"Loan Eagles" Affect the Rural Knowledge-Based Economy

It is the individuals that are creating business in today's knowledge-based rural economy, says Mr. Paul Blais of Millier Dickinson Blais, and a former municipal economic development manager in Napanee, reports Brian Shypula with the Stratford Beacon Herald, especially in a rural, knowledge-based economy such as Perth County, Ontario. Blais' report is part of a provincial grant with support from the Perth Community Futures Corporation.

"Loan Eagles" are small businesses that are typically run by individuals, often fall under the media radar and grow by one, two or three people at a time. Their impact, however, can be considerable. They would often fall under the category of highly skilled, highly educated, and/or highly paid. The long-term migration of 'loan eagles' (as illustrated by Richard Florida, the George Mason University professor and author of "The Rise of the Creative Class") can, however, be contrary to rural development interests.
The arts/culture/tourism challenge for southern Ontario's Perth, Stratford and St Mary's region is to attract the Loan Eagles. Perhaps they can be lured with opportunities such as Blais' "green tech" businesses and University of Waterloo's Stratford "new digital media" campus.

Avoid the "Geography of Nowhere"

Lisa Brochu, author and tourism consultant, and keynote speaker at the recent Heartland Byways Conference in Kansas, encouraged communities located along scenic byways to be distinct and present their innate character, writes Dale Hogg of the Grand Bend Tribune. When a visitor wakes up in the morning they should know where they are. As Lisa Brochu states, avoid the geography of nowhere.

The Annual Heartland Byways Conference is designed for byway, tourism officials from 10-state region, including: Arkansas, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Nebraska.
Link to: America`s Byways
...
Roger Brooks' Rule No. 16
Great Stories Make the Campfire Memorable: the rule of telling stories.
Your community has stories to tell. They are distinct. They bring people together. They attract visitors.
 from "The 25 Immutable Rules of Successful Tourism"
Tip 2 from Roger Brooks.

Unique Agritourism Approach: Look, But Don't Buy

20 football-sized fields of tulips are grown annually for the Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival, but not for sale, writes Wendy Owen of the Oregonian. Woodburn farmer, Ross Iverson, and family grow them for visitors to admire and photograph. They also grow another 30 acres for harvest and sale. They've been growing tulips since 1974. Over 100,000 visitors are expected each year with traffic sometimes backing up for over 12km to enter their farm. Their tulip farm is also rented for weddings, company picnics and meetings, family reunions and other special events. This year is special. It's the 25th anniversary of the Tulip Fest.

The International Ecotourism Society now 20 years old

 

The International Ecotourism Society (TIES) now celebrates its 20th year. TIES "promotes responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment and improves the well-being of local people".
TIES' global Ecotourism Explorer map geographically links us to various ecotourism resources: travellers, students, professionals, lodging facilities, tour operators, affiliated businesses.colleges and universities, institutions, and non-government organizations. A search, for example, of Canadian members with connection to Geographic Information Systems (GIS), displayed the Great Bear Nature Tours in Port Hardy, British Columbia.
TIES joins 500 businesses, professionals and community members at ESTC (Ecotourism and Sustainable Tourism Conference) 2010 from 8-10Sep2010 in Portland Oregon. The conference is hosted by Travel Portland and Travel Oregon, and will provide opportunities to share the latest trends in ecotourism and sustainable tourism.

Seven Pillars of Rural Development

The seven pillars of rural development are listed in a note to the Secretary of State, United States Department of Agriculture from a concerned citizen, reports Rural Alberta's Development Fund.

They are:
Natural Capital
Cultural Capital
Social Capital
Political Capital
Financial Capital
Built Capital
Human Capital

Rural Alberta’s Development Fund (RADF) is an independent, not-for-profit company that is focused on helping rural communities build capacity and leaders. Some of the funded RADF projects include:
Growing a Culture of Innovation in Northwest Alberta
Northern Alberta GeoTourism
Creative Campus Development
Buffalo Adventures Marketing Initiative
Edmonton Area Countryside Project

British Columbia's first rural tourism conference

Conference: Rural Tourism

Dates: 6-8 April 2010

Host: British Columbia’s Thompson Rivers University School of Tourism and partners
Program: PDF document link
Location: rural North Shuswap, Talking Rock Resort and Quaaout Lodge

Theme: Address the challenges of selecting and building tourism experiences by all rural tourism stakeholders.

Food joins Kilkenny's Suite of Irish Rural Tourism Trails

A Food Trail has been added to rural County Kilkenny Trails as part of Ireland's food strategy, reports Kilkenny People News. The trail links food with rural tourism. A launch date is set for 19April2010. The Food Trail joins Kilkenny's Walking, Cycling, Craft and Heritage trails.

The newly-formed  Kilkenny Leader Partnership, a single-access point for local development, is a driving force behind the Food Trail. The Leader Partnership aims to focus on quality of life and economic diversification in rural Ireland. It offers grants and funding to rural innovators and widely valued projects. Trail Kilkenny is made up of a partnership between County Kilkenny LEADER Partnership, Kilkenny County Council, Kilkenny Sports Partnership, local councilers and land owners.

The initial participants in the Food Trail include:
Tess's Homestyle Baking.
The Watergarden Cafe
Ryeland House Cookery
A Slice of Heaven
Lavistown Gourmet Sausages
The Truffle Fairy
Foodworks Cafe
Shellumsrath Goose
Cafe L’Arche
Zuni restaurant
Cramers Grove Ice Cream
Kells Wholemeal
Campagne
The Jarrow Cafe
Sol Bistro
Oldtown Hill Bakehouse
Highbank Organic Apple Juice
The Blackberry Cafe
Keoghs Model Bakery
The Little Apple Company
Mosses Apple Juice
Castlecomer Country Markets
Marvelway - Meat Products
Freshford Country Market
Blueberry LARDER
Kilkenny Farmers Market
Langtons
Marble City
Cillin Hill Mart
Kilkenny Design
Rinuchinnis
Cafe Sol
The Thatch
Mileeven Fine Foods
Knockdrinna Farmhouse Cheese
Goatsbridge Trout Farm
Thomastown Country Market

Community-based Rural Tourism in Costa Rica

ACTUAR, the Costa Rican Association of Community-based Rural Tourism, supports sustainable tourism and the rural lifestyle of Costa Rican families. You can experience the authentic rural lifestyle and indigenous culture while getting involved in local conservation efforts. ACTUAR arose in 2001 from the first Ecotourism Gathering, organized by United Nation’s Small Grants Program. ACTUAR is a member of The International Ecotourism Society and the Rainforest Alliance.

ACTUAR's goal is to show the real Costa Rica, an experience that's not pre-packaged with set photo opportunities. They want one that's run by local citizen organizations.

Over 90 Nebraska Maps feed U of Nebraska's Rural Initiative

 94 maps are available as a rural resource to residents of Nebraska via the University of Nebraska's Rural Initiative, including terrain, bedrock geology, demographics, surface and groundwater, crops, infrastructure, trails, canoeing, pasture-fed meat producers, GIS and others.

These maps form one of the four pillars for rural resources in the State: website search of rural resources, rural development programs, internet access, and Nebraska maps.

The Wineries Map, for example, displays 12 existing wineries, and lists 8 soon-to-be-open wineries, their location and web/email contact link. There is a renaissance in the Nebraskan wine industry. The Nebraska Trails Map shows all historic and recreational trails in the State. The Scott Lookout Trail, for example, lists the management, length, usage and surface type of the trail. Other maps of interest to the rural tourist include: Christmas Tree Growers Map, the Nebraska Speed Limits Map,  and the Nebraska Game and Parks GIS Land Atlas.

These maps can be accessed via Nebraska Rural Living, "the brainchild of two sisters who returned to their small town rural roots". Their mission is to market the rural lifestyle, spotlight the successful rural entrepreneur, highlight amenities, and provide links to rural resources in Nebraska.

"During our years living out of Nebraska, we read dismal articles describing the out-migration of rural Nebraskans, the declining farm economy, and drought. However when we visited back home, we noticed prosperous entrepreneurial businesses, safe streets, a nurturing quality of life for families, excellent schools and affordable housing. We also noticed communities seemed to be well governed, by citizens who cared."

Creative Economy Forum helps redefine Rutland, Vermont

Residents of Rutland, Vermont, met to discuss new directions to develop their community reported the Rutland Herald. A vote at the Creative Economy Forum, moderated by the Vermont Council on Rural Development, identified two key projects: develop a railroad or children's museum and work to brand Rutland's identity. The goal is to revitalize rural Vermont in this area -- to re-invent itself. [[VPRradio

The Vermont Creative Communities Program presents how 12 rural communities have developed priority projects to pursue. 40 projects included the building of creative economy associations, development and communication of creative economy assets and maps, entrepreneurial platforms, and specific, directed events. 
[[VPRradio