted an evaluation of the program through a study that utilized comprehensive online surveys, as well as interviews with a purposeful sample of interns and NPVS organizations.
Survey and interview data revealed that both the interns and the NPVS organizations were highly satisfied with the SCiP format, the services provided to them by Volunteer Alberta, and the quality of the internships, and the interns they acquired. SCiP intern motivation came from the opportunity to use skills and knowledge developed in post-secondary programs in such a way that they could later use the experience as evidence of their ability to future employers.
Interview data from both the interns and the NPVS organizations in rural areas of the province revealed that volunteer post-secondary student exposure to rural community organizations led to a positive change in perception about the work of the NPVS in general and rural communities in particular. Evidence of change of perception was strong enough to indicate that a longitudinal study should be conducted to see if the positive perception of rural communities attained through working there will be acted upon, and lead to an increased movement toward paid work in the non-profit/voluntary sector in both urban and rural areas of the province.
Keywords: Rural development, youth internships, community developmen
Satisfaction with Life along the Rural-Urban Continuum: Key Indicators in the Halifax Region of Canada
Get PDFThis paper examines how satisfaction with life (SWL) varies for residents in
different zones of the rural-urban continuum, using objective and subjective
indicators for 1,971 respondents in the county-sized municipality of Halifax, Nova
Scotia, Canada. Data are from the STAR project, which was a combined time diary
and travel survey. Respondents rated their overall feelings about life quality (global
SWL) and feelings for life domains (e.g. health, finances). SWL scores were highest
in the inner city (IC), moderate in the suburbs and inner commuter belt (ICB), and
lowest in the outer commuter belt (OCB). These variations are partly related to the
geography of socio-demographic 'control' variables, such as age, household income,
and marriage status. They also relate strongly to self-rated health status (highest in
the IC), and ratings of 'time stress' (lowest in the IC, highest in the commuter belt).
Some inherently geographic variables also relate significantly to SWL: the most
notable are 'sense of community belonging' (highest in the IC, lowest in the OCB)
and 'unsafe walking after dark' (least safe in the IC, safest in the OCB).
Keywords: life satisfaction, well-being, rural-urban, community, healt