From the Ground UpHaving adequate capacity is a critical factor for effective rural community economic development.Demands on economic development practitioners in rural and remote communities can often be overwhelming and time consuming. The responsibility for fostering rural economic survival, growth, and sustainability has continued to shift towards local government and they simply cannot, and should not, do it alone. EDA can help. |
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EDA knows first-hand the limited capacity its rural members face when it comes to carrying out locally based economic development or ‘self-development’ work. Rural practitioners, unlike their metropolitan counterparts, are less likely to have the same level of experience, time, or access to resources required to develop and implement effective economic development programs. In addition, smaller communities usually have more unique challenges specific to their local economy.
How can community economic development capacity in rural Alberta increase?
EDA has designed a comprehensive support framework for rural communities called, ‘From the Ground Up: Building Economic Development Capacity in Rural Alberta’. This framework aims to increase local capacity in smaller/rural communities by augmenting the level of practitioner and community stakeholder knowledge, skills, and industry networks; while serving as a catalyst to help them set and reach their economic development goals.
This Framework includes the following four ‘elements’:
Under each of these elements, we have developed some specific programming.
- Education: Educating Practitioners in Rural Communities
- Networks: Creating Expert Networks of Support- The Gerry Gabinet Mentorship Program ( exclusive to EDA Members)
- Experts: Ask an Expert Webinar Series to explore current trends and best practices in the field
- Capacity Building: Grassroots Economic Development capacity building workshops
This program is supported by the Government of Alberta.