Journal of Rural and Community Development
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Social Media for Enhancing Innovation in Agri-food and Rural Development: Current Dynamics in Ontario, Canada
Get PDFCommunication for innovation in agriculture and rural development involves
interactive and multi-stakeholder approaches that mobilize ideas and resources
from the public and private sectors as well as civil society. Digital tools broadly
referred to as Web 2.0 technologies, and in particular, social media such as
Facebook, Twitter, blogs and webinars are allegedly channels of communication
for innovation. These tools potentially offer support for collective learning
processes and co-creation of knowledge. There is little evidence, however, to
substantiate that new media are enabling innovation by and among stakeholders of
agri-food and rural systems. Are diverse agri-food producers, rural entrepreneurs,
scientists or researchers, community-level volunteers and public servants
interacting more effectively in Web 2.0 environments? Are social media
reinventing agri-food and rural information flows? Employing methods of multiple
database searches, review of literature, and content analysis of 50 relevant online
communities this paper identifies emerging issues in the development and use of
social media in the agri-food and rural sectors with an emphasis on data from
Ontario and, to a lesser extent, elsewhere in Canada. Findings suggest that the
uptake of social media is still in an early, exploratory phase associated with modest
opportunities and relevant limitations of Web 2.0 mediated multi-stakeholder
collaboration. Notably, there are gaps in giving and receiving feedback which are
intrinsic to dyadic communication as well as innovation processes. Limitations
identified include (a) conflicting perceptions among stakeholders about the use,
risk, credibility and institutional incentives associated with social media, and (b)
lack of capacity that enables use and development of appropriate social media
applications. The paper concludes by summarizing the importance of autonomous,
user-oriented applications of Web 2.0 tools in agri-food and rural systems.
Keywords: Social media, Internet, Agriculture, Rural, Innovation,
Communication, Canada, Ontari
Social network analysis, Markov Chains and input-output models: combining tools to map and measure the circulation of currency in small economies.
Get PDFLocalization is posited as the antidote for globalization, but little exists in the way of quantifying the micro-scale of small communities. In this paper, the reader's attention is drawn towards understanding that social network analysis, Markov Chains and input-output models are equivalent, and that together these tools can be used to map and measure the circulation of currency in a small community. The "map" of the economy can be created using social network analysis, in a form equivalent to Markov Chains and input-output models, by representing businesses as nodes and the percentage of expenses spent by one business at another as the strength of the edges between the nodes. Markov Chain mathematics is used to measure the circulation of currency in the economy by calculating the average number of transactions (average path length) from where the dollar enters the community until it leaves. This method is equivalent to the "multiplier effect" from input-output models but more granular. An example using a simple loop is provided showing different methods of solutions, their equivalence and the impact of loops on the average number of transactions in a small economy
Quantifying Equity with Messrs. Markov, Lorenz and Gini: A Case Study of Dunster, British Columbia
Get PDFTechniques for quantifying equity, which are discussed in the companion articles
by the authors, "Quantifying Equity with Messrs. Markov, Lorenz and Gini:
Retaining and distributing benefits in natural resource-dependent communities",
and "Social network analysis, Markov Chains and input-output models:
Combining tools to map and measure the circulation of currency in small
economies", in this issue of JRCD, are applied by the primary author in a case
study of Dunster, British Columbia, a small rural community heavily dependent on
forestry revenue. The community has forestry tenure rights over a small area in the
Robson Valley area of British Columbia, but as of 2011 had not yet begun logging.
The application of the techniques highlight the challenges faced by small
communities with limited industrial capacity in attempts to capture benefits from
the extraction of natural resources. By establishing a "pre-logging" standard, the
community can measure progress towards distributing the benefits of natural
resource extraction equitably within the community.
Keywords: equity, community forest, management, resources, benefit
Farm Tourism in Slovenia: Mosaic Structure and Future Prospects
Get PDFOver the last decade, diversification in farm tourism has been an important development opportunity for farms in Slovenia, especially smaller ones. Farm tourism is registered as a supplementary activity on the farm. A qualitative analysis (98 households) showed a mosaic structure of the farm tourism business. The results obtained confirmed that farm tourism is a two-way system: some farms are entering and some are leaving the business. Our survey focused on identifying the reasons behind both directions. Financial and economic reasons are most important for farmers starting up farm tourism. The survey indicated several reasons for leaving farm tourism. A more intensive orientation of farm tourism can lead to specialization and high-quality service provision, but there are also indications that it can divert farms away from farm tourism and towards the abandonment of farming. These decisions were correlated with the profile of the farm tourism households (based on demographic and economic criteria and an assessment of future prospects).
Keywords: farm tourism, farm income diversification, rural tourism, rural areas, Sloveni
Reflexive Gentrification of Working Lands in the American West: Contesting the 'Middle Landscape'
No full textThe scenic rural landscape of Wallowa County, Oregon has attracted attention from
affluent urban populations who value the physical setting and sense of rural
authenticity of this remote setting. Since at least the 1990s, Wallowa County has
experienced a wave of real estate investment by amenity-oriented populations, some
of whom relocated permanently to the county and some of whom visit their
properties only seasonally. Here, we apply the insights of rural gentrification
scholarship to questions of land use and management. Specifically, we draw upon
recent work on actor-oriented gentrification to highlight the ways in which land use
is implicated in the reflexive processes of place (re)creation by gentrifier
populations. In this case, many landowner-gentrifiers were acutely aware of their
potential role in transforming the local landscape in ways which diminish local
authenticity. An emergent discourse of "working lands" served as potential common
ground for the imaginaries of both gentrifier and long-term resident populations. At
the same time, landowner-gentrifiers instituted subtle but significant changes to land
use practices in an attempt to reconcile their interests in consumption and protection
with their interests in maintaining more traditional productivist practices. We
interpret the working lands discourse as a manifestation of Leo Marx's concept of
the "middle landscape," situated between the extremes of unpeopled wilderness and
runaway capitalist production.
Keywords: land use; amenity migration; land ownership change; rural
gentrification; reflexivit
Sustainable Development or Integrated Rural Tourism? Considering the Overlap in Rural Development Strategies
Get PDFU.S. Rural development has been influenced by numerous philosophies and varies
significantly by locality. As rural economies have restructured, communities have
struggled to evolve and adapt their images and economies in order to survive. One
approach embraced by communities is Sustainable Development. While the
intricacies of sustainability and ability of communities to fully embrace sustainable
development have been widely debated, communities have nonetheless sought to
operationalize the concept to enhance their development prospects. More recently
the concept of Integrated Rural Tourism has been promoted as a means of
facilitating more holistic rural development, incorporating cultural, economic, and
environmental considerations at the local scale. This paper utilizes interviews with
local community members to review the process by which one upper-Midwestern
community adopted and implemented sustainable development questioning
whether the outcome is more reflective of an integrated rural tourism approach and
seeking to better understand the conceptual and applied overlap between these two
models of rural development.
Keywords: Bayfield, sustainability, integrated rural tourism, rural developmen
Participatory Diagramming for Engaging Youth in a Gender Equity and Community Development Dialogue: An African Exemplar
Get PDFIt is recognized that community development efforts are often impacted and subjected to the realities of a range of inequities. In the slums of Kibera, Kenya, the challenges of gender inequities amongst young men and women were considered using a participatory diagramming approach. Such a critical technique rigorously delayers the contexts and issues which create, embed, and sustain the inequities. This research used four diagrams in an effort to fully explore and reveal the issues, increase awareness of the social injustices, and probe for desired actions towards the preferred futures for the 49 youth participants involved in the study. The key learnings from the participants included their understanding that social status and roles were highly influenced by age, gender, marital status, and ethnicity. These participants felt that, with the exception of marital status, these factors were outside of their control, which limited their ability to change the structures and situations in which they lived. Further, the participants acknowledged the differential for risks for poverty, health, employment, and social status across genders. They clearly articulated systemic barriers such as resource ownership, inheritance, and entitlements which clearly disempowered women. A clear distinction across genders was in the perception of political will, in which women felt that the government was bringing people together whereas their male counterparts felt the government was ineffectual and perpetuated the inequalities. The participants strongly articulate the need for visibility and voice in the political context in order to affect social change. It is through education and training that these individuals felt they could overcome the inequities they experience and contribute fully to their families, communities, and nation.
Keywords: youth empowerment, global community development; participatory diagramming; Kenya, critical social theor
Natural Resource Exploration and Extraction in Northern Canada: Intersections with Community Cohesion and Social Welfare
Get PDFThis paper examines the role that the search for and removal of non-renewable fossil fuels plays in northern, often Aboriginal, communities in Canada. Such settlements at the social, political, and geographic "periphery" or "frontier" of Canada are often characterized by transient populations and social welfare challenges. While the economic boom brought about by oil and gas development is undeniable, it is unevenly spread. Further, communities that would otherwise be facing sizable challenges now must address even greater and more urgent struggles. These rural and remote settlements have drawn strength from their social cohesion, but presently, the strain is heightened. Insiders may be at odds with outsiders; one generation may be divided against the generation before and after it. Environmental concerns and traditional culture may be displaced by competing interests. In this paper we provide an overview of the existing and proposed extraction of non-renewable natural resources in several parts of northern Canada and examine their economic impact, but also their social impact. In particular, we focus on their ramifications in terms of community cohesion in general and on Aboriginal communities more specifically.
Keywords: Canada, north, Aboriginal, community cohesion, social welfare, economic developmen
The Relational Geography of Peri-urban Farmer Adaptation
Get PDFAgricultural geographers have long focused on farm adaptation to changing
conditions. One frame for examining these adaptations is the modified political
economy approach, which attempts to reconcile the conceptual tension between
farmers as individual agents found within broader industry structures by focusing on
adjustment strategies on the farm which recognize the power farmers can exercise
in response to broader economic pressures. We build on this approach by
conceptualizing and visualizing the relational geography of four peri-urban farm
cases in the United States based off of farm household interviews. We focus on the
emergent positioning of peri-urban farmers within the structural conditions of local
development pressure and global industrial agricultural markets, and the resultant
ability of farmers to adapt in the future. An immediate application of this framework,
given the interest in food systems, would be to better target policies and programs
in peri-urban areas for the purpose of regional food system development or
community-based agricultural economic development.
Keywords: farmer adaptation, agriculture, relational economic geography, periurban,
political econom
Rural Communities in Transition and Sustainable Regional Development
Get PDFsince colonial times but the industries have generally operated in separate
regions with limited overlaps. Over the last decade mining activity has
surpassed agriculture in both return on investment and contribution to gross
domestic product (GDP) and farming has continued to lose its share of
economic contribution. To date, most mining activity has been in remote and
regional areas of Australia where the deposits are richest, but sophisticated
extractive processes and high returns are now making deposits viable which
hither to have been considered marginal, many of which are in communities
where farming has been the main industry.
This paper will consider case study sites where mining is increasingly
encroaching on what has been traditionally productive farming land. For some
communities, mining is welcomed as an important off-farm income, for others,
mining is viewed as an environmental and social threat to the agricultural
industry. The stresses and strains as well as the opportunities presented by
transitional rural economies will be considered.
Keywords: mining, agriculture, farming, socio-economic developmen