Throughout the week, the Rural Planning and Development social media accounts (Facebook, LinkedIn, and X/Twitter) are sharing reflections and contributions from the 2024 Rural Symposium. Presentation and poster contributions from the 2024 Rural Symposium can be found online - https://journal.lib.uoguelph.ca/index.php/ruralReview.
Details about the 2025 Rural Symposium are forthcoming - stayed tuned.
How are rural and northern Ontario businesses attracting and retaining workers? Ryan Gibson, Heather Graham, Paul Sitsofe, Niju Mathew, and Sarah-Patricia Breen share insights on this question in a recent publication in the Y Magazine of the Ontario Professional Planners Institute. The article, titled "Help Wanted: Innovative Approaches to Workforce Development in Rural and Northern Ontario", identifies challenges rural and northern businesses face in work
Researchers, policymakers and practitioners recently gathered in Letterfrack, Ireland for the 2024 North Atlantic Forum. The Forum focused on sustainable livelihoods and sought to engage new ideas in rural development, policy practice, and the social economy.
To facilitate knowledge mobilization a series of rural research summaries were created by graduate students on innovative approaches to sustainable livelihoods. The summaries provides a snapshot of r
Farmland preservation is critical to the future of rural Ontario. The Connecting the Dots initiative is excited share the first Rural Research Summary - Farmland Preservation and Urban Expansion in Ontario. This summary sheds light into the challenges and strategies associated with balancing farmland preservation amidst growing urban development pressures, providing implications and practical recommendations for policymakers, planners, and community stakeh
Congratulations to Jay Maloney, Sean Markey, Ryan Gibson, and Ashleigh Weeden for their recent peer reviewed journal publication titled "Advancing Green Infrastructure Solutions in Rural Regions: Economic Impacts and Capacity Challenges in Southwest Ontario, Canada". The abstract for the article published in Rural and Regional Development is listed below:
Green infrastructure (GI) is a growing topic in urban planning, asset management, and clima
Congratulations to Chris Van Dyke who successfully completed his Master of Planning Major Research Paper titled "Home on Borrowed Land: Geographies of Land Leasing and the Impacts of Colonial Land Policy on Housing in the Northwest Territories". Chris' research can be accessed as a one page summary or the entire Major Research Paper.
Shanley Weston's MSc (Planning) thesis is now available in the University of Guelph’s Atrium. Shanley's thesis is titled "Darkest Days: A Scoping Review of Violent Crime in Rural Canada".
Congratulations to Shanley for successfully completing the MSc (Planning) thesis!
Damilola Oyewale's MSc (Planning) thesis is now available in the University of Guelph's Atrium. Damilola's thesis is titled "Evaluation of the Impact of the Provincial Policy Statement on International Agricultural Workers’ Housing in Ontario".
Congratulations to Damilola for successfully completing the MSc (Planning) thesis!
Congratulations to Josh Barrett (PhD candidate in Rural Studies, University of Guelph) who received the Best Student Paper Award at the 2024 American Association of Geographers in April 2024 in Honolulu, Hawaii. The manuscript, co-authored by Kelly Vodden, focuses on how rural local governments in Newfoundland and Labrador are using entrepreneurial approaches and partnerships to achieve local development. The article, titled "Partnerships in Plac
The School of Environmental Design and Rural Development at the University of Guelph, in partnership with the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA), hosted a one-day symposium to showcase rural research being conducted at the University of Guelph. The Rural Symposium is an opportunity for graduate students to share their research with researchers, policy analysts and program staff with the OMAFRA, and rural organizations.