The study of the sociopedagogical resources of the countryside, the village ["selo"], is of vital importance both for science and for the revival of the Russian countryside; for the upbringing, education, and social protection of the new generation of citizens; and for the creation of a socially safe environment in which the population…

Rural America is growing again; and, the change in growth and migration patterns means new opportunities for small towns to expand their economic bases and to improve community facilities and services. Part of the Small Town Strategy series, this publication characterizes one small southwestern town that is typical of many others and outlines a…

Examines indigenous capacity for local community development. Examines new economic development initiatives by communities, nature of relationships between local and larger economies, and how relationships affect local capacity for new economic activities. Discusses benefits of spatial framework in rural development and planning. (TES)

The rural communities of the North American Great Plains are experiencing fundamental economic and social changes that threaten their very existence. While local projects offer hope for survival, many communities lack the knowledge needed to envision and evaluate their possible futures. As a consequence, communities may pursue survival strategies…

The major responsibility of this workshop on nonformal education is to establish some prototypes of community training activities which will coordinate with the agricultural and health components of Ethiopia's Fourth Five Year Plan for rural development and which can later be reproduced in the countryside. Linking education to overall development…

Describes locally controlled economic development strategies used by Native American and Hispanic cooperatives and organizations: Ganados del Valle, Madera Forest Products Association, Seventh Generation Fund, and Ramah Navajo Weavers Association. Discusses the issues of cultural and economic survival in isolated rural communities. (SV)

The paper addresses the importance of developing a rural community's commercial sector for economic development by providing some analytical tools. Procedures are outlined to estimate commercial sector activity in a community, to estimate commercial sector activity for various counties within a state (Nevada is used as an example), and to develop…

Describes U.S. Department of Agriculture programs and services authorized by Title VII (Rural Development) of the Federal Agriculture Improvement and Reform Act of 1996. Four agencies within the Rural Development Mission Area provide funding, technical assistance, and training to rural communities to develop utilities, housing, businesses, new…

Engelhard is a very isolated rural community in Hyde County, North Carolina, economically dependent on seafood, small scale agriculture, and logging. In the mid-1980s the agricultural crisis, the decline in seafood landings, and changes in timber industry technology contributed to rising unemployment. Several decades of declining population and…

This booklet contains summaries of workshop presentations at the conference on community development. This conference brought local community officials and leaders together with interested citizens to learn about successful rural community development activities occurring in Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota. Sessions covered four main…

Many communities have economic development efforts, which are generally undertaken in an attempt to create productive employment opportunities and to strengthen the local tax base. Unfortunatley, the economic development efforts of many communities, especially rural communities, are not productive ones. Many rural development efforts fail because…

Rural economic development depends on implementation of strategies that capture the competitive edge of the total rural environment. It will not succeed by weak duplication of traditional urban development strategies. The historic dependence on the natural resource base that is the common denominator for rural areas must be regarded not as a…

This text is intended as a basis for community development educators to increase their understanding of the elements of community development, assess systematically the strengths and weaknesses of a community development situation, examine one approach to community development education and the principles from which it grew, and gain confidence in…

Describes attitudes and strategies used by two small rural towns to foster economic development and improve local housing, schools, professional facilities, and recreational programs for youth and adults. Emphasizes individual leadership qualities useful in creating a vision for community survival, communicating the vision through town meetings,…

This manual describes an educational program for helping rural, small community leaders, decision-makers, and residents analyze their communities, think about alternatives, and plan economic development action strategies. The program is an effort to help communities explore short- and long-term development strategies, gain a vision of their…