Developing Rural Policies to Meet the Needs of a Changing World

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www.oecd.org/gov/regional/QuebecCanada

Pre-conference | Conference | Optional Field Visits | Further Information

Welcome to the official webpage for the conference "Developing Rural Policies to Meet the Needs of a Changing World". The conference took place on 13-15 October 2009 in Québec, Canada at the Québec City Conference Centre and was co-hosted by the Government of Canada and the Government of Québec. This event has 3 parts: Pre-conference Activities, the Main Conference and Optional Field Visits (15-17 October 2009).

© Ministère du Tourisme du Québec / Marc Archambault

The OECD Annual Rural Development Conference was organised by the Directorate of Public Governance and Territorial Development to allow policy makers from OECD countries to examine current rural policy issues and to engage in a wider dialogue with the private sector, non-governmental organisations, civil society and academics.

Conference Agenda and Summary

Agenda

Summary

Pre-conference Activities

This year, the pre-conference activities included Exhibits and Workshops:

Participants were able to learn more about Québec’s rural development policy at the Rural Innovation Exhibitor Show. Exhibits on local as well as initiatives from other Canadian provinces will be on display. There will also be rural laboratories that feature economic, social, cultural, environmental development and specialty products plus applied research on a range of topics including energy production in rural areas and rural-urban linkages.

In addition, there were 4 Open and Closed Door Pre-Conference Workshops that provide an opportunity to discuss certain themes in greater detail. The workshops were as follows:

OECD Rural Review Québec Canada (Open to All) - A presentation of the preliminary findings from the Rural Review by the OECD study team
Single-Industry Towns in Russia (by invitation) - A panel of Russian experts and policy makers discuss the challenges and opportunities for single industry towns in Russia.
Rural Development Policy in Latin America (Open to All) A workshop organised by RIMISP - Latin American Center for Rural Development on rural trends, opportunities and policy responses in Brazil, Chile and Mexico.
Thinking Rural: Rural Lens, Mainstreaming and Rural Proofing (by invitation) - A roundtable discussion by Rural Secretariat, Government of Canada and Rural Division, DEFRA United Kingdom.

Main Conference

The main conference included a mix of plenary and parallel workshops covering the following:

Responding to the financial crisis and recession in rural areas
Relaunching devitalized areas and single industry towns
Reimagining the forests: potential for forest-based rural development
New sources of energy production and transmission
Rethinking the new demography of rural communities
Climate change: policy implications in rural areas
Strategies to enhance the local food industry
Local government and declining fiscal capacity: adjustment mechanisms
Rural tourism: implementing “cutting edge” schemes
Identifying appropriate responses for rural development policy: a roundtable discussion

Optional Field Visits

This year, the post conference field visits took the form of 3 separate rural tours. Each tour was linked to a conference topic and was designed to provide an in-depth look at the policy approaches undertaken in Québec related to that topic. On each tour, there will be an opportunity to meet representatives of municipal bodies, local firms and organisations, tour projects and interact with the project developers.

Participants interested in the rural visits will be asked to choose from one of the following: