America's rural communities are facing increasing challenges to the provision of equitable services and economic stability. Two major rural concerns are the lack of educational opportunities and resources and potentially inadequate telecommunications infrastructures for economic development. In order to attain economic and educational parity with…

From 1979 to 1982 an extension education program provided assistance to the tourism industry in rural communities adjoining northeastern Minnesota's Boundary Waters Canoe Area (BWCA). Program activities involved needs assessment, educational and technical assistance to communities and tourism-related firms, marketing programs, grants management…

This book consists of 17 essays about living with the land and the importance of reinvigorating the values of rural life. The essays include personal reflections about growing up in rural Minnesota and opinions about the state of neglected rural towns and people. The author grew up during the 1950s on an 80-acre farm that his family rented in…

Case studies of local development projects in Scotland, Norway, Australia, and the United States (Minnesota) indicate that federal education programs of a "generative" nature (those linking educational improvement to other improvement efforts, emphasizing process, and stimulating grass-roots participation) are most likely to promote…