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CDI Publications Series
One of the initiatives launched by the Community Development Institute (CDI) at UNBC is a peer
reviewed “Publication Series”. This will focus upon invited reports on a range of topics relevant
to the mandate of CDI and important to northern British Columbia. The peer review aspect of the
Series ensures that only high quality research is published.
The CDI holds an annual graduate student paper competition. Details can be found by following the Award link.
Multi-Sectoral Collaboration and Economic Development: Lessons from
England's Regional Development Agencies
By Marleen Morris
ABSTRACT
The challenges of economic transformation are being felt around the world.
Prospering in this shifting environment requires an approach to economic
development that recognizes that this issue cannot be addressed by one
organization or one sector acting independently; collaboration between the
public, private, and non-profit sectors is required. The purpose of this
paper is to explore multi-sectoral collaboration in economic development.
It identifies 13 factors that impact multi-sectoral collaboration in
economic development and describes how they come into play. The paper also
explores the factors that have an impact on developing collaboration
between local governments to create a regional approach to economic
development; one that achieves the synergies and produces the momentum
required for lasting economic change. While England's regional development
agencies were selected as the focus for this research into economic
development, the purpose was to translate lessons learned to the British
Columbia context.
A Primer For Understanding Issues Around Rural Poverty
By Greg Halseth and Laura Ryser
ABSTRACT
Poverty remains an important, but complex and challenging research,
policy, and lived world issue. In northern BC, communities have been
exposed to a range of pressures over the past 3 decades that have led to
concerns about poverty and associated support services. The purpose of
this primer is two-fold. The first part explores economic and social
restructuring processes that have affected resource-based communities, as
well as how opportunities and challenges to address poverty are affected
by the unique places, infrastructure, and institutions of rural and small
town communities. The second part includes information about measuring and
executing qualitative research on rural poverty. Due to the complex and
sensitive nature of rural poverty, more engaged, personal, and flexible
approaches to conducting rural poverty research need to be adopted.
Lessons From The Development of Northeast Coal in BC
By Graham Kedgley, BC's former Coal Coordinator
ABSTRACT
Through this discussion I hope to communicate some of the lessons learned from a major resource development project in northern BC. My comments are based on my four years of experience (1978 to 1982) as BC’s Coal Coordinator. Through the Northeast Coal project, we wanted to realize all of the spin-off economic impacts from creating a new mining centre in the province. Building on the host of infrastructure, support industries, telecommunications, education, labour, goods and services, transportation, fabricating, equipment, energy, international trade arrangements, and associated economic activities, the Government of BC used Northeast Coal as the focal point for a larger vision of regional development. My part of the project was to focus on three components: marketing, the infrastructure development plan, and the transportation plan. Based on my experiences, I think there are three main lessons that are especially relevant today:
• The first one is that it is time the government of today identified a few major northern opportunities (creating 1,000-1,500 jobs each in the north) so as to set a
development foundation for the future.
• The second point is, having identified a few important opportunities, we can then
appoint a provincial coordinator (an expert or “point person”) who really understands the opportunity and has experience. Give them some good goals, a high level connection to the provincial government, and give them about 4 years to work through the effort.
• The third point is more general in that government has to be proactive in its encouragement of economic activity in the north. The pace of economic opportunity is so fast in today’s globalized economy that we simply do not have time to work from a reactive position.
Co-Managing Research: Building and Sustaining a First Nation - University Partnership
By Gail Fondahl, Pamela Wright, Deanna Yim, Erin Sherry, Beverly Leon, Wayne Bulmer, Sue Grainger, and Jane Young
ABSTRACT
Community-based participatory research, or what we term ‘co-managed research,’ has become increasingly common over the past decade. Its growth among indigenous communities is especially notable, as First Nations and other indigenous communities increasingly demand a role as partners in research, rejecting the position of research subjects. This paper is based on a decade of increasingly collaborative work between university researchers and First Nations members. We discuss ingredients important to establishing a successful partnership for comanaged research, as well as factors contributing to the successful functioning of such a partnership over time. Authors include community and university researchers. Recommendations for setting up and sustaining such a partnership are provided.
Professional Work in Remote Northern Communities: A Social Work Perspective
By Dr. Glen Schmidt, School of Social Work, University of Northern British Columbia
ABSTRACT
It is a challenge to recruit and retain good employees. In northern and remote parts of Canada the challenge is readily apparent when it involves the recruitment and retention of professional workers. Part of the difficulty might be attributed to the urban base of most professional education programs. However, whether education is based in the urban south or in the north, it is important that students in professional education programs develop and learn what it is like to work in an isolated community. This article discusses some of the challenges that are unique to the personal aspect of professional practice in a northern environment. The challenges include factors such as high visibility, high accessibility, dual or multiple relationships, access to too much information, heightened scrutiny by community members, increased responsibility, and limited access to professional development. These challenges are common to a range of professions, but for the purposes of this discussion, they will be examined primarily from the perspective of social work. Examples are drawn from the author’s personal practice experience.
Drive Tourism: A Methodological Discussion with a View to Further Understanding the Drive Tourism
Market in British Columbia, Canada
By Dr. Anne Hardy, Resource Recreation and Tourism Program, University of Northern British Columbia
ABSTRACT
Drive tourism, where people take leisure trips in their own or hired vehicles, is a rapidly growing
sector of the tourism market in Canada, yet what is known about the phenomena is limited. This
paper reviews existing research from a number of perspectives with a view to facilitating future
research in the area. The review includes analysis of 1) who has conducted research into drive
tourism; 2) what data has been sought; and 3) how it has been collected. The assessment reveals that
data on drive tourism has been collected by three interest groups - government agencies, academic
research institutions and industry bodies. Research has typically placed emphasis on the collection
of data pertaining to demographic, planning, expenditure and behavioral characteristics, with the
least emphasis being placed on psychographic characteristics and the impacts of drive tourism. It
also found that the methods which have been used to collect the data have predominantly consisted of
quantitative techniques such as surveys and questionnaires. The paper uses a revised version of the
Yamada and Ham (2004) tool to assess methodological options for future research into drive tourism.
Download: A Hardy CDI Paper (PDF)
The Importance of University-Community
Interaction: Community Involvement and Political Sustainability in Canada’s Publicly Funded
Research and Teaching System
By Dr.
Peter Adams, PC, Professor Emeritus, Trent University, Peterborough, Ontario
ABSTRACT
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This paper is based on talks given and conversations had during a visit
to the Community Development Institute at the University of Northern British Columbia. In it, the author makes the case
for more active interaction between university researchers, elected officials
at all levels, and communities in which universities are located. He draws on
experience as an academic in the Parliament of Canada during and after the
budget cuts of the 1990s which severely impacted the Canadian academic
community. Progress made by the research community, since those times, is
described. As the research system of Canada is more dependent on the public
purse than that of any comparable nation, the paper argues that Canadian
researchers should be particularly diligent in engaging politicians and the
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