The things we learned about rural capacity in the new economy

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The things we learned about rural capacity in the
new economy

• The Environment Theme Team
• Ellen, Diane, Solange, John, Sara, Asaf, Emily,
  Katia, Ingrid, Rebekka, Angie, and Tom

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Review of Environment Theme Projects

• 1) Governance of natural resources
• Community Forestry Initiatives
• BC, ON, QC and NB
• 2) Climate change (capacity/resilience)
• 3) Natural capital as a contributor to rural
  capacity
• 4) Environmental Values Survey
• National in scope

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The things we learned

• 1) Capacity is really hard to measure
• 2) Local capacity is strongly related to external
  forces, trends and partners
• 3) Unit of analysis is critical for capacity
• 4) Context is critical

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1) Challenges in measuring capacity

• We didnt find a single natural resource for
  which data were readily available in a scalable,
  usable format to compare with other resources.
• It is extremely difficult to amalgamate data
  (particularly social and economic data with
  natural capital data) to arrive at meaningful
  assessments of community capacity.
• Even when we can achieve reasonable quantitative
  data about capacity assets, it is usually the
  quality of that asset that is more important than
  the quantity Quality assessments are even more
  challenging to do (with reliability, that can
  scale up for provincial or national reporting).
• Examples
• municipal waste water
• Chamber of Commerce

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More about measuring capacity

• It may not be best measured in place.
• Apologies to geographers, but household capacity
  seems important in environmental stewardship.
• Physical resources, practices, values.
• But also cohesion within the household regarding
  environmental behaviour.
• Values survey discovered constraints at the
  household and individual level related to lack of
  knowledge, time, money.

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2) Capacity is strongly related to external
forces, trends and partners

• Bridging capital is critical in rural capacity.
• Those most linked or intertwined with urban most
  likely to succeed.
• Resource flows from urban to rural
• Urban markets for rural goods
• Isolated resource towns have the steepest hill to
  climb
• External lobby groups
• Urban Government political support (community
  forestry)

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Examples

• Capacity of national and provincial farm lobby
  groups resulted in financial assistance to
  Usborne farmers. Local capacity was less a factor
  than being linked to higher level institutions
• Local capacity alone is not sufficient to
  initiate community forestry. Needs enabling
  legislation, approval of pilot projects or even
  central government desire to downsize in order
  for it to happen
• And a willing urban majority, or an apathetic
  one.

Example, the
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Working Towards Community Forestry in New
Brunswick and Ontario

• In the case of Westwind Forest Stewardship Inc.,
  a major downsizing in 1995 of MNR staff
  throughout Ontario (government) left many trained
  forestry staff unemployed in the region of
  French-Severn Forest (Westwind area). Example of
  a catalyst.
• Some of these former MNR employees were
  instrumental in establishing Westwind and brought
  with them experience and legitimacy.
• This is an example of how an external force
  (provincial MNR downsizing) can influence
  community capacity.

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Unit of analysis is critical for capacity

• We tend to focus on communities as the most
  important unit of analysis.
• Capacity doesnt always coalesce at this level.
• (see earlier point about bridging capital)

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Examples (evidence)

• This has implications for capacity
• Tweed Hog facility
• Capacity of the pro forces are pitted against
  the capacity of the anti forces.
• Conflict isnt all bad
• Capacity can emerge from situations like this

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Unit of analysis issue 2

• The role of individuals must be recognized as an
  important factor (perhaps the important factor)
  in community capacity.
• Some places may be better off with 2 or 3 very
  capable, connected, motivated individuals than
  with 20 or 50 moderately competent, poorly
  connected, slightly motivated people.

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Examples

• Tweed Heritage Centre Without individual
  leadership skills of director the centre would
  not exist.
• Mill closure in Boisetown. Fight to save the mill
  spearheaded by a few individuals, recognized
  community leaders, former cabinet minister.
• Dr. ?? in Tumbler Ridge.
• These individuals are priceless. Nurturing
  capacity at the individual level may yield the
  best results.

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Getting past the urban rural divide

• Overcoming this dichotomy, that is played up in
  the media, in politics, and popular culture is
  important.
• Research can identify common ground.
• Environmental values survey
• Rural/urban differences insignificant.
• The way environmental stewardship is manifest
  differs, but not concern for the environment.

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4) Context is critical

• Capacity to do what? The eternal question.
• Even for the same phenomenon, there may be many
  motivations (e.g. community forestry)
• Latent capacity places may have more capacity
  than they know and they may never know until they
  are tested.
• Threat and the magnitude (and source) of threat
  can contribute to capacity.
• Clear and identifiable external threats that
  appear suddenly can galvanize communities (mill
  closures, Govt downsizing)
• Slow-acting, vague or diffuse, internal threats
  may divide communities (youth out-migration, slow
  deterioration in water quality, transformation of
  community through sprawl)

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Implications

• There is no one way to develop capacity
• Does not lend itself toward recipe book
  approaches
• Difficult for bureaucrats to hear this message
• They want transferable solutions
• Program level solutions tech transfer

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Communicating these messages

• Normal vehicles
• Theses
• Articles
• Book chapters
• Conference papers
• Digital video
• New research and community partnerships

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Ellens very astute and succinct advice Use
the phrase community capacity very carefully.