Local governments in rural areas of New York State, as in many other states, are struggling to keep up with the demands of a changing society and an increasing rural population. Relative poverty, increasing costs of essential community services, frequent turnover of elected and appointed officials, insufficient training, geographic isolation, and…

The Facilitator's Role in Collaborative Rural Development Project began in 1979 as a study of 12 rural development efforts which comprised the North Carolina Rural Employment Laboratory and was expanded in 1980-81 to include rural development in 6 other states (California, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Oklahoma, and Vermont). A wide range of…

Incorporating field studies and literature reviews, 2 cities and 2 towns in Mississippi and South Carolina were investigated to determine the socioeconomic impact of Southern rural industrialization and to aid the Economic Development Administration (EDA) in developing policy relative to allocation of funds. Visiting each town/city 3 times and…

This report contains the proceedings of a 7-day training course for top-level professionals in adult education and development held in Kenema, Sierra Leone, in April 1990. Section I is an introduction to the report, giving the background of the orientation course. Section II deals with the official opening ceremony and provides welcoming and…

The Centre for Research and Learning in Regional Australia is investigating the elements of social capital and developing a set of indicators that show when social capital is building. The indicators can be used where groups or organizations with a shared purpose engage in productive interactions that benefit not only the individual member groups…

Despite political gains and the lowering of social barriers, most Southern blacks still face formidable economic obstacles. More than half of rural Southern black families are living at or below poverty level. Efforts to improve their lot have included a number of cooperative and self-help community programs. The Southern Cooperative Development…

The Northeastern Regional Agricultural Research Planning Committee commissioned a joint U.S. Department of Agriculture-Experiment Station Task Force to provide a framework for Rural Development (RD) research over the next 5 years. Based on criteria of: significance; researchability; relevance to group decisions, actions, and applicability;…

This book reports on a study of rural community development policies and practices in the United States, Europe, and Canada in relation to multicommunity collaboration as a rural restructuring strategy. The study focused on multicommunity collaboration involving two or more small rural communities working together to attain social or economic…

Data collection from 25 school districts throughout Pakistan and subsequent educational experiments in selected villages highlight 1976-77 research to identify causes of primary school dropout and to suggest primary education improvements to benefit Pakistan's rural poor, especially women. In the 416 villages studied only 1/3 of the total primary…

Education has long been a development priority in Africa. The failure and limitations of formal education have led to the emergence of nonformal alternatives of various types. They include extension education, training programs, multipurpose educational programs (for middle-level professionals), cooperative self-help programs (community…