Philanthropy in rural communities is a powerful tool for revitalization and sustainability. On June 6, 2019, Ryan Gibson shared preliminary research findings at the All In 2019 Conference, hosted by Community Foundations of Canada.
The presentation was part of a larger discussion on rural philanthropy that explored trends, the importance of place and creative opportunities happening in rural communities. Participants worked collectively to spark new think...
Stephanie Patzer, recent Rural Planning and Development graduate, shared her research on housing in Honduras at the “Inclusive Development? Expanding Circles of Development Research and Practice” Conference that took place from June 5-7, 2019 in Vancouver. Stephanie's presentation, titled "Lessons from Participatory Community Development in Informal Settlements in Honduras", explored housing development in two Honduran communities in partnership with Techo
On April 26, 2019, a collection of researchers, healthcare practitioners, workers’ rights activists, and volunteers met at the University of Windsor for the annual Migrant Farm Worker Health Forum. This event, organized by Occupational Health Clinics for Ontario Workers (OHCOW), is a venue for emerging research and practices intended to better the health, conditions, and overall well-being of participants in Canada’s various Temporary Foreign Worker (TFW)
On May 2, Ashleigh Weeden (PhD student, School of Environmental Design and Rural Development) shared insights from her career and research into rural community innovation with approximately 150 leaders in economic development from across Saskatchewan at the 2019 Intersections for Growth Conference, the annual conference hosted by the Saskatchewan Economic Development Alliance (SEDA).
Ashleigh's presentation focused on the importance of developing a stro
On May 1, Dr Ryan Gibson joined a panel discussion focused on sharing experiences with the Mitacs funding program to support graduate student capacity development during the Perspectives on Experiential Learning Conference. The panel, organized by Nadia Timperio and Ben Bradshaw, consisted of Dr. Angela Canovas (Department of Animal Biosciences), Dr. Jamie Burr (Department of Human Health and Nutritional Sciences), and Nic Durish (School of Computer S...
Rural economic development practices are often applied under the same instances across all rural towns as it is believed that what will work for one rural town will work for the next. However, not all rural economic development practices work in smaller rural towns. I had the opportunity to attend the 2019 Teeny Tiny Town Summit on April 11th, 2019 in Orono, Ontario.
The day was spent learning from Peter Kenyon (a social capitalist and community enth...
Rural Canada is doing immigration differently. Although historically not sites of large-scale immigration, rural communities and regions throughout Canada continues to welcome new immigrants. This session explores how rural communities and regions are building strategies to attract, settle, welcome, and integrate new immigrants. These strategies, however, can not simply replicate urban-based strategies. This session highlights lessons learned from the pers...
During the 2019 Rural Symposium, five graduates supervised by Dr. Ryan Gibson, presented their research focused on evidence-based policy, rural policy interventions, rural innovation, opioid crisis, trail development, and rural infrastructure. Copies of the presentations and posters can be found below:
Making a Difference: Provincial Policy Reflections on Knowledge Mobilization (Ashleigh Weeden)
Creating Effective Rural Policies: Rural Lenses and thei...
Dr. Ryan Gibson and Ashleigh Weeden (PhD student, School of Environmental Design & Rural Development) hosted a workshop at the Ontario Good Roads Association's 2019 Conference in Toronto yesterday (February 26, 2019) to launch the "Building the Future: Rural Infrastructure & Regional Economic Development" research initiative.
Over 125 delegates participated in discussions focused on the opportunities and challenges facing rural communities in ma...
Communities across rural Ontario are exploring new strategies for economic development opportunities. In partnership with the Ontario Good Roads Association, rural planning and development students in the economic development course discussed the future of rural economic development with over 150 municipal leaders from across Ontario. Building on Michael Fenn's report on the six megatrends impacting rural Ontario, students facilitated a series of small gro
