S2E5: Broadband internet in rural Canada

Access to broadband internet in rural Canada is spotty at best. However, much depends on it. From emergency communications, to economic development projects, to social cohesion, internet in rural areas can open up a myriad of opportunities. In this episode, we explore everything from the history of broadband in rural Canada, to current situation, to community-based efforts to provide broadband access. You will hear from Greg Lay, former mayor of Kaslo in BC, Bob Annis, former director of the Rural Development Institute at Brandon University in Manitoba, Wayne Kelly a researcher currently working at the RDI, Meghan Wrathall, a student at Brandon University, and Dr. Christopher Horsetief from BC who shares a personal story about the importance of broadband internet access in a rural emergency.

Resources: 

Dr. Christopher Horsethief

Wayne Kelly profile

Bob Annis

Submit a brief to the Parliament of Canada on Rural Broadband Connectivity

CRTC: Closing the broadband gap

Internet declared human right

Rural Routes Partners:
The Leslie Harris Centre of Regional Policy and Development, MUN
Canadian Rural Revitalization Foundation 
Rural Policy Learning Commons Partnership
The National Campus and Community Radio Association

CHMR Campus Radio

Music by Laura C. Bates performed by Trent Severn.

S2E4-Community Research with Sarah and Craig

What happens when researchers and communities work together to solve problems? It turns out that both come out of the process changed. This episode features Sarah Minnes, a doctoral student at Grenfell Campus of Memorial University of Newfoundland and Craig Pollett, CEO of Municipalities Newfoundland and Labrador. They reflect on a community-university collaboration they were both a part of.

Resources: 

Municipalities Newfoundland and Labrador

Rural Resilience

Sarah Minnes student profile

The Water Project Report (pdf)

Rural Routes Partners:
The Leslie Harris Centre of Regional Policy and Development, MUN
Canadian Rural Revitalization Foundation 
Rural Policy Learning Commons Partnership
The National Campus and Community Radio Association

CHMR Campus Radio

Music by Laura C. Bates performed by Trent Severn.

S2E3-Food Waste discussion with Matteo Vittuari

A third of the food we produce on this planet ends up as food waste. In this episode of Rural Routes we talked to Dr. Matteo Vittuari from University of Bologna about the complex problems and issues surrounding food waste. We touched on every aspect of food waste from production to the family dinner table. We also introduced a new segment on Rural Routes that gives a chance to our listeners to share some of their favourite rural spots with the rest of us.

Resources: 

WRAP – Circular Economy and Resource Efficiency Experts

Food and Agriculture Organization

Matteo Vittuari University of Bologna profile

 

Rural Routes Partners:
The Leslie Harris Centre of Regional Policy and Development, MUN
Canadian Rural Revitalization Foundation 
Rural Policy Learning Commons Partnership
The National Campus and Community Radio Association

CHMR Campus Radio

Music by Laura C. Bates performed by Trent Severn.

S2E2 – Julie Bull on research ethics in Indigenous communities

In this episode we dive deep into an issue Indigenous communities and researchers around the world are working together to solve. How do we conduct research so that it benefits communities, respects researches’ freedom of inquiry, and all of that in ways that everybody can agree on? Our guide through the tangly issues of research ethics in Indigenous and rural and remote communities is Julie Bull. She was one of the researchers developing new research guidelines with and for NunatuKavut communities in southern and central Labrador.

Resources:

NunatuKavut: http://www.nunatukavut.ca/home/home.htm

Guidelines for Community Engagement with NunatuKavut (pdf)

Rural Routes Partners:
The Leslie Harris Centre of Regional Policy and Development, MUN
Canadian Rural Revitalization Foundation 
Rural Policy Learning Commons Partnership
The National Campus and Community Radio Association

CHMR Campus Radio

Music by Laura C. Bates performed by Trent Severn.

S2E1-Back to the Farm

A Canadian farmer is on average 55 years old. Not these farmers. Rural Routes hosts Rebecca Cohoe and Bojan Fürst bring you the stories of four young women who run farms in Prince Edward Island, Southwestern Ontario, and near Bologna, Italy. Mary-Ellen Godfrey, Lisa Paganelli, Lindsay Menich, and Katrina McQuail share their experiences of going back to the farm and finding ways to operate their farm businesses in their own way.

Resources:

Consortium of organic meat producers in Bologna: http://www.biovalbidente.it

Agri-tourism business on Liza Paganelli’s farm: http://www.acerorosso.com/index.aspx

Meeting Place Organic Farm: https://meetingplaceorganicfarm.ca

And also check out Meeting Place fabulous Instagram account!

Rural Routes Partners:
The Leslie Harris Centre of Regional Policy and Development, MUN
Canadian Rural Revitalization Foundation 
Rural Policy Learning Commons Partnership
The National Campus and Community Radio Association

CHMR Campus Radio

Music by Laura C. Bates performed by Trent Severn.

EPISODE 15: Community development with Wendy Keats

Wendy Keats is the executive director of the Co-operative Enterprise Council of New Brunswick. We talked about the ground level view of co-ops and social enterprises in rural areas and the need for good legislative support to help them grow and prosper.

Resources:

Co-operative Enterprise Council of New Brunswick

Rural Routes Partners:
The Leslie Harris Centre of Regional Policy and Development, MUN
Canadian Rural Revitalization Foundation 
Rural Policy Learning Commons Partnership
The National Campus and Community Radio Association

Music by Laura C. Bates performed by Trent Severn.

Episode 14: Rural Health with Lars Hallström

In Canada, we recognize 14 social and economic factors that influence human health. These social determinants of health range from income and education, to housing, to gender and race. Lars Hallström thinks we could add living rural to that list. This episode of Rural Routes is the first one in which we tackle health and well being in rural areas.

Resources:
Dr. Lars Hallström’s faculty profile

Social Determinants of Health on Canadian Public Health Association page

Rural Routes Partners:
The Leslie Harris Centre of Regional Policy and Development, MUN
Canadian Rural Revitalization Foundation 
Rural Policy Learning Commons Partnership
The National Campus and Community Radio Association

Music by Laura C. Bates performed by Trent Severn.

EPISODE 13: Rural Immigration with Michael Haan

“Canada is a land of immigrants” is a phrase we hear often. And while that is certainly true in many ways, immigration is a complex issue we don’t spend nearly as much time talking about as we should. Michael Haan is Canada Research Chair in Immigration and Ethnic Relations at Western University in London, Ontario, and he spends a lot of time thinking about immigration in Canada, especially rural Canada. I had an opportunity to talk to Dr. Haan last fall in his office at Western University. This is a part of that conversation.

 

Resources: 
Dr. Michael Haan’s faculty profile
On the Move Partnership

Rural Routes Partners:
The Leslie Harris Centre of Regional Policy and Development, MUN
Canadian Rural Revitalization Foundation 
Rural Policy Learning Commons Partnership
The National Campus and Community Radio Association

Music by Laura C. Bates performed by Trent Severn.

EPISODE 12: Building homes in Alaska

Ryan Gibson comes back on Rural Routes to tell us how a group of Alaskan researchers is trying to solve housing issues in rural and remote regions of America’s most northern states. They also tell us about their connections to Canada and we learn about honey buckets. And they are definitely not what their name would imply .

Resources: 
Cold Climate housing Research Centre

Sustainable Futures North

Rural Routes Partners:
The Leslie Harris Centre of Regional Policy and Development, MUN
Canadian Rural Revitalization Foundation 
Rural Policy Learning Commons Partnership
The National Campus and Community Radio Association

Music by Laura C. Bates performed by Trent Severn.