Published by Communications and Public Affairs (519) 824-4120, Ext. 56982 or 53338
News Release
September 19, 2002
U of G Rural Studies Conference looks at human-nature connections
The third annual Rural Studies Conference will be held Oct. 4 from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the University of Guelph, with speakers addressing the theme “People and Place: Fragile Tensions. Sustainable Development in Rural and Remote Communities.”
The conference is organized by students in the doctoral rural studies program, a co-sponsored college program shared between the Ontario Agricultural College and the College of Social and Applied Human Sciences. It has become an important venue where students and scholars concerned with rural sustainability can come together and share their research and new ideas.
“There is a heightened awareness of the need for people to renew their ties to place and to nature,” said Wanda George, PhD candidate in the School of Environmental Design and Rural Development. Tanya Korovkin of the University of Waterloo, Ralph Matthews of the University of British Columbia and Henry Veltmeyer of St. Mary’s University will show how people of rural and remote communities influence nature through their economic, political and social systems.
Korovkin is the author of Politics of Agricultural Co-operativism in Peru and a contributor to “Latin American Perspectives, Economic Development and Cultural Change” in the Journal of Peasant Studies. Matthews is the past president of the Canadian Sociology and Anthropology Association and is the principal investigator of the projects “Resilient Communities” and “Aquaculture and Community.” Veltmeyer is the author of Globalization Unmasked, Transcending Neoliberalism: Community-Based Development in Latin America and is the associate editor of the Canadian Journal of Development Studies.
"We are very excited about this year's conference," said George. "There is a growing body of research and literature on issues surrounding rural sustainability. Along with our visiting scholars from various regions of Canada, our own students here at the University of Guelph have been working on some groundbreaking research on this subject."
The fee for the conference, including lunch and refreshments, is $15 for students and $25 for non-students. Tickets can be bought in advance for a $5 discount by contacting George at wanda.george@sympatico.ca by Sept. 22. The conference takes place at the Cutten Club, 190 College Ave. E.
For media questions, contact Communications and Public Affairs, 519-824-4120, Ext. 6982.
