Seventy-seven Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking agricultural change agents from developing Central and South American countries responded to a questionnaire which sought perceptions of the roles in which the change agents felt they were involved and the roles for which they felt they were being trained. The agents were participating in training…

The past and historical future of the Partnership for Rural Improvement (PRI) and its model for rural planning and development are explored. Evolution of the rural-urban conceptual dichotomy is reviewed. Rural is perceived as a state of being rather than a place. Implications of the PRI experience for new knowledge and skills in rural community…

This paper describes the major international agricultural information services, sources, and systems; outlines the existing information situation in Tanzania as it relates to problems of agricultural development; and reviews the improvements in information provision resources required to support the process of agricultural development in Tanzania.…

A 1975-79 study assessing community satisfaction and migration intentions in 8 nonmetropolitan Utah communities ranging in population from 1,350 to 6,300 had 3 unique characteristics: (1) the use of distance from the community to the closest Standard Metropolitan Statistical Area (SMSA), per capita sales tax, and energy development status as…

Appendix I presents national inventories and analyses of the problems, objectives, and instruments pertinent to the rural areas of 21 countries. Data, including land area, agricultural ratio, and report and map sources, are provided for Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Federal Republic of Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland,…

Investigation indicated factors other than human resource variables must be used to understand unemployment status. Based on a 1979 survey of a random sample (N=640) of rural adult California residents from a multi-county development district, 15 human resource development factors (including educational level, job training, match of work skills…

Widespread provision of non-entertainment services by way of telecommunications can have a significant impact on rural growth and public services and on rural-urban migration patterns if the mix of these services and the places where they are to be introduced are chosen within the context of a national rural policy, and if local residents perceive…

Communications is critical to community development, especially rural communities that are poor, immobile and at a distance from a major metropolitan area. The isolation of these communities comes out of a need for cohesiveness within a system that functions for them. There is some mutual support between their economic, political, and social…

This discussion of satellite services for education and rural development in less developed countries emphasizes the importance of adequate telephone systems to support development programs. Programs in Peru, Indonesia, and the West Indies are highlighted, and current and future problems in planning satellite systems are reviewed. (LRW)

Rural development is rarely defined and there is no clear definition of what the development process intends to accomplish. The nature of the larger economy in which rural places must operate has changed in ways that reduce the relative advantage of most rural areas and have left them struggling to define new economic functions. The political…

Wesley College, a private urban secondary school, sought a rural location where ninth-grade students could spend a term in a community-based, experientially-derived curriculum to enhance their sense of self and community. The small town of Clunes, in Victoria (Australia), accepted Wesley's initiative and since 2000, Wesley has operated a campus…

American rural communities are decaying, the underlying causes being chronic unemployment and inadequate infrastructure. The information age can cause the ultimate demise of rural America by further eroding local institutions or it can be its savior by revitalizing the sense of community. The link between community development and the information…

As a new form of infrastructure is being developed across the vast prairie of Nebraska, electronic pioneers are leading the way to the information age. This paper describes some of those pioneers and their work. The University of Nebraska has been among the leaders in developing the Internet and applications for it. The university established one…

This case study examines the interaction between basic education (primary education, adult literacy, and nonformal adult education) and economic development needs in rural Zhuji County, Zhejiang Province, located in southeast China. In Zhuji, parents traditionally have endured hardships to send their children to school and otherwise encouraged…

Rural people in their environment have the necessary attributes to successfully endure and survive those trials that would lead to urban decline. As societal problems require increased investment in existing institutions, the growing complexity eventually yields a lower level of benefits or returns. Urban problems such as hunger, homelessness, and…