scholarly journals Super Network on the Prairie: The Discursive Framing of Broadband Connectivity by Policy Planners and Rural Residents in Alberta, Canada

2010 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 153-175 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Bakardjieva ◽  
Amanda Williams
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
Provincial Government ◽  
Multiple Perspectives ◽  
Departure Point ◽  
Individual Interviews ◽  
Research Initiative ◽  
Rural Broadband ◽  
Industry Policy

This paper focuses on the case of the SuperNet, an infrastructure project designed and sponsored by the provincial government of Alberta, Canada with the objective of providing broadband connectivity to public facilities, businesses and residences in rural communities. The data were collected through individual interviews, focus groups, and town hall meetings in the course of a collaborative research initiative (The SuperNet Research Alliance) that investigated the social construction of the broadband network from multiple perspectives. The objective of the paper is to examine in parallel the discourses in which the concept of broadband connectivity acquired meaning and substance at the levels of 1) provincial government and industry policy planners and 2) the residents of the rural communities who were the intended beneficiaries of the SuperNet. Using actor-network theory as a departure point, this analysis takes stock of the framing devices employed in the two sets of discourses and of the distinctive worldviews that generated them. It looks for the meeting points and the disjunctions between the grand visions and the grounded projections underlying the positions taken by the two respective categories of actors. Differences in the interpretation and appropriation of broadband among rural Albertans themselves are discerned and related to social factors characterizing different situations within rural areas. Rural broadband connectivity thus emerges not so much as a one-dimensional access equalizer for rural people, but as a complex mediator of opportunity, participation and identity.

scholarly journals Mapping of Potential Village-Owned Enterprises (BUMDes) for Rural Economic Recovery during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Central Java, Indonesia

2021 ◽  
Vol 887 (1) ◽  
pp. 012022
Author(s):  
A. Sofianto ◽  
T. Risandewi
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Provincial Government ◽  
Economic Resources ◽  
Economic Recovery ◽  
Economic Institutions ◽  
Central Java ◽  
The Government ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Village

Abstract For several years the Government of Indonesia has been initiating the growth of Village-Owned Enterprises (BUMDes), economic institutions that manage the village’s economic resources. The Central Java Provincial Government also provides incentives to establish BUMDes in most villages in Central Java. During the COVID-19 pandemic, some rural communities were affected, and the village economy stagnated. BUMDes is one of the village economic institutions that is expected to be able to drive the village economy in the era of the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aims to analyze the potential of BUMDes as a solution to handling the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in rural areas, especially from an economic aspect in Centra Java. This type of research is descriptive with the main qualitative approach assisted by quantitative (mixed method). The research technique used was a survey involving 337 villages. Respondents came from elements of village officials and BUMDes managers. The instrument used was through online media (google form). Data analysis used descriptive statistical techniques in the form of means and percentages. The conclusion of this study shows that BUMDes has the potential to play a role in economic recovery, but this function is not yet optimal. because the business sector managed by BUMDes is not based on the village’s superior potential, as well as the lack of a business development concept, weak human resource and capital capacity, and lack of cooperation.

scholarly journals Invited perspectives: Mountain roads in Nepal at a new crossroads

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 655-660 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen Sudmeier-Rieux ◽  
Brian G. McAdoo ◽  
Sanjaya Devkota ◽  
Purna Chandra Lal Rajbhandari ◽  
John Howell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Road Network ◽  
Good Governance ◽  
Current Trend ◽  
Road Construction ◽  
Provincial Government ◽  
Landslide Risk ◽  
Employment Education ◽  
Laws And Policies

Abstract. In Nepal and many developing countries around the world, roads are vehicles for development for communities in rural areas. By reducing travel time on foot, opportunities are opened for quicker transportation of goods and better access to employment, education, health care and markets. Roads also fuel migration and numerous social changes, both positive and negative. Poorly constructed roads in mountainous areas of Nepal have increased erosion and landslide risk as they often cut through fragile geology, destabilizing slopes and altering local hydrological conditions, with costs to lives and livelihoods. The convergence of the newly constituted decentralized Nepali government with China's Belt and Road Initiative is likely to bring more roads to rural communities. The new provincial government administrations now have the opportunity to develop policies and practices, which can realign the current trend of poorly engineered, inefficient and hazardous road construction toward a more sustainable trajectory. This commentary provides an overview of some of the obstacles along the way for a more sustainable road network in Nepal and illustrates how good governance, development and landslide risk are intertwined. The opinion presented in this brief commentary lends little hope that Nepal's current pathway of unsustainable road construction will provide the country with the much-needed sustainable road network, unless checks and balances are put in place to curb noncompliance with existing laws and policies.

scholarly journals A systematic framework for the evaluation of rural telecommunications infrastructure

2002 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Thiruthlall Nepal
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Evaluation Process ◽  
Soft Systems Methodology ◽  
Critical Systems Thinking ◽  
Critical Systems ◽  
Multiple Perspectives ◽  
Systems Methodology ◽  
Telecommunications Infrastructure ◽  
Rural Telecommunications

The evaluation of telecommunications infrastructure in rural areas is a complex and messy problem that involves many tangible and intangible factors. Some of them are technical in nature while others are soft, involving social, cultural and political aspects of the problem. The evaluation requires, inter alia, societal intervention, and since societies reflect a multiplicity and diversity of values and goals, the intervention should confront these realities. One such reality that can be highlighted is the fact that we are dealing with rural communities that are disadvantaged in terms of telecommunication and other service provision. This underlies the need to consider the evaluation process from multiple perspectives, explore methodologies that will facilitate participation and engagement, and include emancipation of the disadvantaged. This research proposes a framework for the evaluation of rural telecommunications in a regional context. As such, it is viewed not just as an engineering phenomenon, but also as an economic and social phenomenon. Its complexity requires the use of a mix of methods in a complementary manner. It is based on the combination of the strengths of Soft Systems Methodology by Checkland, Critical Systems Thinking following some ideas of Jackson ensuring the guaranteeing of the interests of the poor and the weak in the rural environment, and the Analytic Hierarchy Process by Saaty.

scholarly journals Ambiguity and Uncertainty in the “Last Mile”: Using Sense-making to Explore How Rural Broadband Networks Are Created

2012 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marco Adria ◽  
Dan Brown
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
High Speed ◽  
High Capacity ◽  
Provincial Government ◽  
Decision Makers ◽  
Easy Access ◽  
Broadband Networks ◽  
Global Networks ◽  
The World ◽  
Rural Broadband

Broadband technology has captured the attention of many stakeholders, nations, and governments throughout the world as a “nation building” infrastructure enabling the future economic prosperity and improved living standards for many communities. Broadband networks are an important means by which rural communities around the world can gain access to global networks of knowledge and communication. They are also a means by which nation-states and regions seek to increase their economic and cultural sovereignty. Rural broadband can therefore be seen as a critical nexus between global and local flows of both capital and ideas.In 2005, the provincial government of Alberta in Canada completed a significant investment into the construction of a unique high-speed, high-capacity fiber-optic network connecting rural communities throughout the province. The network was the first of its kind in the world in terms of the advantages it represented for rural individuals to benefit from easy access to broadband. Paradoxically, as of 2008 Alberta was ranked last among Canadian provinces for rural broadband access. This article examines how ambiguity and uncertainty faced by industry decision-makers and broadband stakeholders contribute to the adoption of broadband by rural communities. Interviews were conducted with industry decision-makers. Through the application of Weick’s sensemaking framework, several areas of ambiguity and uncertainty are identified related to rural broadband adoption. A primary finding is that self-fulfilling prophecies about the broadband network's construction and use developed through collective sensemaking processes, resulting in an immobilizing effect on the development of rural broadband's "effective use" by communities.

scholarly journals The “Closet” and “Out of the Closet” versus “Private Space” and “Public Space”: Indigenous Knowledge System as the Key to Understanding Same-Sex Sexualities in Rural Communities

Religions ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (9) ◽  
pp. 711
Author(s):  
Lindiwe P Khuzwayo-Magwaza
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Indigenous Knowledge ◽  
Public Space ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Qualitative Methodology ◽  
Private Life ◽  
Same Sex ◽  
Safe Place ◽  
Sexual Discourse ◽  
Individual Interviews

This paper is produced from the author’s Ph.D. project on indigenous same-sex sexualities. It interrogates the way same-sex sexualities or homosexuality is understood in the West and how the Western interpretations of sexualities and genders are imposed on African rural communities. The paper argues that such Western impositions impede our understanding of same-sex relationships, and it threatens any attempt made to bring sexual orientation awareness programmes to rural areas. The study is framed on African indigenous knowledge systems to accommodate African indigenous perspectives on same-sex sexualities. This approach introduces indigenised same-sex discourse into contemporary discourses. The study was conducted in rural communities of Kwa Zulu Natal (KZN), where families of same-sex individuals (SSI) reside. The research employed a qualitative methodology that involved SSI, families, traditional and Church leaders. Triangulation methods involve individual interviews, focus groups, and workshops, this method is meant to validate research findings. The results reveal that, before Western debates on African same-sex sexualities, the idea of the “closet or out of the closet” did not exist, instead people lived a private life. Meaning, approaching sexual discourse by respecting this choice gives people of different sexualities the privacy they want, and this is regarded as a “safe place” for them.

scholarly journals Improving rural broadband deployment with synergistic effects between multiple fixed infrastructures

2016 ◽  
Vol 20 ◽  
Author(s):  
Felix Limbach ◽  
Hannes Kuebel ◽  
Rüdiger Zarnekow
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Synergistic Effects ◽  
Cost Savings ◽  
Business Case ◽  
Network Topologies ◽  
Regulatory Measures ◽  
Rural Broadband ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Deployment Cost

The utilization of deployment synergies across infrastructure networks of different industries has been identified as a key to improve the broadband business case. Thus, an increasing number of broadband plans require owners of physical infrastructures such as the electricity, pipeline, highway and railroad networks to host broadband infrastructure. However, cross-industry cooperation brings about new complexity to optimal utilization of deployment synergies.This paper explores cost savings that can be achieved if national non-telecommunication infrastructures are considered as source for broadband networks in rural areas. Moreover, it assesses economic, political and regulatory measures required for improving synergy utilization. The presented approach is based on a techno-economic broadband deployment model, which is applied to all rural communities in Germany. Results indicate that synergy optimized network topologies can generally decrease rural broadband deployment cost. However, it is required that local authorities recognize the definition of broadband tender areas as a chance for the aggregation of demand. Moreover, national regulators need to ensure that metro-aggregation, backbone and co-location costs, which are associated with non-telecommunication infrastructures, do not exceed the costs of the incumbent by more than 50%.

TURNING FARMERS INTO SOCIAL FARMER ENTREPRENEURS FOR DISADVANTAGED PEOPLE

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Remus Runcan
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Health And Safety ◽  
Physical Work ◽  
Healthy Environment ◽  
Rural And Urban Areas ◽  
Rural Development Programme ◽  
Rural And Urban

According to Romania’s National Rural Development Programme, the socio-economic situation of the rural environment has a large number of weaknesses – among which low access to financial resources for small entrepreneurs and new business initiatives in rural areas and poorly developed entrepreneurial culture, characterized by a lack of basic managerial knowledge – but also a large number of opportunities – among which access of the rural population to lifelong learning and entrepreneurial skills development programmes and entrepreneurs’ access to financial instruments. The population in rural areas depends mainly on agricultural activities which give them subsistence living conditions. The gap between rural and urban areas is due to low income levels and employment rates, hence the need to obtain additional income for the population employed in subsistence and semi-subsistence farming, especially in the context of the depopulation trend. At the same time, the need to stimulate entrepreneurship in rural areas is high and is at a resonance with the need to increase the potential of rural communities from the perspective of landscape, culture, traditional activities and local resources. A solution could be to turn vegetal and / or animal farms into social farms – farms on which people with disabilities (but also adolescents and young people with anxiety, depression, self-harm, suicide, and alexithymia issues) might find a “foster” family, bed and meals in a natural, healthy environment, and share the farm’s activities with the farmer and the farmer’s family: “committing to a regular day / days and times for a mutually agreed period involves complying with any required health and safety practices (including use of protective clothing and equipment), engaging socially with the farm family members and other people working on and around the farm, and taking on tasks which would include working on the land, taking care of animals, or helping out with maintenance and other physical work”

scholarly journals Tackling Rural Health, Energy, … and Technological Issues All at Once: A Call for a Global Interdisciplinary Platform for Strengthening Rural Setting Amid the COVID-19 Pandemic

Challenges ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 16
Author(s):  
Farshad Amiraslani
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Rural Health ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Rural Setting ◽  
Global Challenges ◽  
Rural Settings ◽  
Research Studies

The recent COVID-19 pandemic has revealed flaws in rural settings where most people live without the necessary tools, income, and knowledge to tackle such unprecedented global challenges. Here, I argue that despite the research studies conducted on rural areas, these have not solved rising rural issues, notably poverty and illiteracy. I propound a global institute to be formed by governments that provides a platform for empowering rural communities through better training, skills, and competencies. Such global endeavour will ensure the remaining rural communities withstand future pandemics if they occur.

scholarly journals Solid Biomass Energy Potential as a Development Opportunity for Rural Communities

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (12) ◽  
pp. 3398
Author(s):  
Mariusz Jerzy Stolarski ◽  
Paweł Dudziec ◽  
Michał Krzyżaniak ◽  
Ewelina Olba-Zięty
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Biomass Energy ◽  
Energy Sources ◽  
Energy Potential ◽  
Development Opportunity ◽  
Biomass Resources ◽  
Administrative Units ◽  
Solid Biomass

Conventional energy sources often do not fully satisfy the needs of a modern economy, especially given the climate changes associated with them. These issues should be addressed by diversification of energy generation, including the development of renewable energy sources (RES). Solid biomass will play a major part in the process in Poland. The function of rural areas, along with a well-developed agricultural and forest economy sector, will be a key aspect in this as these areas are suitable for solid biomass acquisition in various ways. This study aimed to determine the solid biomass energy potential in the commune of Goworowo to illustrate the potential in the smallest administrative units of Poland. This research determined the environmental and natural conditions in the commune, which helped to identify the crucial usable solid biomass resources. The total energy potential of solid biomass resources in the commune of Goworowo amounted to 97,672 GJ y−1. The highest potential was accumulated in straw surplus (37,288 GJ y−1) and the lowest was in wood from roadside maintenance (113 GJ y−1). This study showed that rural areas could soon play a significant role in obtaining solid biomass, and individual communes could become spaces for the diversification of energy feedstock.

scholarly journals Moving beyond Limitations: Designing the Helpdys App for Children with Dyslexia in Rural Areas

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (13) ◽  
pp. 7081
Author(s):  
Andres Larco ◽  
Jorge Carrillo ◽  
Nelson Chicaiza ◽  
Cesar Yanez ◽  
Sergio Luján-Mora
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Rating Scale ◽  
Language Disorder ◽  
Educational Games ◽  
Mobile App ◽  
Literacy Skills ◽  
Full Potential ◽  
Positive Contribution ◽  
Self Confidence

Dyslexia is a relatively common language disorder which is generally ignored in rural communities. It hinders children’s learning processes and, in some cases, is the cause of dropouts or violence in schools. The present work strives to create a web and mobile app as a preliminary step towards the diagnosis and treatment of dyslexic children. Apps providing didactic educational games and activities improve literacy skills for students with reading disabilities. The current work incorporates user experience and prototyping to fulfill app requirements. The authors evaluated the apps with the Mobile App Rating Scale (MARS) tool to assess engagement, functionality, aesthetics, and information. The app’s improvements were immediately implemented and tested in the “Escuela Linea Equinoccial” (Ecuador) school, proving its utility for future use in the education system. The app can be a valuable tool for children with dyslexia to progress successfully through school, raising their self-confidence and, thereby, helping them reach their full potential as adults able to make a positive contribution to society.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document