International Comparative Rural Policy Studies
by the editors 20/11/2012 The Problem Is Clear: The Water Is Filthy. Rural communities in California struggles to find solutions to their problems with dirty drinking water according to The New York Times (Thanks for the tip, John Devlin!) Canada’s Corn Belt Attracts the Hot Money Fostering Community Economic Development with Ethical Consumption: An Read More …
by the editors 13/11/2012 Rural Futures Lab: (Local) Food for Thought: A Value Chain in Action. A rural blog takes a closer look at the locivore movement in Ohio. Impacts of Bio Energy on Food Security, according to FAO. An attempt to quantify the economic contribution of rural communities in Alberta, Canada. FAO also says Involving Read More …
by Terence Merritt 09/11/2012 The short answer is very little impact. Here are two reasons why: First, not a lot has changed. President Obama is relected, the Democratic Party retains control of the Senate, and the Republican Party retains control of the House. The political landscape at the federal level remains similar to the last Read More …
Since April, Katja and Kjersti has had the pleasure of editing this blog (you can see our pictures and read more about us here). However, now we are welcoming a third editor to the team. Eric Marr is well know to those of you who participated in the 2011 Summer School in Norway, or this Read More …
by Eric Marr, 5/11/2012 “Density is not the main barrier to providing public transport that offers a real alternative to the car; rather, it is a rationalization for inaction.” Paul Mees (2011), Transport for Suburbia If one resides in a rural area and does not have access to a personal vehicle how do they get Read More …
by Stuty Maskey, 30/10/2012 Last month I attended a micro entrepreneurs’ trade fair in Kathmandu and met many micro entrepreneurs and home-based workers. Such fairs are one of the few opportunities that these rural communities get where they can come into direct contact with buyers as well as learn about market prices, competition and current Read More …
by the editors 24/10/2012 OECD report on renewable energy policies and their economic impact on the rural areas (including contribution from our own John Bryden) World wide decline in hunger? The UN´s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) says “Hunger: Not a billion after all“ Co-operatives key to feeding a growing population Recently Read is a weekly Read More …
by the editors 16/10/2012 A geography professor at the University of Guelph says to the BBC that we are currently eating more food than we are producing. In Africa, the well known migration pattern from the rural to the urban seems to be slowing down, according to researchers. Superweeds, superpests: The Legacy of Pesticides Recently Read is a Read More …
by Eric Marr, 14/10/2012 “Everything in life is somewhere else, and you get there in a car” (E. B. White, 1940). Nowhere is this statement more true than in rural areas. Throughout much of Canada a personal vehicle is the only transportation option available thereby severely restricting the mobility of those that cannot drive for Read More …
by the editors, 2/10/2012 The articles this week have one thing in common – they contemplate the future of farming, in one way or the other. Could water shortage force us all into vegetarianism sometime in the future? A FAO publication says targeted policies and capacity building is crucial for livestock sector developement and poverty Read More …