1.b) What are the biggest challenges that you, your family and your
community face as you look to the future?
You and your family
Exodus of young people -- to city centres in pursuit of jobs, diversity, and
post-secondary education. Return when jobs are available. Retaining and
involving youth in the community and family farms.
Aging population -- aging rural community. Raising good citizens.
Meeting housing needs for seniors. Supporting families.
Declining disposable income -- little capital for investment and increased
cost of living -- high utility costs including cost of installation
Life-style -- maintaining health and education standards and ensuring
access to post-secondary schools. Maintaining current public service
infrastructure. Clean air and water supply. Growing single parent and
welfare population. Crime -- punishments are not a deterrent. Lack of
respect for property.
Public funding formulas-- duplication and low (and declining)
population undermining per capita grants.
Your community
Sustaining the rural lifestyle and economy.
The cost of business -- fuel costs and rail transportation costs for grain
and lumber
Farming viability -- farms going up for sale and being sold off. Youth
abandoning the farm, an unaffordable venture.
Competition -- needed to keep costs down and standards up. Corporate
mergers and acquisitions. Privatization of competitive rail lines and
keeping those that are idle. Ethical competition and communications.
Regional competition -- a threat to local communities.
Job creation -- attracting and growing small and medium sized businesses
as the source of new growth. Incentives for creating employment.
Transportation -- Interprovincial (BC and Alberta) transportation
regulations are different and need to be harmonized. RTAC affects all
aspects of the trucking economy. Lack of adequate rail cars and poor rail
productivity.
Information access -- late information about government help and limited
access to service information. Poor communications -- overlap between
levels of government and their programs
Low commodity prices -- fluctuating demand for natural resources
Economic -- worker incentives, viability of farming and small business,
and investment return. Development of secondary and tertiary industries.
When the resources are gone, then what?
Government -over regulated business
Technology -- preparing for the information age. Adopting new
technologies supporting community access (e.g. Internet.)
Infrastructure -- is under the control of others.
2. What is preventing you and your community from
overcoming these challenges?
Family restructuring -- single parents and broken families.
Financial security -- inadequate disposable personal income and
inadequate capital for investing in processing of natural resources.
Eroding of public funds -- decline in Provincial transfer payments,
uncertainty about CPP, and downloading of services to municipal
government.
Economic uncertainty -- transitions in agriculture are undermining
agriculture and young people are not investing in this sector.
Personal incentives -- inadequate incentives to attract professionals,
support small business and promote learning particularly for young people
Educational and legal reform -- is needed to better prepare youth for
their future employment.
Information access -- rural areas access to information is difficult, some
don't yet get CBC and health and education suffer.
Government interference -- Government (Canadian Wheat Board) over-regulates agriculture in the west/Prairies -- too much paperwork.
Marketing Boards need to attract value added industry. Differing standards
for different parts of the country. Harmonize policies for water and
agriculture. Hidden taxes and regulations. Young Offenders Act must be
readdressed.
Global competition and decline of the agricultural economy -- an
economy based on natural resources attracts people, but on economy
information technology does not. A world awash with commodities, shifts
demand from farms to sites of concentrated labour for manufacturing.
NAFTA regulations, World Trade Agreements are shifting Canada's
economy North-South.
2. b) What needs to be done?
Rural development -- reallocate public funds targeting development of
Canada's rural economy. Keep tax dollars in the community.
Deregulate agriculture -- marketing boards should promote value-added
products and associated markets
Harmonize public policies -- specifically Canadian interprovincial
transportation regulations. Study the efficiency of Canada's transportation
supporting North/South trading and opening borders. Reduce the
involvement of government in the personal lives of Canadians.
Education reform -- must be a priority with parents setting priorities and
setting standards. Federal government should regulate the post-secondary
system.
Judicial reform -- judges must be accountable, must have deterrents with
consequences including the death penalty. Parents must be restored their
responsibility. The legal system must rewrite the laws governing juvenile
crime.
Knowledge workers -- trade is important but so are the traders. Promote
the importance of skilled trades. Establish northern incentives to attract
professionals needed to support community service infrastructure
particularly health and education.
Restore the family -- family regulations must be reversed and stop giving
opportunities to special interest extremes
3. What organizations should be involved in overcoming the
challenges?
All levels of government -- eliminate duplication of programs
Families and parents -- are responsible for children.
Canadians should be treated equally to be fair -- measures have
become extreme
Special groups with community interests -- Chambers of Commerce and
schools, education, municipal government, banking and health
Grass roots involvement --ensure local communities and residents
participate in decision making
4. What role do you see specifically for the federal
government in working with you to overcome these
challenges?
21st Century Review -- launch a review of government's role and
programs based on a vision of Canada for the next century.
Accountability -- laws must hold criminals accountable.
Financing -- small business support through improved bank/loan services.
Promote Credit Unions for Northern Alberta. Reduce EI premiums and
income taxes.
Incentive Policy -- study of incentives and lower taxes for rural areas.
Incentives for small businesses to hire more employees. Research into
fescues. Promote agriculture.
Environmental policy -- ensuring long term sustainability of water
supply
Economic development -- return wealth to the North as a target for
economic development and establish local economic development
committees for promoting value-added processing.
Competition -- protect competition in Canada. Policy/program
deregulation -- eliminating duplication between government and special
interests. Keep out of Provincial jurisdictions. Stick by legislation of the
day -- funding is not always the solution.
Telelearning -- extend the knowledge society for rural Canada through
extending information networks and favourable rules and regulations.
Improve CAP (Canadian Access Program) awareness for rural areas as a
grass roots initiative. Promote Vocational Colleges and distance education
for upgrading.
Marketing Canada -- Federal government participation is expected --
tourism and agriculture
Building trust -- ask for input and use it!
5. How can federal programs and services better support
your community's needs (e.g., are there changes needed in
the design, delivery, awareness or accessibility)?
Federal Programs -- should fit local demand, delivery and be designed to
fit rural Canada. Move federal bureaucracy to rural Canada.
Inform rural Canada -- rural Canadian must have access to information
to know what's available.
Promote value-added processing -- support the decentralization of
industry and production of finished products rather than the shipping of
raw material.
Small business support -- ensure access to capital for small businesses
and encourage their growth to get into trades and business. Increase tax
incentives.
Eliminate duplication -- and eliminate unnecessary programs. Federal
government should have responsibility for the common environment.
Establish rural specialists and advisory committees
Cut administration -- and Day Care subsidies; mothers should be at
home.
6. What is the best way for the Federal Government to
continue to hear the views of rural people on an ongoing
basis (e.g., meetings, surveys, polls, newsletters, advisory
groups, the Internet, etc.)?
Respond to the above
Surveys and newsletters.
Talk less and listen more
Trust local governments
Relocate federal employees to rural Canada. Decision makers should be
tested on their knowledge of rural Canada and its needs
Strengthen the rural voice by: (1) Electing a Senate comprised of an urban
and rural representative for each Province and (2) Establish Regional
Government (eliminating Provincial and some local governments now that
so much has been downloaded to regional/local levels
DISCLAIMER
All Rural Dialogue session reports on this Canadian Rural Partnership (CRP) web site are included for information purposes only. The views expressed in the Rural Dialogue session reports have not been edited and are those of one or many rural Canadians who attended the Rural Dialogue sessions.
The views expressed in the Rural Dialogue session reports do not necessarily represent the views of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada or any other department or agency of the Government of Canada. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada does not make any warranties, expressed or implied, as to the content and/or use of the Rural Dialogue session reports.
