Some initial work using graduate students from various universities will begin this summer at a few sites in Canada and the U.S. in order to test the methodology which has been set up, and a larger proposal will be developed as well, the purpose of which is to apply the methodology to a large number of sites across Canada. It is hoped that this project will provide insight into how hazard information and policy and insurance tools impact peoples' decisions, and that future policy tools will be able to benefit from this knowledge. This subject is of considerable current interest at a time when rural areas in developed market economies are undergoing considerable change. The chapters in the book examine the broad processes and structural changes that are common to all rural systems in developed countries. Different geographical contexts are used to illustrate the uneven development of these processes and the implications for sustainable agriculture and rural systems.
Authors provide both literature reviews and original research.
The book is aimed at not only rural geographers but also agricultural economists, rural sociologists and policy-makers concerned with rural studies. During both events sustainability was not only mentioned, but it was suggested that industry operating in some parts of Canada's boreal forest had achieved sustainable forest management. These presentations prompted staff and students to look for a venue to discuss sustainability claims by industry and contentions by other groups that management practices are not sustainable, and to consider broader issues in sustainability and forest management. The April 7th forum provided a setting for such a dialogue. At the conclusion panel members and forum participants discussed additional issues.